Perkins invited Manning to Super Bowl

Kansas athletic director Lew Perkins is an important man. If you couldn't tell just how important he is from trying to boot Phog Allen's grandkids from their seats at KU basketball games or from him selling an undeserving football team to the Orange Bowl (and still finishing below lots of two loss teams) you will surely be educated from his comments Monday night.

By now most of you have heard that sweet Lew was in the Gatorade suite sitting in front of Peyton Manning during the Super Bowl. Well, what you might not know is that Lew is the reason Peyton was at the game at all. The Kansas City Star's Mike DeArmond elaborates:

Prior to Monday night’s tipoff, Jayhawks athletic director Lew Perkins gave this flippant answer to the flippant question of whether KU athletic department funds paid for the suite seat he had at Sunday night’s Super Bowl.

“You mean the suite I invited Peyton (Manning) to?” Perkins said. “No, you had to make the Orange Bowl to get that.”

That was not the last reference to the Orange Bowl Monday night. At halftime, KU recognized its Orange Bowl champion football team.

A small percentage of the Kansas students wore orange-colored T-shirts to signify the Jayhawks’ Orange Bowl win over Virginia Tech. Of course, it was no coincidence that they wore them with Missouri in town, as KU trotted out the trophy at halftime along with about 25 players and head coach Mark Mangino.

There you have it, folks. Proof that Lew Perkins is a very, very important man. Just ask him. And not only is he important, he's also magnanimous. How else would Peyton have had a chance to watch his brother if not for Lew?

The Kansas City Star: Border War Buzz.