Friendly bets on sporting games by officeholders is a hallowed tradition in which headline-hungry politicians make cheap bids for soft coverage. San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom recently got a nice batch of stone crab claws from Miami Mayor Manny Diaz when the Hurricanes lost the Emerald Bowl to Cal. Which made little sense, considering UM is in Coral Gables and UC Berkeley is in, duh, Berkeley. But why let that stand in the way of cheap publicity?
The bet between senators Bill Nelson of Florida and Tom Coburn of Oklahoma over the BCS game makes a bit more sense, in that they actually represent the areas where the campuses are located, but the wager is still one of the most bizarre we've seen.
If UF wins, Coburn will have to sing "Rocket Man" at former astronaut Nelson's next constituent coffee. If Oklahoma wins, Nelson must sing "Oklahoma!" for Coburn and company.
I don't know which is better. If UF loses (then ha-ha, Gators!), let's hope someone will get this Nelson song-and-dance number on YouTube, which would provide excellent blog fodder. But if the Sooners win, the not-so-gay-friendly Coburn will have to let the words of known homosexualist Elton John come out of his mouth.
