Navy bowling in Poinsettia; CSU likely foe
By Brent Schrotenboer
STAFF WRITER
November 22, 2005
The Poinsettia Bowl finally has its dream team - for this year and every few years after that.
After weeks of heavy wooing by Poinsettia officials, Navy (6-4) yesterday accepted an invitation to play in the inaugural bowl, probably against Colorado State (6-5). The game, title-sponsored by the San Diego County Credit Union, is set for 7:30 p.m. Dec. 22 at Qualcomm Stadium.
Additionally, Navy and the Poinsettia Bowl have worked out an agreement that virtually would guarantee Navy a berth in the game every three to five years as the game's at-large participant. The Midshipmen will have the opportunity to play in the Poinsettia Bowl in 2008, 2009 or 2010 - provided they're bowl eligible.
"We want to try to get them into a regular rotation, every three, four or five years," Poinsettia Bowl Executive Director Bruce Binkowski said.
The driving force behind that is Navy's drawing power and the large Navy presence in San Diego County. Navy took 20,000 and 18,000 fans the last two years to the Houston and Emerald bowls. This year, Navy Athletic Director Chet Gladchuk said he expects to bring at least 20,000, which could boost the Poinsettia's attendance to near 40,000. The guaranteed payout for both teams is $750,000.
Navy also had been wooed by other bowls, including the Liberty Bowl, which offered a bigger payout ($1.35 million). Those bowls asked Navy to wait while the bowl picture sorted out. But Gladchuk said he wanted to make a decision well before its game against Army on Dec. 3. Persistent Poinsettia officials also made it hard for him to turn away from them.
The game will be televised by ESPN2.
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