How old are you? The Cotton Bowl used to be a Major Bowl, the Fiesta

[joeybee12]

Bowl used to be squat.

Doesn't seem that long ago to me.

[BOSSHOG]

1. 40 years ago today

Texas at Arkansas Nixon in attendance (and Bill Clinton climbed up a tree and protested Nixon's visit, if you believe the teabaggers of the day.) Actually Clinton was in England on that day but who the fuck cares about facts? The winner of that game of the century (Texas) went to the Big Game in the Big Bowl - The Cotton!

The Cotton Bowl, hosted by the champion of the SWC (The SEC of its time.)

[joeybee12]

2. 1978 Notre Dame played Texas for the National Title...

...Nd had one loss, Texas was undefeated.

[BOSSHOG]

3. Yeah 1978

ND had one loss. Arkansas had one loss. ND won its bowl game. Arkansas kicked the crap out of Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl in a very impressive win (with Lou Holtz as coach.) And what was the rationale for the choice of national champion that year?

[joeybee12]

4. Did Arkansas lose to Texas?

That's why...the National Championship in football has always been considered a "mythical championship"...in 1973 one poll gave it to Alabama, then they lost to ND in the Sugar Bowl. The difference today is that the BCS makes it more mythical, and they try to claim the BCS "science" has made it legit.

[BOSSHOG]

5. Joey, who did ND lose to that year?

Look it up. It will lend credence to "mythical."

Yeah Alabama was "national champs" in 64, they were undefeated, so was Arkansas. Bama lost their bowl, Arkansas didn't.

[joeybee12]

6. In 1993 ND beat FSU...then lost its next game, they gave the title to FSU

and you know if ND had lost that one game earlier in the season, they would have gotten the national title...I can come up with just as many times showing it going against the irish as you can showing that they benefited.

[El Supremo]

7. And there used to be a Cotton Bowl Parade.

It was usually so cold that few showed up.

My gawd, the Cotton Bowl now holds about 100,000. But the game is now in Arlington's Jerry Dome.

What a crock!

[1gobluedem]

8. The biggies I remember

Rose, Cotton, Orange, Sugar, and Peach. And wasn't there a Tangerine Bowl? Is that what became the Citrus Bowl? Or was that the Gator Bowl?

Too many now, in my opinion.

[El Supremo]

9. The Sun Bowl is the second oldest.

[a la izquierda]

14. Well, lucky us, we get to go to El Paso...

this year:eyes:
We might not even win *this* one. Here's hoping no Sooners get arrested south of the border.

[El Supremo]

15. Arrested?

Juárez is a war zone with more deaths than in Afghanistan. I hope you Okies aren't so stupid to try to party over there.

[a la izquierda]

17. I know Juarez is a warzone...

I live in Mexico part time. It was a joke, considering the propensity of our team to remember how to do everything but play leading up to bowl games.

I'm sure they'll all be kept on very tight leashes down there. But there's no way in hell I'm going to El Paso-I'd have thought about the Alamo Bowl, but not El Paso.

[argyl]

10. The Cotton Bowl was out of the BCS Bowl mix because of blue norther ice storms

and the possibility of the Championship game being played at 8 degrees F on a sheet of ice.If the Cotton Bowl had been a larger,less decrepit,and domed stadium it would probably still be one of the Big Four New Years Day Bowls that it was when I was a kid.

That's my understanding of why the Fiesta upstaged the Cotton.Our winters are mild compared to the rest of the country but ice storms with -25 F windchills aren't that rare.Pasadena,Tempe,New Orleans,and Miami,you don't have these storms.

The demise of the Southwest Conference factored into it as well.Wouldn't be surprised if Jerry's Palace makes it into the BCS Bowl mix in the near future.

But it was one of the big four when I was a kid in the 60's. If my memory serves me I believe the Sugar was first,then the Cotton,then the Rose, and the Orange Bowl was always played at night.

[joeybee12]

20. Ah, the 1979 Cotton Bowl...38-37 win by Notre Dame, about 10 people in the stands..

...major ice storm came through...wicked, wicked weather.

[Bluzmann57]

11. Four Bowls on New Year's Day

Rose, Orange, Sugar and Cotton. Yeah, I'm old enough to remember that.

[El Supremo]

12. And Sun, dammit!

Peach and Gator too.

Bluebonnet on New Year's Eve.

[joeybee12]

19. In 1973, the Sugar Bowl was played on New Year's Eve....

..not sure if that was the tradition until then, or just that one time.

[Captain Hilts]

13. Cotton, Sugar, Orange and Rose. That was it. It's enough. nt

[DaveinMD]

16. the days of the Southwestern Conference

I once went to the Fiesta Bowl. Michigan beat Nebraska. My cousins in AZ took me. Great fun.

[PVnRT]

18. I can just barely remember the Cotton Bowl being big

If I remember right, the Fiesta Bowl used to just be an extra game for Arizona State.

[wilt the stilt]

21. I liked the old days

when it was wrapped up on New Year's day. BCS is no better than the old way.

[Iggo]

22. I always wondered why the Cotton Bowl wasn't one of the 4 BCS bowls.

Probably money.

[OKNancy]

23. The stadium

the actual Cotton Bowl stadium is old and run down. I went to every Texas - OU game from 1967 to 1975. LOL back in the 1960's they were still throwing furniture out the windows of the Adolphus hotel. It was a wild time. It was getting pretty seedy already.

[El Supremo]

24. I was at one of those games.

Got to see LBJ in person before he died.

[Iggo]

25. Oh, I hadn't thought of that.

Of course they'd've wanted modern facilities, or at least upgrades.

That makes sense.