Editorial: Teams gave area a booster shot

Alabama defeated Texas, 37-21, in Thursday night’s Bowl Championship Series title game at the Rose Bowl. As we see it, the nation’s No. 1- and No. 2-ranked college football teams both came out champions for choosing Newport-Mesa as their gateway to Southern California.

By the hundreds, if not thousands, the two teams and their legions of support staff, alumni and fans descended on the area in the first week of 2010, splashing Newport Beach, Costa Mesa and UC Irvine in hues of crimson and burnt orange and giving the area’s economy a welcome boost to open the new year.

“It is a phenomenal shot in the arm,” as Gary Sherwin, president of the Newport Beach Conference and Visitors’ Bureau, put it. “January is one of the toughest months for hotel occupancy ... To have people who are going to be coming to town who want to go out, enjoy themselves and spend money is wonderful for business.”

Many of the out-of-towners landed at John Wayne Airport. The teams and their entourages stayed at area hotels and relaxed at local restaurants or bars. When the players weren’t practicing for the game at local fields, they were also enjoying themselves at Disneyland. The Alabama squad and its support staff alone booked most of the 392 hotel rooms at the Westin South Coast Plaza.

The Crimson Tide and their Heisman Trophy-winning tailback, Mark Ingram — who would score the fourth quarter touchdown to put the title game beyond the reach of a spirited Texas comeback in the second half — used facilities at Orange Coast College and trained at Costa Mesa’s municipal soccer fields. Colt McCoy, star quarterback for the Longhorns — who wound up being knocked out by an injury early in the game — and his teammates trained at UCI. With a Cold War-like zealousness and secrecy, both teams kept their practice sessions closed to the public. Alabama, for one, had green fencing specially installed around its practice fields. Hey, it’s only a game, but we can understand why these teams representing storied college football programs wanted to keep a tight lid on their drills and game plans. We are, nevertheless, grateful that both the ’Bama and Texas delegations stayed here, when they could have stayed much closer to Pasadena in preparation for the championship.