The list was ultimately made public, but the state Ethics Commission is investigating whether the university's travel policy conformed to state law.

POLICIES IN PLACE

State Rep. K. Mark Takai, D-34th (Newtown, Waiau, Pearl City), said the biggest lesson learned is that the university should have ticket and travel policies in place, either approved by the UH Board of Regents or at the very least the chancellor's office, for a BCS invitation given the potential for national exposure and a $4.3 million payout.

"The second-guessing and Monday morning quarterbacking we had after the game would have been a nonissue," he said.

But Takai, a former UH swimmer who is active on university issues at the state Legislature, believes the Sugar Bowl was a wonderful experience.

"I think the Sugar Bowl experience took us up quite a few notches and, as I've said many times, we deserve to be back at a BCS bowl game in the future. Some people may believe that this was kind of a fluke and a one-time thing; I don't think that way," he said.

"What it's done for our community and what it's done to our program, I don't think you can put it into words nor can you put it in terms of money. I personally have very fond memories of the experience."

State Sen. Norman Sakamoto, D-15th (Waimalu, Airport, Salt Lake), the chairman of the Senate Education Committee, said the experience suggests that planning for a major bowl may need to go beyond athletics and Manoa.

"I'm not sure, when it gets to the level of a Sugar Bowl, that things should be relegated to the football coach, or solely to Manoa's chancellor or athletic director, because sports in Hawai'i, especially football, is a statewide issue, so at some point the system or the regents at least need to be involved."

Sakamoto described the Sugar Bowl as a "learning curve."

"Hopefully, there is a next time — soon — and we have an opportunity to be better prepared," he said. "It's like when the first hurricane hits, we say 'we could have, we should have.' If the second hurricane hits and we didn't address what we learned from the first hurricane, it's like, 'wait a minute.' "

State Rep. Jerry Chang, D-2nd (S. Hilo), the chairman of the House Higher Education Committee, said it was a new experience for everyone involved. But he believes now, looking back, that it should have been clear to UH administrators that staff spouses, companions and children should not have gone to New Orleans at state expense.

"Everybody is on notice now," he said.

LESSONS LEARNED

UH administrators are careful when talking about lessons learned because they are still waiting for what could be the most important lesson — a ruling from the Ethics Commission.

Dan Mollway, the commission's executive director, said he wrote McClain in December about the Sugar Bowl after hearing questions about the university's ticket and travel preparations. The next day, Mollway met in Manoa with Hinshaw, Frazier, associate athletic director Carl Clapp and other administrators.

Mollway said Hinshaw and Frazier did most of the talking and described the importance of UH making a good impression in New Orleans.

"There seemed to be a notion that if a university was not really gung-ho and enthusiastic about a bowl experience, that this would reflect negatively on the university, and according to what we heard, would also affect others in the (Western Athletic Conference,)" Mollway said.

Mollway said he recalls being fairly explicit that state law, under the fair treatment section of the ethics code, prohibits state officials from using their positions to give unwarranted privileges. He said, generally, the state does not pay the travel expenses of staff spouses or companions unless there is a legitimate state purpose.

Hinshaw and others, Mollway remembers, said there would be several social functions surrounding the Sugar Bowl and that spouses and companions should be allowed to attend.

Mollway said he recalls hearing that some staff children might also have to attend because of the hardship of either leaving them home or finding childcare around the holidays. He said he recalls UH administrators saying that children would not travel at state expense.

"We felt that under the circumstances, the uniqueness of the Sugar Bowl, that what they were telling us seemed warranted," Mollway said. "They said they were being very scrupulous, that they would be sending only the people who really best represented the university, and this was, of course, beyond the people who needed to go like the athletes and the band."

UH administrators, according to Gregg Takayama, a UH-Manoa spokesman, remember the conversation differently. They recall that the discussion was mostly about ticket allocation and that no specific decisions were made about travel expenses.

Mollway described it as "a very, very open, very honest, very good-faith discussion. A discussion that stated quite clearly that they were making every effort to be scrupulous, and that everything would happen the way it should happen, and that was the tone of the whole conversation."

Mollway said that, because of the positive tone, he asked Frazier at the time if he could speak about the discussion with the news media and he said Frazier agreed. Matters involving the ethics commission are usually confidential and Mollway typically does not publicly discuss such conversations.

SUCCESS STORIES

The two previous non-BCS schools that went to major bowls — the University of Utah and Boise State — had happier endings on and off the field.

Utah clinched an undefeated season by beating the University of Pittsburgh in the 2005 Fiesta Bowl. Boise State shocked the University of Oklahoma in overtime in the Fiesta Bowl last year to stay unbeaten.

Gary Andersen, the defensive coordinator and assistant head coach at Utah, said the Utah delegation only had to make the short trip to Tempe, Ariz., so it was not logistically different than previous bowl appearances. He said he could not remember any significant obstacle associated with the experience.

The intensity and atmosphere, however, were different from other bowls.

"It was a remarkable experience. From A to Z, it was something that I'll never forget and I don't think the kids will ever forget. For the kids to walk into that game, play in that game, and finish off an undefeated year was fantastic.

"It surely had its challenges but it was a great experience."

Hinshaw, the UH-Manoa chancellor, said the Sugar Bowl likely would be remembered for the enthusiasm of the green-and-black clad Warrior fans from the Islands and the Mainland.

"The highlight of the Sugar Bowl was the fan participation," she said. "It gave us great visibility. The stories — the aloha spirit meeting the Southern hospitality — was a great combination. We generated more fans by being there because of the behavior and presentation and representation of the fans and officials.

"It was just wonderful to see. And it does impact on those next opportunities, knowing that your fans will show, they will come, they will support, and they couldn't have been more wonderful."

Donovan, the athletic director and a former Warrior lineman, said the experience was invaluable.

"There is no way you can ever take that away, and all the value that came with it," he said. "All in all, to do the Sugar Bowl again? Absolutely. Would we do everything exactly the same? No, we wouldn't.

"That's part of the learning process."

But Donovan also said the missteps should not be ignored. He said the athletic department already considered the lessons from the Sugar Bowl when putting together the ticket policy for the Warriors' games next season at the University of Florida and Oregon State.

"They're real, and you have to learn from them," he said. "To me, the biggest mistakes are the ones that you don't learn from. And those are the ones that people should get hammered for, in my opinion."