They’re Sold on Cotton 100%

In the end, UCLA figures it’s better to be seduced than to have to do the seducing, which is reason enough to be happy about playing Texas A&M; in the Cotton Bowl on New Year’s Day.

“I’m tired of all the politics,” quarterback Cade McNown said. “I just want to play.”

Most of the politics involved the bowl alliance, which made the selections known Sunday for the Orange, Sugar and Fiesta bowls, then left the rest of college football to sort itself out.

The Cotton Bowl quickly made the game it was been planning for a month.

“I know the Cotton Bowl wants us bad,” Bruin tackle Chad Overhauser said. “They’ve been here to visit us. It’s another game in Texas for us. They want us, and that makes us feel great. We’re happy to be in a New Year’s bowl game as the Pac-10 co-champions.”

For six days, the Bruins’ holiday destination was not clear because they were ranked fifth in the nation by the Associated Press, sixth by the coaches, and sought a presence and $8.5-million payout in an alliance bowl--most notably the Sugar--as recognition for a 9-2 season that ended with nine consecutive wins.

The problem was a history of poor fan support for out-of-town bowls and, for that matter, even the Rose Bowl after a 1993 incident in which 4,000 tickets were sold from UCLA’s allotment for the game against Wisconsin to a booster, Angelo Mazzone, because Bruin officials were not sure the team’s supporters would buy them.

As part of the bid to get UCLA to New Orleans, the Pacific 10 Conference stepped up with a plan to subsidize fans’ trips to the Sugar Bowl out of the revenues the league would get from that game.

“Fan support has increased,” Coach Bob Toledo said. “We drew over 86,000 for our game against Washington. And this week, I’ve gotten a lot of phone calls, e-mails and faxes about going to the game. A lot of people are jumping on our bandwagon.”

With that in mind, the Sugar had worked out a scenario that would have had UCLA playing Auburn in New Orleans if the Tigers had beaten Tennessee for the Southeastern Conference championship. Instead, Auburn lost, 30-29, leaving No. 4 Florida State--which travels poorly--for the New Orleans game against Ohio State, a good bowl traveler.

“We did indeed struggle between UCLA and Ohio State,” Paul Hoolahan, the Sugar Bowl’s executive director, said. “If you’re asking me point blank if that was part of the consideration, to some degree, yes. Our concern related to ticket sales and travel with UCLA.”

The Cotton expressed no such concern, although UCLA has 15,000 tickets at $55 each to sell for the game. The only other time the Bruins played in Dallas, in 1989, they sold fewer than 4,000 tickets to see Troy Aikman quarterback UCLA to a 17-3 victory over Arkansas.

But that’s the past, and the Bruins would prefer to look forward to Texas A&M.;

There are several links between the teams, though they have played each other only three times, with the Aggies winning two of the games. They have not met since 1955.

Still, it will be like old home week to many.

One is Toledo, who sought Sunday to dispel some of the perceived animosity between himself and the Texas A&M; football hierarchy.

“I want to make this clear from the start, this is not a Bob Toledo-R.C. Slocum deal,” said Toledo. “It’s UCLA-Texas A&M.;”

Toledo spent five seasons as the Aggie offensive coordinator and was fired by Slocum after Texas A&M; lost three consecutive Cotton Bowls.

“I have a high regard for Bob Toledo as a football coach,” Slocum said. “He did a great job here at Texas A&M.; He was on my first staff there.”

Slocum added that he recommended Toledo to former Bruin coach Terry Donahue for the job as UCLA’s offensive coordinator. Toledo spent two seasons in that capacity before succeeding Donahue as the Bruin coach.

Another UCLA-Texas A&M; tie involves Aggie offensive coordinator Steve Marshall, who spent last season as the Bruin offensive line coach.

“I didn’t really get to say goodbye to Steve Marshall,” Overhauser said. “I imagine he’ll be telling all of Texas A&M;’s defensive linemen about us.”

One of the reasons Marshall was hired was to bring back some of Toledo’s offense.

“There are similarities,” Slocum said, “but I’ll tell you what: We don’t pass the ball like UCLA does.”

Part of that is because the Aggies don’t have McNown, the NCAA passing efficiency leader, as their quarterback. Instead, they have Branndon Stewart, who also has a history with UCLA.

Stewart began his college career at Tennessee, and his first game was against the Bruins at the Rose Bowl in 1994. Volunteer starter Jerry Colquitt was knocked from the game early, and Stewart came off the bench and was relatively ineffective.

He was replaced by Peyton Manning, who has stayed around Knoxville, Tenn., long enough to be in contention for the Heisman Trophy.

Stewart sized up the Manning situation quickly and headed for College Station, where he threw for 1,423 yards in the Aggies’ 12 games--including the 54-15 loss to Nebraska on Saturday that got them into the Cotton Bowl--and has 10 touchdown passes, against four interceptions.

And finally there is UCLA running back Skip Hicks, who will have a homecoming in his last college game. Hicks, who has rushed for an even 3,000 yards as a Bruin, hails from Wichita Falls, Texas, about a two-hour drive from Dallas.

The game is a reward for a 9-2 season, but it’s also a reminder to the Bruins of the future.

“We’ve accomplished all of our goals since the second week of the season,” Overhauser said.

The first week, Aug. 30 actually, involved a 37-34 loss to Washington State that kept UCLA out of the Rose Bowl.

“I think we’ve learned from all of this,” said McNown. “Every game, every play is important. The first week cost us the Rose Bowl. We’ll remember that from the first game on next season.”

*

COTTON BOWL

UCLA (9-2)

vs.

Texas A&M; (9-3)

* When: Jan. 1, 10:30 a.m.

* Where: Dallas

* TV: Channel 2

NO BOWL: USC’s second consecutive season without a bowl appearance officially ended with a 6-5 record. Next up, will John Robinson return? C10