LOS ANGELES -- Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops enjoyed everything about his first two trips to the Rose Bowl -- well, almost everything.

Stoops has yet to win a Rose Bowl, something he hopes changes on New Year's Day when his eighth-ranked Sooners play No. 7 Washington State in the Rose Bowl Game presented by PlayStation2.

"Playing well and winning the game is a big, big factor in really enjoying these games,'' he said.

Stoops and three members of his staff played in the Rose Bowl during their careers at Iowa. Stoops, his brother Mike, offensive coordinator Chuck Long and tight ends coach Jonathan Hayes played on the team that made the 1982 Rose Bowl. Long returned four years later, as did Bob Stoops as a graduate assistant.

Iowa lost to Washington in the 1982 Rose Bowl and were beaten by UCLA in the '86 game.

"The experience was great, but you definitely want to win the game,'' Long said. "It's always stuck in my craw that we didn't win out there.''

Bob Stoops was a junior on the 1981 team, Mike a redshirt freshman who backed up his brother at strong safety. Long, a quarterback, and Hayes, a linebacker who later became a tight end, were freshmen.

Before 1981, the Hawkeyes had 19 straight years without a winning season. Hayden Fry had gone 4-7 and 5-6 in his first two seasons as coach, but in his third year, he rode a strong defense to a share of the Big 10 title.

Iowa won close games with Nebraska and Michigan early in the season then stumbled midway through, losing to Iowa State, Minnesota and Illinois. But victories over Purdue and Wisconsin left Iowa at 7-3 heading into the final regular-season game, against Michigan State.

"We just got on a roll,'' Mike Stoops recalled. "It started with defense. We got better as a team.''

In order to get the Rose Bowl bid, the Hawkeyes needed to beat Michigan State in the final game and Ohio State had to beat Michigan. At halftime of the Iowa game, the crowd at Iowa's Kinnick Stadium roared -- Ohio State had won. The Hawkeyes went on to beat Michigan State 36-7 and were headed to Pasadena.

"From where we were, it was incredible,'' Bob Stoops said. "It was really special.

"The town just went crazy. I never can forget trying to get off the field after the game -- strap your helmet on and fight your way to the locker room. It was actually scary, like, 'Man, this is out of control.'''

The Hawkeyes got to California more than two weeks before the game, in part to escape the Iowa cold but also to soak up the bowl scene. And soak it up they did.

Knotts Berry Farm. Universal Studios. Disneyland. Mann's Chinese Theater. The Hawkeyes visited them all, along with the LA Coliseum to watch a Rams game and the Forum to watch the Lakers.

At every stop, they wore Rose Bowl sweaters given by the bowl organizers.

"Ohhhh God!'' Long laughed, remembering the attire.

Asked Mike Stoops, "Geez, can we give these sweaty things a break?''

Long didn't recall whether Iowa beat Washington in the traditional "beef bowl'' at Lowery's steak house. But he did remember the open buffet available at the team hotel for every meal.

"I mean, we put the pounds on,'' he said. "We were so overweight by game time. We ate and ate and ate ourselves silly. It was just unbelievable.''

Long figures those excess pounds may have played a role in Iowa's performance against Washington. The Hawkeyes trailed 13-0 at halftime and wound up losing 28-0, committing five turnovers along the way.

Bob Stoops injured a knee in the game and was replaced by his brother, who was tested on a deep pass on his first play. The pass was overthrown. Long played the final two snaps -- both were pass plays, but he wound up scrambling instead.

"After the game, we were like, 'Gee, that wasn't very good at all,' " Long said.

Oklahoma is seeing the sights on this trip. The Sooners attended a taping of The Tonight Show on Thursday, they went to Disneyland on Friday and had the beef bowl slated Saturday night.

But Bob Stoops expects a strong showing on the field. The Sooners are 2-1 in bowl games under Stoops, including a national championship victory in the 2001 Orange Bowl, and he said his players know there's a time for fun and a time for business.

"I believe they understand, from having done it a couple years, the very best part of it is winning the game,'' he said. "That is what they ultimately really remember.''