[NU Sports] FW: Bowl Update from Mark Murphy/NAA

Tue Nov 22 17:52:36 CST 2005

FYI. I assume this was sent out to all season ticket holders.

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From: Wildcat Marketing [mailto:Northwestern at mypacmailreply.paciolan.com] 
Sent: Tuesday, November 22, 2005 6:11 PM
Subject: Bowl Update from Mark Murphy/NAA 

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Northwestern University Athletic Department

NORTHWESTERN WILDCATS BOWL UPDATE:

Our football team closed out the season on a high note with a 38-21 victory
over Illinois, finishing the season 7-4 overall and 5-3 in the Big Ten (tied
for third). Now that the regular season has concluded, we can focus on our
bowl possibilities. Unfortunately, at this point, the only thing that is
certain is that we will not know where we are going to play until Sunday,
December 4.

I thought it would be helpful, though, to lay out for our fans the potential
bowl options for our team. The Big Ten has relationships with seven bowls,
and finished with seven bowl-eligible teams -- Penn State, Ohio State,
Wisconsin, Northwestern, Michigan, Iowa and Minnesota. Penn State and Ohio
State were co-champions, but Penn State earns the automatic bid to a BCS
bowl by virtue of beating Ohio State earlier this year. Penn State will
likely play in the Fiesta or Orange Bowl, unless USC or Texas is upset and
then there is a chance Penn State might play in the Rose Bowl for the
national championship.

A key factor that will affect our bowl destination is whether Ohio State is
selected as a BCS at-large team. The conference champions of the six BCS
conferences all earn automatic berths to the four BCS bowls, and there are
two at-large spots. If Notre Dame beats Stanford, it is likely they will be
given one at-large spot. The other spot will go to either Ohio State or
Oregon. If Ohio State is selected to play in a BCS bowl (most likely the
Fiesta or Orange -- whichever one Penn State is not in), this will move all
the other Big Ten teams up one bowl.

If Ohio State does go to a BCS bowl, Wisconsin will most likely go to the
Capital One Bowl. A bowl can select a team with one less overall win, but
not two. Wisconsin is 8-3, and Northwestern, Michigan, Iowa and Minnesota
are all 7-4. The Capital One Bowl could select one of these 7-4 teams over
Wisconsin (Michigan would be the most probable), but it is not likely. This
would leave Michigan for the Outback Bowl. Michigan would be the likely
choice based on their tradition, reputation and ability to travel fans.

The next bowl to pick would be the Alamo Bowl. The Alamo will choose between
Northwestern, Iowa and Minnesota. A factor for the Alamo Bowl is who will be
the opponent from the Big XII conference. The potential Big XII opponents
are Oklahoma and Iowa State. Since Iowa and Iowa State played earlier this
year, they may not want a rematch, particularly between teams from the same
state. So, there is still a chance that the Alamo could select Northwestern,
but Iowa is probably the favorite.

This would leave the Sun Bowl to choose between Northwestern and Minnesota.
Since Minnesota has made two Sun Bowl appearances in the last five years,
and we have never been, that fact works in our favor. Other factors that
help us are the Chicago TV market (for CBS) and the fact that it is
relatively easy to get to El Paso from Chicago. Moreover, the Sun Bowl has a
relatively smaller seating capacity (just over 50,000), so the requirement
for a school to bring a large number of fans is not as big a factor. The Sun
Bowl opponent would be the Pac-10's third-place team, most likely UCLA.
Minnesota would go to the Music City (although they went there last year)
and the Motor City would have to choose a non-Big Ten team.

If Ohio State does not receive a BCS at-large bid, they will go to the
Capital One Bowl and Wisconsin would likely go to the Outback. The Alamo
would most likely pick Michigan. The Sun would then choose between
Northwestern, Iowa and Minnesota. We would still be an attractive selection
because of the reasons mentioned previously. If the Sun selects Iowa,
though, the Music City would then have to make a choice between us and
Minnesota. Given the fact that Minnesota played in the Music City Bowl in
2002 and 2004, and that Nashville is an easy destination to reach from
Chicago, we feel we'd be appealing to the Music City committee. Since the
SEC will not be able to fill its slot and send a representative to the Music
City Bowl, our opponent could come from the ACC (Maryland, North Carolina
State, Virginia or Georgia Tech).

If the Music City Bowl selects Minnesota, we would play in the Motor City
Bowl. We would play a team from the MAC, most likely one of the two teams
that play in the MAC Championship game.

I hope that this has been helpful, and not too confusing. Please continue to
check our web site, NUSports.com, for updates on our bowl status. It is an
exciting time for Northwestern athletics and the successful season is a
great tribute to our players, Randy Walker and his staff. We're looking
forward to having a strong following wherever we end up.

As information becomes available, we will update NUsports.com and our bowl
hotline at 847.467.1300. We do not anticipate a ticket limit on orders at
this time.

Additionally, game tickets will be available via the Wildcat Ticket Office
OR The Northwestern Alumni Association. Ticket prices will be the same and
within the same seating block through both channels, though tickets
purchased via the Alumni Association will NOT be allocated according to
Wildcat Priority Points (reward points assigned by the Athletic Department
for continuous years of season tickets purchasing, Wildcat Fund donations,
etc.). Seats purchased through and assigned by the Athletic Department will
be allocated according to the Wildcat Priority Point system. Tickets
purchased from the Alumni Association block will generally be assigned on a
first come, first serve basis.

Thanks for your support!

Go 'Cats,
Mark Murphy

NORTHWESTERN ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOWL UPDATE:

The Northwestern Alumni Association will offer a Bowl Tour package that
includes hotel accommodations, official NAA pre-game tailgate party tickets,
game tickets, and much more! So that we are ready as soon as the
announcement is made, the Northwestern Alumni Association is preparing Bowl
Tour packages for the following four Big Ten Conference bowl games:

Alamo Bowl in San Antonio, TX - December 28, 2005 (tailgate followed by
kick-off at 7 pm CST)
NAA Tour Package from December 26 or 27 through December 29
Game Day Package, December 28, 2005 (tailgate followed by kick-off at 7 pm
CST)

Sun Bowl in  El Paso, TX
NAA Tour Package from December 28 through December 30
Game Day Package, December 30, 2005 (tailgate followed by kick-off at 11 am
MST)

Music City Bowl in  Nashville, TN
NAA Tour Package from December 29 through December 31
Game Day Package, December 30, 2005 (tailgate followed by kick-off at 11 am
CST)

Motor City Bowl in Detroit, MI
Game Day Package only, December 26, 2005 (tailgate followed by kick-off at 4
pm EST)

Please note: Regardless of whether you choose to purchase the entire Bowl
Tour package, please purchase your tickets through the Northwestern Alumni
Association or the Wildcat Ticket Office. Buying your tickets through
Northwestern Alumni Association-and other Northwestern offices-shows future
bowl selection committees how much support Northwestern has. This is really
the only way we can legitimately gauge the number of fans that travel to our
bowl sites, and it helps us build a track record with the various bowl
committees. Your participation does make a difference!

Call the Northwestern Alumni Association at 1-847-491-7200 or e-mail us at
alumnitravel at alumni.northwestern.edu
[http://link.paciolan.com/index.cfm?n2014s45c23519t45e24250o114] with
questions. Bookmark www.alumni.northwestern.edu/bowl
[http://link.paciolan.com/index.cfm?n2014s45c23519t45e24250o115] for updates
as we learn more.

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