COE Dean Comes Out A Winner On Cotton Bowl Wager
Dean Way Kuo
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- COE Dean Way Kuo came out a winner in a "gentleman's wager" on the University of Tennessee-Texas A & M University (TAMU) match-up in the Cotton Bowl on New Year's Day.
Kuo, a former associate dean with TAMU, initiated a bet with the university's Look College of Engineering dean, G. Kemble Bennett, on the outcome of the game. If the Volunteers lost, Kuo would send Bennett a Tennessee country ham; if the TAMU Aggies lost, then Bennett was going to provide the UT College of Engineering dean with 21 pounds of Texas barbeque. Since the game was the first time that UT had faced TAMU since 1957, both deans were fired up about the match-up.
Bennett even managed to get in a barb at UT in his official reply to the bet, stating, "Dr. Kuo made many contributions to Texas A & M over the years, and I look forward to adding a Tennessee country ham to that list when the Aggies defeat Tennessee on New Year's Day!"
The UT Volunteers, of course, throttled the Aggies 38-7 and it looked as though the payout was in the UT COE's favor. However, a mix-up in ordering the barbeque over the holiday season resulted in a substitution. Kuo had planned a luncheon for COE staff on Monday, January 10th, to feast on the Texas barbeque. When it didn't arrive on time, Kuo stepped in and bought the barbeque for the luncheon himself from a local restaurant. It turned out that the Texas supplier was closed for the holidays and TAMU's online order didn't go through in time for the luncheon delivery.
Kuo is still delighted about the outcome of the game. "This is not easy, for UT to beat Texas A & M. To beat them in Dallas is very difficult because Dallas is Aggie territory."
The COE dean also has other compensation: the 21 pounds of Texas barbeque arrived on January 12th.
For more information, contact: Kim Cowart, Communications Manager, Office of Engineering Communications at (865)-974-0686/kcowart@utk.edu