Wake-up Call: Happy New Year, Rose Bowl, Pac-10, Mike Shanahan, Brett Favre, Wrigley Field

First things first: Happy New Year!

Rose Bowl, ready or not: USC Trojan or Penn State Nittany Lion? You can still vote (up until noon today) as to who might be today's star player in the Rose Bowl game. It's pretty close at the moment, with USC linebacker Rey Maualuga leading with 19 votes and Penn State wide receiver Derrick Williams with 14 votes. Click here to vote. If you have someone else you'd pick but who's not on the list, add a comment. Kickoff is about 2 p.m. on Channel 7.

Pac-10 power: The Pacific 10 Conference is now 4-0 in bowl play, including a couple of big upsets. Will it be 5-0 today?

Coaching catch-up: Mike Shanahan had a news conference Wednesday in which he grew emotional. Remembering Shanahan from his time with the Raiders, one would have thought this man would not get emotional. But he did and showed a lot of class, even thanking the beat reporters from the Denver Post and the rival Rocky Mountain News for being fair. Shanahan was 146-91 in Denver and won two Super Bowls. He said he hopes to win a third -- with the next team he coaches. There are lots of openings. The right-now-hapless Detroit Lions are interviewing Miami Dolphins assistant Todd Bowles. The team, which made history by going 0-16 this season, is talking to others as well. So are the St. Louis Rams. And the Cleveland Browns are talking to Eric Mangini, who was fired by the Jets on Monday.

Jets vs. Jets: And what about the New York Jets, who shouldn't have fired Mangini? Team owner Woody Johnson said he wants Brett Favre to be the quarterback next season. But some Jets players are saying no, no, no. After the Jets' 1-4 finish left them out of the playoffs and helped trigger Mangini's firing as coach, running back Thomas Jones suggested Favre -- who had nine interceptions and only two TD passes in the final five games -- should have been benched.

Don't forget: Helene Elliott is at the NHL Winter Classic between the host Chicago Blackhawks and the Detroit Red Wings. Watch for her reports. Here's the webcam at Wrigley Field, courtesy of the NHL.

And tying things up (think shoelaces): The Lakers' Trevor Ariza is part of SI.com's "Pop Culture Grid" this week. One of the fill-in-the-blanks is this: "I want to throw a shoe at ..." and Ariza's answer is Rudy Garciduenas, the Lakers' longtime equipment manager. 

-- Debbie Goffa

Photo: Freshman Stephanie Graves is framed in a sea of horns during a recent practice of the USC marching band. Credit: Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times

Comments

[Jack]

Maybe it's a nitpick but it seems worth a comment. Odds wise, Arizona's and Oregon's wins in the Las Vegas Bowl and Holiday Bowl were not "big upsets" as you say. Both BYU and Oklahoma St., were favored by just 3 points each on Las Vegas books, both close to being even games. Cal was favored by 8 over Miami in the Emerald Bowl and Oregon St. was a 2-3 point favorite in the Sun Bowl.
Happy New Year.