Tournament of Roses organizers presented bouquets of flowers to Utah administrators at Rice-Eccles Stadium on that June afternoon in 2010, when the conference now known as the Pac-12 officially invited the school to join. The roses symbolized the opportunity for the Utes’ football program to someday play in the historic Rose Bowl Game.
If they defeat Colorado on Saturday night and then beat Oregon in next week’s Pac-12 championship game, Utah’s players will pose for the traditional photos with rose stems between their teeth. Yet they might be thinking about Chick-fil-A sandwiches, representing the sponsor of a College Football Playoff semifinal game in Atlanta.