Sources tell the Honolulu Advertiser this morning that a Fighting Irish / Warriors Hawaii Bowl matchup is close to being a done deal.
Now, let's be honest. Notre Dame at 6-6 definitely doesn't deserve a bowl berth. Heck, their coach should be lucky that he has a job for next season.
And, as I have stated for the past few weeks on my show, Hawaii is not a deserving bowl team? Although they had a very good performance for about three quarters against Cincinnati, they didn't have the juice to finish off the upset. Their body of work, however, over the course of the year, has shown only one good win, and multiple bad losses.
But, we all know what the bowl season is really all about....
$$$KA-CHING$$$
Notre Dame has a nice Hawaii following. After all, all of their home games were on NBC for everyone to see, kinda similar to the Braves having their games on TBS not too long ago before TBS decided to carry the national Sunday package. The Fighting Irish have had an honorable past history on the gridiron, no matter how bad this decade has been in the eyes of the Irish Faithful.
More over, Notre Dame will want to play in Hawaii because they want to woo Punahou senior and Butkus Award winner Manti Te'o their way. There's been no secret that the Irish want him. Coach Charlie Weis made a visit after the USC game, and Te'o has made a visit to South Bend. A impressive win in Hawaii would go a long way for them.
Certainly, to be fair to Hawaii, this season has exceeded a lot of people's expectations, considering the players that moved on and a first-year head coach. Seven wins is considered a great year, in my opinion. But having a great year and deserving to play in the postseason are two different things. Heck, next year, a great year for Washington Huskies fans will be winning at least three games. Won't get them into a bowl. Even more so, a great year for Miami Dolphins fans this year would've been more than 4 wins. Right now, they may go to the playoffs. We must put it in perspective.
More importantly for ESPN Regional and Sheraton (the organizer and sponsor of the Hawaii Bowl), this would be a given for a solid Aloha Stadium Crowd. Heck, I may even decide to fly up and watch! Big crowds, especially if a lot of South Bend faithful decide to fly over, equals tourism and dollars.
We'll see if this gets finalized today. My thoughts on the BCS pairings coming up tomorrow.
UPDATE: It indeed has been confirmed, as Notre Dame and Hawaii will meet in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl. ESPN Radio will have coverage of the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl at 2:35 pm on Christmas Eve.
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