Regret Passing Up on Penn State Yet?
Okay, I’ve said it multiple times in the past 24 hours, since Penn State’s bowl fate became known, and when it was revealed that Orlando, not Miami or Glendale, would be the host to the Nittany Lions: I’m not bummed out that we’re going to the Capital One Bowl. I’ve laid out my reasons why in another post, and don’t feel like rehashing that argument.
But I offer this post as a humble reminder to the powers at be why you don’t mess with Penn State. With the largest alumni association in the country, and a rabid fan base, we’re the exact kind of team you want to showcase in your bowl game. Take a look at the Google Trends page from last night, taken after the bowl announcements.
That’s right, “penn state bowl game 2010” was first, and “capital one bowl 2010” was fourth, higher than any other team or bowl game. More people wanted to find out about the Capital One Bowl than even the BCS Championship Game, or any other Bowl. That’s thousands of Penn State fans flooding Google to try and get information about their favorite team, and, probably, buying tickets and figuring out their flight plan to Orlando. You’ll notice that the Fiesta Bowl comes in 5th, behind each of those search terms, and the Orange Bowl, which picked Iowa instead of Penn State, is way down there at 12. More people want to see the “snl tiger woods skit” than the Iowa-Georgia Tech matchup in the Orange Bowl.
Let this be a notice to the Fiesta Bowl and the Orange Bowl: you could’ve had Penn State, and its legion of fan support. You could’ve had a sellout, and a giant TV audience. Never underestimate the power of the Nittany Lion fanbase. And when PSU-LSU draws better TV ratings, and better attendance than either of those BCS games, we’ll have the last laugh.
The next time Penn State is on the fringe of the BCS, I have a sneaking suspicion we’ll get that bid. Sure, you rewarded the deserving team, but that won’t change anything when nobody cares about your game. Kudos to the selection committees, for sticking to their morals this time and rewarding merit over money, but I just can’t say it’s a decision made in their own best interests.
And this comes with an ultimatum to Penn State fans: we need to make our voices heard! Get to the Capital One Bowl, and be loud and Penn State proud. Let’s sell that place out. Watch the game on TV, and make sure we have the best ratings. We want the Fiesta Bowl and Orange Bowl to be hanging their heads on New Years Day, watching Penn State play a great game in the Capital One Bowl and wonder, ah, jeez, why did we take Boise State and Iowa instead?
edit: Sounds like I’m not the only one with that plan. A Facebook Group called “Get the Capital One bowl a higher TV rating than the Orange/Fiesta Bowl” has sprung up overnight, and already has 2000 members. Sign up, and remember: next time, we’ll be in Glendale or Miami.
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Devon 
Kevin 