The Michigan Daily - Friday, December 3, 1993 - 17 Rose Bowl awaits Tokyo showdown Badgers Pasadena bound with victory over Michigan State MADISON, Wis. (AP) - Wisconsin's road to the Rose Bowl goes through Tokyo, where there are fewer distractions than at home. The 10th-ranked Badgers take on No. 25 Michigan State in Tokyo Sat- urday in the final Big Ten game of the season - the game that will decide whether the Badgers go to the Rose Bowl for the first time in three de- cades. Wisconsin coach Barry Alvarez says Tokyo might be the perfect place for his Badgers to escape the Rose Bowl hype. "People talk about distractions in Tokyo, but I'm not too sure we wouldn't have more distractions if we were here, with people calling about tickets all the time," Alvarez said Monday. "Every phone call to our office is about the Rose Bowl. We're not even there yet." Tackle Joe Panos said the Badger players are well aware that the Spar- tans, who lost 38-37 to Penn State Saturday, are in good position to shat- ter Wisconsin's quest for a Rose Bowl invitation with an upset. "If I was in their position, there's nothing I'd rather do than go (to To- kyo) and knock us out of the Rose Bowl," Panos said. "That's their mo- tivation." A Wisconsin win would give the Badgers (8-1-1) a share of the confer- ence title and their first trip to the Rose Bowl since they lost to Southern California 42-37 on Jan. 1, 1963. If Michigan State wins or ties, Ohio State (9-1-1) gets the Rose Bowl berth against UCLA, the Pac-10 rep- resentative. Panos called the Michigan State game the biggest of his career, bigger than this fall's 13-10 win over Michi- gan and 14-14 tie with Ohio State. "You realize you're playing for the Big Ten championship," the 290- pound senior said. "This is the big- gest game of our entire life. You don't need any extra motivation. We can't get any higher." Defensive back Reggie Holt said Wisconsin's open date last Saturday enabled the Badgers to begin focus- ing early on the Spartans. "We have an advantage because we've got our game plan developed," Holt said. "Things now are starting to build up. We're not going over there just to have fun. We've got to remain focused." Alvarez has had the players wear- ing dark glasses and holding drills progressively later in the evening to combat the effects of jet lag from the long trip to Japan. The coach said he consulted with "a sleeping disorder specialist who had worked with astronauts" in devis- ing a routine to prepare his team for the 15-hour flight. "I thought it made sense," Alvarez said. "It might give us some type of an edge. I'm looking for any kind of an edge I can get." The schedule included watching a midnight movie Sunday night, hold- ing an 11:30 p.m. Monday practice session and boarding a bus to Chi- cago at 2 a.m. today. The flight to Tokyo was scheduled to depart from Chicago at 3 p.m. Alvarez, who has visited Japan, said the team's menus will consist of American food prior to the game, but after that the selections will be up to team members. 'I'd like our players to try their food, particularly after the game," he said. AP PHOT[O Wisconsin quarterback Darrell Bevell lets one go at his team's practice in Tokyo. The 10th-ranked Badgers take on No. 25 Michigan State Saturday. West Virginia, Notre Dame in the *running for Sugar Bowl berth CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) - West Virginia, which lost a national title to Notre Dame in the 1989 Fiesta Bowl, appears to be locked into an- other big battle with the Irish - for the right to play in the $4.15 million Sugar Bowl." "Everybody wants Notre Dame," a source close to the bowl negotia- tions said Tuesday. "Their TV ratings are light years ahead of everyone in college football." Bowl officials indicated that West Virginia's first choice is the Sugar Bowl. But it was unclear whether the Mountaineers or Notre Dame would be the Sugar Bowl's first choice to play No. 9 Florida (9-2) or No. 16 Alabama (8-2-1), who play for the Southeastern Conference champion- ship Saturday. "We have not addressed that," said Troy Mathieu, executive director of the Sugar Bowl. The way things stand now, the Sugar Bowl might not get a choice. The Cotton Bowl is in line to pick first under the bowl coalition format. If the Cotton picks No. 3 West Virginia (11-0), and the Mountain- eers, champions of the Big East Con- ference pass, then the coalition must send them to the Sugar Bowl. "The Big East champion and ACC champion and Notre Dame must play in the Orange, Sugar or Cotton ... unless it's 1 vs. 2," said Rick Baker, executive director of the Cotton Bowl. "So obviously if West Virginia passes to the Sugar Bowl, again there is no other option." But the whole scenario could change by Sunday, the day the final regular-season rankings are released and bowl invitations officially can be extended. If the rankings shake up enough, it's possible the Sugar Bowl could pick first. And it's also possible the Sugar Bowl committee might opt for No. 5 Notre Dame (10-1) and its megabucks TV following, although officials for the panel aren't saying. If the Sugar gets Notre Dame, the Cotton won't be complaining about landing West Virginia. The Moun- taineers probably will be upset, though, about missing out on the $1.5 million more the Sugar pays per team than the Cotton. "If we have the opportunity, I don't think it's any secret that the Cotton Bowl this year would like to invite the highest ranked team possible to play Texas A&M," Baker said. "And if you're looking at the poll now, that would be West Virginia. And as everyone knows, they have the option to pass. And we've been informed that they're considering that option." There's apparently another player behind the scenes - NBC. "A home run for NBC is Notre Dame in the Cotton so they don't have to compete against themselves at 8 o'clock on Jan. 1," said a bowl source, who asked not to be identified. If we have the opportunity, I don't think it's any secret that the Cotton Bowl this year would like to invite the highest ranked team possible to play Texas A&M.' - Rick Baker Cotton Bowl executive director Notre Dame has a contract with NBC, which also will telecast the Orange Bowl. The Sugar Bowl, telecast by ABC, is broadcast in the same prime time slot as the Orange Bowl. If Notre Dame plays in the Sugar, it could cost NBC's telecast of the Orange Bowl valuable rating points. West Virginia officials would not confirm any reports Tuesday. They said the university was continuing to weigh its options and would not act until it was offered an invitation. Notre Dame officials said they still weren't sure where theIrish would play Jan. 1. The Orange Bowl, with an ex- pected matchup between No. I Florida State (11-1) and No. 2 Nebraska (11- 0), is staying free of the fuss. AP PHOTO Michigan State coach George Perles and Wisconsin coach Barry Alvarez visit on the plane to Tokyo. Their teams will battle Saturday in the final Big Ten game of the season, with a Rose Bowl berth at stake for the Badgers. Here is the bowl situation for the seven Big Ten teams in the running for postseason play. Only Michigan, Indiana and Iowa have already received bids. 4,, MICHIGAN: Hall of Fame (Tampa, Fla). vs. North Carolina State Wisconsin: Rose (Pasadena) vs. UCLA or Holiday (San Diego) vs. Wyoming Ohio State: Rose, Citrus (Orlando, Fla.) vs. Tennessee or Holiday Penn State: Citrus or Holiday Iowa: Alamo (San Antonio, Texas) vs. California Indiana: Independence (Shreveport, La.) vs. Virginia Tech Michigan State: Liberty (Memphis, Tenn.) vs. Louisville w ; tM r HOLDj OL U Look for the Hall of Fame Bowl preview in SPORTSMonday. 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