Holiday Bowl’s new era

Shake off your sugar crankiness, because it’s the most wonderful time of the year! I don’t mean the holidays, but the Holiday Bowl.

I’ve written about my childhood here before, but I love sharing little tidbits of local history with my stories, because when you’re a third-generation journalist working in the same city as your parents and grandparents, that’s sort of what ends up working its way into your life.

So, let’s talk about the upcoming Holiday Bowl. The game itself is fun enough, if you like that sort of thing, but really the best part about it is the spectacle of it all — especially when it’s a family endeavor; my dad ran it for decades and still has a presence there.

For the love of the game, I’ve helped set up giant flags, I’ve hung out with happy cheerleaders and helped lead bulls on and off the field. And every year for decades I was conscripted for one very special job: Answering the phones on Game Day, when all the nice people calling to ask for directions are drowned out by the constant procession of lunatics, cranks, jerks, and ink-stained wretches on deadline (I can say that, because I’m so often one of them).

I thought after all these years I’d seen it all… but I’ve never seen a Casket Toss. Given my sense of humor, it’s better that way — I would have elbowed my way onto the field at half-time for at least a selfie and brought shame upon my entire family.

Between that and the giant sentient Pop-Tart that wants to be ritualistically devoured by players and coaches, it feels like a new dawn for bowl games, and I am very excited to see what they come up with next.

For now, I have only one thing to say to the casket toss’s lucky winner — can I borrow $10k?

Thoughts? Opinions? Let us know what you think by emailing news@timesofsandiego.com.