Lots of Huddles Needed in D.C. Bowl Drive

There has been little time for interior decorating at the DC Bowl Committee's headquarters. The walls remain bare, and color is mostly absent from the corridors, save for a rectangular sign propped up on top of a five-foot-tall filing cabinet.

The sign -- a logo splashed in gold and navy blue -- advertises the inaugural EagleBank Bowl, which will be played tomorrow at RFK Stadium, a venue that hasn't hosted a football game since 2001. When Navy (8-4) and Wake Forest (7-5) take the field, it will mark the culmination of a nine-month dash that was sidetracked at times by inexperience among the bowl's creators -- nearly leading to ill-advised alliances -- as well as elongated searches for a venue and title sponsor.

But through a multifaceted effort, bowl organizers overcame the different challenges that arose. The categorical success of this first-year event was considered paramount, which added to the emphasis placed on ensuring that its creation appear flawless.

"The most challenging thing has been doing this on such an expedited basis," said Matthew D. Cutts, chairman of the D.C. Sports & Entertainment Commission. "There can't be glitches, there can't be do-overs. Mistakes get magnified when you're operating on a truncated timeline."

After viewing commercials for the 2006 Humanitarian Bowl, held in Boise, Idaho, Sean Metcalf and Marie Rudolph envisioned postseason college football coming to their city, one they long had served but never in a sports marketing capacity.

Metcalf, then the director of communications for D.C. Council member Jack Evans (D-Ward 2), recalled thinking that if Boise had the economy to host a bowl game, "D.C. definitely should have a bowl." In partnership with Rudolph, whom he met while she worked for former D.C. Council chairman Linda W. Cropp, Metcalf formed the DC Bowl Committee and began broaching the topic with others.

"At first blush, when he presented [the bowl concept], it was like, 'That's a crazy idea,' " Evans said. "It's cold here. Nobody's going to come to a bowl game in Washington, D.C., in December. We don't even have a first-rate [football] stadium."

While attending the 2007 Poinsettia Bowl in San Diego between Navy and Utah, Metcalf and Rudolph approached John Reid, who was executive director of the Holiday Bowl in San Diego from 1980 to 2001, about taking the same position with their endeavor. Reid declined, but agreed to visit the District once a month to offer guidance.

When Reid visited in March, the U.S. Naval Academy had agreed to play in the game provided it won enough regular season games to be bowl eligible, but Reid discovered that otherwise "things were not going in the right direction." Several sources confirmed that the DC Bowl Committee had been in discussions as late as mid-March with a group that wanted to provide a $2 million letter of credit, one of the main components to a bowl license application, in exchange for a significant ownership stake in the event.

"At one point, Sean and Marie were desperate enough that they were willing to take this group on," said Reid, who declined to identify the group. "They were nice enough people, but they wanted a piece of the action, and that was out of the question. That was not appropriate."

Obtaining a letter of credit was not the DC Bowl Committee's only issue. Sources said the committee retained a representative who considered himself an expert in title sponsor searches and requested an exorbitant compensation package for his services. Reid was skeptical of his qualifications.

"He did not have the resources he said he did; he was not the right guy for the job," said Reid, who again declined to name names. "I said, 'If this guy stays involved, I'm out of here.' "