College Football | Irish try to snap 9-game bowl skid

HONOLULU — It's come to this for Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis: He needs a victory to have a merry Christmas — and a winning record.

"When I'm sitting here on Christmas Eve after the game with my wife and kid, waiting for Santa and the sleigh to pull up, I want to have a smile on my face," he said. "And I won't be the happiest camper if it goes the other way."

Weis hasn't had much to smile about this season, so a win over Hawaii in the Hawaii Bowl tonight would certainly be welcome. Yes, the Fighting Irish are in the postseason, but with a 6-6 record and losses in four of their last five games.

To make matters worse, Notre Dame has an NCAA-record nine-game bowl losing streak. The Fighting Irish haven't hoisted a postseason trophy since beating Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl after the 1993 season.

"Breaking our bowl streak, that's very, very important," tailback Armondo Allen said. "That's something we always talk about, starting a new trend. And we can start it right here in Hawaii."

Meanwhile, Notre Dame offensive coordinator Mike Haywood was hired as coach at Miami University, which went 2-10 this season.

He replaces Shane Montgomery, who resigned last month.

Saban wins AP

Coach of Year

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Four straight losses were bad enough for Alabama, and one humbling defeat to Louisiana-Monroe was even worse.

Nick Saban could have lost his team right there. Instead, he might well have claimed it.

"Coach came in and talked to us and was like, 'We've got an opportunity to change things with this bowl game,' " Crimson Tide safety Rashad Johnson said.

The Tide won the Independence Bowl over Colorado to end last season. It then won the following 12 as well, spending much of the 2008 season ranked No. 1. That startling turnaround and Alabama's return to national prominence brought Saban another honor — Associated Press Coach of the Year. He also won the AP award with Louisiana State in 2003.

This season, Saban led a team with only nine scholarship seniors to a 12-1 record and a Sugar Bowl date against Utah for only its second Bowl Championship Series berth.

In voting by college football writers, he drew 32 of a possible 62 votes. He outdistanced Texas Tech's Mike Leach (nine), Utah's Kyle Whittingham (six), Georgia Tech's Paul Johnson (five), Penn State's Joe Paterno (three) and Ball State's Brady Hoke (two). Five coaches got one vote apiece.

Cougars get two commitments

Washington State has landed a high school offensive lineman from Southern California and a junior-college tight end from Snow College in Utah, according to Cougfan.com.

Sebastian Valenzuela, a 6-foot-2, 315-pound offensive guard from Burbank, Calif., has committed to the Cougars. Scout.com rates Valenzuela No. 87 among offensive guards nationally. Cougfan.com said Valenzuela had offers from Nevada and Idaho and had drawn some Pac-10 interest.

Meanwhile, Peter Tuitupou, a 6-4, 250-pound tight end, says he will enroll in January, and would have three years to play two at WSU.

Arizona's Stoops gets

extension through 2013

Fresh off its first bowl win in 10 years, Arizona plans to extend coach Mike Stoops' contract by three years, through 2013.

Details of the deal have yet to be worked out. It is subject to the approval of the Arizona Board of Regents.

"We're very pleased with the progress of Arizona football under Mike's direction," athletic director Jim Livengood said. "His personal growth as a coach has been outstanding and we're glad to continue moving forward with him as the steward for Arizona football."