Athletics Director Bob Bowlsby
Big Game on Oct. 20? What’s up with that?
Traditionalist Cal and Stanford football fans shouldn’t worry, according to Athletics Director BOB BOWLSBY, who suspects the scheduling snafus that led to an earlier-than-usual Big Game are likely short term. “Oct. 20 was certainly not our first choice,” he acknowledges in a new segment of “Inside Stanford Athletics.”
But, he adds, “We’re going to have to live with it for one year.”
On the newly posted YouTube video, Bowlsby explains that Big Game was originally scheduled for the same weekend as other traditional Pac-12 rivalries-that is, the weekend after Thanksgiving. But that didn’t work for Cal and Stanford, who celebrate their long-term rivalry with a week full of events, not just one football game.
Unfortunately, Bowlsby said, a second proposed schedule that played Big Game just before Thanksgiving disadvantaged some of the other Pac-12 schools.
“The schedule ultimately is voted upon by the directors of athletics, and that is what happened this time,” Bowlsby said. “We are honor bound to live with the rule of the majority.”
In the video, Bowlsby also covers every other subject that could be on the minds of rabid Cardinal fans, from the mysterious BCS bowl system to the status of Stanford basketball teams at half season.
In particular, Bowlsby reflects on Stanford’s “magical” football season, which culminated in a trip to the Fiesta Bowl. He also allays fears of fans who worry about who will replace some of the Cardinal’s graduating seniors, including NFL prospects ANDREW LUCK, DAVID DECASTRO, JONATHAN MARTIN and COBY FLEENER.
“Although we’re losing some great kids, we’re also going to have some terrific football players coming up through the ranks,” he said, voicing confidence in the upcoming recruits. “The future is really bright.”
Still, Bowlsby recalls watching the second game of the season against Duke with members of the athletics staff, encouraging them to enjoy the experience while they could. Luck, he said, is a “once in a generation athlete and a once in a generation kid.”
See the video.
