This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

On Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2009, I wrote a column ripping the Fiesta Bowl, in specific, and the BCS, in general, that included these two sentences: "Where exactly is it written that bowl fat cats should be the ones who benefit from college football's postseason? Pageantry is one thing, hiding behind it to extend misplaced profiteering is another."

That same day, I received this email from John Junker:

Mr. Monson:

Was disappointed that in your recent column you didn't take time to call to get our perspective. Obviously, you can write anything you want and should continue to, but maybe sometimes another perspective might help cast some light.

Thanks,

John J.

President and CEO

Tostitos Fiesta Bowl

Well, I tried to reach John for this column so another perspective might help cast some light, but … he was gone, fired after the release of a 276-page internal report that included all the details of shenanigans perpetrated by Junker while running the Fiesta Bowl. Somehow, he justified his use of the bowl's budget for personal expenses that included a four-day party for his 50th birthday at Pebble Beach ($33,000); a visit to a strip club in Phoenix ($1,241); a collection of iPads ($5,000); anti-aging treatments ($2,934); 27 trips to various locations, with his wife and other family members; a Celebrity Fight Night charity event that included charges for a golf date with Jack Nicklaus ($110,000); four golf memberships at private clubs, including one at Whisper Rock Golf Club ($10,800 a year); and channeling and reimbursing contributions from bowl employees to politicians friendly to the bowl ($46,000).

And so much more.

Best of all, or worst, is Junker's justification in the report for the trip to the strip club. Get a load of this: "We are in the business where big strong athletes are known to attend these types of establishments. It was important for us to visit, and we certainly conducted business."

Classic.

The Fiesta Bowl also put on an annual hullabaloo known as the Fiesta Frolic, which cost the bowl $300,000 each year, at which football coaches and athletic directors from schools around the country were invited to enjoy a few days in the sun.

The review by investigators revealed that Junker was reimbursed $4.85 million for expenses during the past 10 years alone. After seeing the findings by investigators, Junker, as reported in The Arizona Republic, said: "I have come to the conclusion that I have conducted myself sensibly and responsibly."

The powers that be at the Fiesta Bowl disagreed, terminating Junker and separating him from his nearly $700,000 annual salary.

And the Fiesta might not be the only troubled bowl in the BCS. Excessive expenditures and salaries for top executives have also been cited at the Orange and Sugar bowls. The Playoff PAC, which opposes the BCS, claims the Orange Bowl has provided niceties such as a Bahamian cruise to bigwigs during which no business was conducted.

As observers and fans of college football, we've had to endure an annual postseason that favors certain powerful parties, schools and conferences, all while it stands in the way of an appropriate playoff. As it turns out, that cartel is not only competitively corrupt but dirty by deeds perpetrated in the offices of politicos, on the decks of ships and on the beaches of lavish resorts.

We can only hope that all BCS bowl execs are nervous right now — and that some group with the truck to nail these guys can pull off an Al Capone-like arrest, getting them wherever they're sordid, be it tax evasion, like Al, or some other side indiscretions, like the Fiesta Bowl, that will sheer away the credibility of these endeavors.

Then maybe we'll be a step closer to what should happen on the field.

The NCAA seems to lack the gumption to swing a hammer on the big bowls. NCAA president Mark Emmert said the following at the annual State of the NCAA/College Athletics address this week:

"You can't indict the entire bowl system because of what's gone on out there. My hope is that it will also serve as a warning shot that every community that runs a bowl game makes sure they're doing the oversight compliance and due diligence to make sure their bowl games are well-run. We have reason to believe that's not the case."

The NCAA should be all over the bowls, making sure, with its own investigators, that what happened at the Fiesta isn't happening everywhere. And if it is, then use it as a reason for real change.

The fact that bowls — which are essentially businesses that benefit certain interests, though supposedly nonprofit — are allowed to go on hijacking college football's postseason is ridiculous.

How about this crazy suggestion? Do away with the major bowls and have playoff games played at school venues, with the highest-seeded teams hosting those games and a real national champion being crowned. The NCAA does it in every other sport. Why enable the John Junkers of the world to hold the whole thing hostage?

Let him pay for his own strip-club visits, golf dates with Jack and birthday parties at Pebble Beach. I'm sure his perspective, which everybody's had more than enough of, might help cast a different light.

GORDON MONSON hosts "The Gordon Monson Show" weekdays from 2-6 p.m. on 104.7 FM/1280 AM The Zone. He can be reached at gmonson@sltrib.com. —

Fiesta perks

An investigative report outlines several perks and expenditures by Fiesta Bowl officials, including ousted CEO John Junker:

Country-club memberships • The Fiesta Bowl paid for Junker's memberships at four high-end golf courses: Whisper Rock Golf club in Scottsdale, Ariz.; Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club in North Plains, Ore.; Arizona Biltmore Country Club in Phoenix; and Karsten Creek in Stillwater, Okla. The bowl also paid for a golf course membership at The Golf Club at Chaparral Pines in Payson, Ariz., for chief operating officer Natalie Wisneski.

Strip club • The bowl was charged more than $1,200 in 2008 for a trip to the Bourbon Street strip club in Phoenix by Junker and two others. The report indicates expenses included food, drinks and dances from strippers.

Auto stipends • Junker, his wife and other Fiesta Bowl executives received General Motors cars while GMC was a bowl sponsor. Junker received $8,500 from the bowl for a new car. Other executives received lesser amounts for new cars. Junker continued to receive money for cars, including $27,000 in 2009. Wisneski received an annual car allowance of $16,800.

Nicklaus golf • Junker was reimbursed for $110,000 in credit-card charges for attending a Celebrity Fight Night and bidding on a golf date with Jack Nicklaus. Junker later billed his travel and expenses for the golf date to the bowl.

Birthday party • The bowl spent $33,188.96 on Junker's 50th birthday party in 2005, held over four days in Pebble Beach, Calif.

Vacations • The bowl paid for at least 27 trips Junker took with his family, including a 16-day trip to Santa Barbara, Calif., and San Diego in 2008. Other trips included $2,600 for Junker and his wife to San Francisco and a trip to Florida for a space-shuttle launch.

Religious causes • The donation of an executive suite at a bowl game valued at $25,000 went to a local convent for a fundraiser. Junker was also reimbursed for "frequent meals" with an executive with the Society of St. Vincent de Paul's Phoenix chapter and more than $5,000 in membership dues for Legatus, an organization for Catholic business leaders.

Flowers • The bowl paid for $75 in flowers sent to an admissions official at the University of Texas in March 2010. Junker's daughter was accepted to an honors program at the school.

Aide's wedding • The bowl was billed more than $13,000 for the wedding and honeymoon of Junker's aide, Kelly Keogh.

Gold coins • Thousands of dollars in gold and silver coins were given to employees as gifts throughout the years, including about $24,000 in 2008.

Paris trip • The bowl paid for Wisneski's trip to Paris in 2009 for a Latino businesswomen's retreat.

Golf equipment • Junker was reimbursed $2,285.96 for Nike golf equipment at a tournament sponsored by the company. Another Fiesta Bowl employee charged the bowl more than $12,000 for Titleist golf balls at an exclusive country club.

Brian Wilson concert • The bowl paid almost $1,952 to send two staffers to see Brian Wilson, a former member of the Beach Boys, perform in New York.