The Front Row with ERIC PLUMMER Aug. 7, 2011

My colleague Mark Nelke is on vacation, no doubt recharging the batteries before the 2011 fall sports madness ensues. Per usual, I'm pinch hitting in his Sunday column space while he is gone.

As a third generation Idahoan, and also a fan and historian of football in the Gem State, I feel compelled to weigh in on the name change of Idaho's lone college football bowl game.

For those who haven't heard, the December game in Boise previously known as the Humanitarian Bowl, will now be called the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl.

The name doesn't exactly roll off the tongue, nor does it necessarily please the old ears. It will generate a few laughs around the country though, although they won't be laughing with us, but rather at us.

A potato by any other name . . .

I understand the desire to name a bowl after the crop or prime industry in a particular state. The Rose Bowl, Orange Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Cotton Bowl, Citrus Bowl and Peach Bowl are but a few of the examples that pay homage to their respective regions.

Whereas Florida is known for more than just oranges, Idaho is far more synonymous with the potato, or as Dan Quayle might type, potatoe.

Consider the following exchange, which has happened more than once while visiting in-laws back east.

"Where are you from," says a guy with a thick New York brogue.

"Idaho," I reply.

"Iowa?" he asks, obviously not drawing a distinction between the two.

"No, Idaho," I say.

"Oh, potatoes," he quips, no doubt pleased with his witticism.

The moral of the story is do we really want to further this stereotype any more than it already exists? Play word association with someone from west of the Mississippi and say Idaho. It doesn't take a Rhodes Scholar to figure out the popular answer.

This spud’s for you — the Humanit . . . er, Famous Idaho Potato Bowl — FIPB? — has the distinction of being the nation’s longest running cold-weather bowl game, dating all the way back to 1997.

Never mind that “cold weather bowl game” is an oxymoron, or that nobody will ever confuse the Idaho Bowl with the “Granddaddy of them All” when it comes to history or prestige.

I can only imagine how teams like Clemson, Georgia Tech, Miami, Tulsa and Virginia — all previous participants — reacted upon hearing they were headed to Boise in December. Pack the parkas, boys.

That said, the bowl has developed a reputation for delivering a great time to the players, albeit chilly. One of the aforementioned teams, from a climate where snow wouldn’t dare land, was taken up to Idaho City one year to snowmobile. Many of the players were seeing snow for the first time in their lives, and the coaches raved about the experience.

Both the native Vandals and Broncos have experienced success in their back yard bowl, including Idaho’s thrilling 43-42 win over Bowling Green in 2009. The Vandals have won the bowl twice, and the Broncos three times.

Currently, the game features representatives from the Western Athletic Conference and the Mid-American Conference, often times the respective champs.

Smurf turf blues — I had the pleasure, or was it misfortune, of playing nearly all my high school games on the iconic blue turf of Broncos Stadium.

At the risk of dating myself, I played on the original incarnation of blue Astro Turf as a member of Capital High School. Turf was a misnomer actually; it was far more akin to a brillo pad. A dive on the surface was sure to result in a good-sized, raspberry-colored rug burn.

Today’s football player is spoiled by Field Turf, the soft, popular grass-like artificial surface favored by many teams today. Sure, some rubber filament might fly into your face when you get tackled, but the days of blown-out knees are mostly over.

The blue turf was where I first “met” current Post Falls assistant football coach Sean Dorris, who at the time was playing safety for Coeur d’Alene and on his way to a standout college career at Montana.

I was returning a kick up into the wedge when Dorris brought the hammer from out of nowhere, pasting me as hard as I was ever hit in football. About the only thing I can remember was standing up and pulling the chin strap down from my eyes, gazing at the newfound stars.

Eric Plummer is the sports editor at the Daily Bee in Sandpoint. For comments, suggestions or story ideas, he can be reached at (208) 263-9534, ext. 226, or via email at eplummer@bonnercountydailybee.com.