Rose Bowl

If Michigan wins, fifth-year defensive end Glen Steele plans to stay in Los Angeles and have a large rose tattooed on his left shoulder blade, to go with the one of Yosemite Sam he has on his right arm. First, he'll have to leave an imprint on Leaf. "He's a pretty big man," Steele said of the 6-foot-6 Leaf. "It's probably going to take a lot to rattle him." * What's the best way to attack Leaf? In Washington State's only defeat, a 44-31 loss to Arizona State on Nov.

If you think Nebraskans are down in the dumps after a loss by their beloved Cornhuskers, imagine how the folks at the Rose Bowl are feeling this week. For 30 years, the Rose Bowl big shots have been praying for another Pacific 10/Big Ten matchup of No. 1 vs. No. 2 for the national title. It hasn't happened, but it might this year if Ohio State and UCLA remain 1-2 in the polls. There's a problem, though. If the dream matchup comes through, it will be played in the Fiesta Bowl, not the Rose Bowl.

A USC official said Thursday that demand for tickets to the top-ranked Trojans' Rose Bowl game against Michigan far exceeds the school's allocation of 32,000. "Our overall goal is to take care of as many people as possible," said Ron Orr, an associate athletic director who works with the school's ticket office and president's office to coordinate ticket distribution. Tickets for what many regard as a national championship game have a face value of $125.

BCS No. 1 Miami (11-0) vs. BCS No. 2 Nebraska (11-1) Jan. 3, 2002; 5 p.m.; Channel 7 The line: Miami by 10. Story line: After Nebraska suffered a 62-36 drubbing to Colorado on Nov. 23, the Cornhuskers presumed their national championship dreams to be dashed. But losses by Oklahoma, Texas, Florida and Tennessee led to the BCS picking the Cornhuskers for the Rose Bowl, leaving Oregon and Colorado on the outside looking in.

A week after Rose Bowl officials asked the NFL for exclusive negotiating rights, Pasadena Mayor Bill Bogaard said Tuesday the city is willing to have discussions with the league on a non-exclusive basis. "We would have preferred exclusive negotiations," said Bogaard, adding the city will go to "Plan B" now that the league is considering building a stadium in Carson.

KEYS TO THE GAME Lonnie White takes a closer look at Michigan vs. Texas: 1 Stop the run: A goal for both teams, but maybe more important for the Wolverines, who have to slow down Texas running back Cedric Benson. 2 Avoid turnovers: Michigan freshman quarterback Chad Henne cannot afford to turn the ball over against the Longhorns' opportunistic defense. 3 Tackle, tackle, tackle: Teams playing in bowl games often suffer in fundamentals and poor tackling is often a problem for losing teams.

First Quarter in Review RUSHING LEADERS Washington State J. Tippins...1 carry, 6 yards Oklahoma Q. Griffin...9 carries, 44 yards RECEIVING LEADERS Washington State D. Darling...1 catch, 29 yards Oklahoma W. Peoples...1 catch, 57 yards PASSING LEADERS Washington State J. Gesser...2-6, 49 yards Oklahoma N. Hybl...4-8, 83 Yards Big play: On Oklahoma's fourth play from scrimmage, running back Quentin Griffin ran 38 yards to the Washington State 31.