Bowl Site Challenge: Dallas vs. Miami
By DAVID MARTIN
Thousands of logo-festooned Midwesterners will travel to celebrate the outstanding seasons of their college football teams. The Missouri Tigers face Arkansas in the Cotton Bowl in Dallas on January 1. Two days later, the Kansas Jayhawks line up against Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl in Miami.
Here’s a guide for fans who may be making the trips to states governed at one time or another by a Bush boy.
Population
Dallas: 5.5 million
Miami: 3.9 million
Edge: Dallas
Average January low temperature
Dallas: 34 degrees
Miami: 59 degrees
Edge: Miami
Great embarrassment
Dallas: Assassination of JFK
Miami: Endurance of Castro
Edge: Dallas
Most appalling local resident
Dallas: Mark Cuban
Miami: Mickey Rourke
Edge: Dallas (Rourke was pretty good — and therefore less appalling — in Sin City)
Leading man
Dallas: Larry Hagman
Miami: Don Johnson
Edge: Dallas (Hagman gets bonus points for JFK cameo)
Reality-show taskmaster
Dallas: Kelli Finglass (Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team)
Miami: Ami James (Miami Ink)
Edge: Dallas
Excellence in reporting
Dallas: Dan Jenkins
Miami: Edna Buchanan
Edge: Miami
Coaching legend’s state
Dallas: Dead (Tom Landry)
Miami: Bitter (Don Shula)
Edge: Dallas
Memorable sports-related movie
Dallas: North Dallas 40
Miami: Ace Ventura: Pet Detective
Edge: Dallas
Quarterback-turned-analyst
Dallas: Troy Aikman
Miami: Dan Marino
Edge: Dallas
Bowl title sponsor
Dallas: AT&T
Miami: FedEx
Edge: pick ’em
National Anthem singer
Dallas: Kilgore College Choral Group
Miami: Katharine McPhee
Edge: Miami
Pre-game activity
Dallas: Petty Theft (Tom Petty tribute band), House of Blues, Dec. 31
Miami: King Mango Strut, Dec. 30
Edge: Miami
Tourist area to avoid
Dallas: Victory Park/West End
Miami: Ocean Drive, South Beach
Edge: Miami (“More sunburned Midwestern yahoos here than anywhere this side of the St. Louis arch,” one Miami expert tells us; but it’ll be sunny)
Tourist area to embrace
Dallas: Deep Ellum
Miami: Little Havana
Edge: Miami (Cuban food, art galleries, cigar stores)
Best dining for fat-cat alumni
Dallas: Abacus
Miami: Prime 112
Edge: Dallas (Abacus chef Tre Wilcox appeared on Top Chef)
Best place for those without a ticket to watch game
Dallas: Vickery Park
Miami: The Ale House
Edge: Miami (The Ale House in North Miami Beach is seven miles from Dolphin Stadium — and near water)
Penalty for disorderly conduct
Dallas: $500
Miami: 60 days
Edge: Dallas
So that’s 10 for Big D, six for Miami and one tie. Congratulations, Tiger fans. You may have been left out of the Bowl Championship Series. But your eventual arrest will be less painful.
