Be a fan and head for SD

Wildcat File Photo Arizona Daily Wildcat Chris Jackson

May Ron Dayne shove it down their collective throats until they choke again.

That being said, there is a general feeling of malaise that has gripped the fans of the UA football team.

The Holiday Bowl.

Phooey, you say? Not so fast.

First off, the Arizona football team is coming off its best season ever at 11-1. They finished No. 5 in the AP Poll, No. 7 in the BCS.

They're going up against a Nebraska team which has won or shared three national titles this decade, a team which hasn't lost four games in a season since before all of the UA players were even born.

Tomorrow morning tickets for students will go on sale. It is my hope that they will all be sold by tomorrow afternoon.

History tells me not to get my hopes up, since UA fans are pretty lousy. Sure, there a few loyalists and I know you'll be there, but the majority of people here go which way the wind is blowing, and that seems to be looking forward to the basketball team's NCAA chances.

But if UA ever wants to get picked to a bowl like the Sugar or Orange, it needs its fans to show up. Arizona and Kansas State took it up the you-know-what Sunday because neither school has a huge national reputation.

KSU is a relative unknown, having been a dreadful team just a few short years ago. UA has never fulfilled its promise all these years, with the possible exception of the Fiesta Bowl win over Miami in 1994.

So while that may justify both of them getting screwed by the BCS, it all comes down to how many fans a team can pack into a stadium.

Nebraska will almost certainly do its share of filling up Qualcomm Stadium Dec. 30.

The question is, can Arizona?

So all you fans, here's the chance for you to shut me up once and for all for the anti-fan griping I've been doing all year.

Show up in San Diego. Pack the stadium. Chant "Nebraska sucks" like the Icecat fans did to ASU last weekend.

Show ABC and the BCS what this school is made of. Show them we're not going to settle for the Holiday Bowl next year.

The football team will do its part. Now all of you need to do yours.

Chris Jackson is (almost) a senior majoring in journalism, and wants to thank everyone on the football team for one hell of a season. He can be reached via e-mail at Chris.Jackson@wildcat.arizona.edu.