It's not going to be the Bowl Championship Series title game in sunny Miami. That dream died at Michigan.

It's not going to be the Rose Bowl in sunny Pasadena, Calif. That dream died against Ohio State.

It's not going to be a New Year's Day Bowl in sunny Florida. That dream died against Penn State and Iowa.

It's not even going to be the Alamo Bowl in sunny San Antonio. That dream, such as it was, died at Michigan State.

Indeed, of the grandiose postseason dreams for the University of Wisconsin football team, about all that remains is that it will be sunny wherever the Badgers play their final game.

So where have the Badgers' dreams taken them this season? At this point, there are two possible destinations — the Champs Sports Bowl on Dec. 27 in Orlando, Fla., and the Insight Bowl on Dec. 31 in Tempe, Ariz.

If, as expected, USC beats UCLA Saturday and Ohio State joins Penn State as Big Ten teams in the BCS bowl rotation, it will be a simple enough matter for the bowls near the end of the conference pecking order: UW and Minnesota will be the only teams available to play in the Champs and the Insight bowls.

Since the Champs has the, um, pick of the litter, it would seem to be a no-brainer. Even though UW only beat Minnesota by three points, there is no comparison between the Badgers and the Gophers. UW has a slightly better team, considerably more fan support and much greater national drawing power, which is important since bowl games are little more than holiday programming for sports television networks anyway.

The final call rests with the Champs people, of course, and they have their own objectives in finding a suitable matchup for their game. But as the good people in Orlando weigh the merits of UW and Minnesota, here is one bit of advice:

Don't do it. With all due respect, don't pick UW. Let the Badgers get their tans at the Insight Bowl this year.

This is nothing against Orlando, mind you. The Badgers went to the Capital One Bowl twice in the last four years and had a wonderful experience both times. The city, the stadium, the weather and the proximity for UW fans were all excellent.

It's just that Badgers fans, already disillusioned by a UW's 7-5 record, will yawn collectively at the prospect of another bowl game in Florida, especially if it's not on New Year's Day. That's true even if the opponent is the ever-attractive Florida State.

So while the Champs is a better bowl destination — bigger payout, more television exposure and a closer drive — than the Insight for UW fans, it simply isn't as appealing in 2008 as it would be in other years.

A trip to the Insight would benefit UW more than returning to Florida for the fifth straight year. That's because the Badgers haven't played in an Arizona bowl in 10 years and a game there would hold considerable appeal to the many UW alums and former Wisconsin residents who live within driving distance in Phoenix, Las Vegas and southern California.

If the Badgers have a choice — and they do have a voice in the discussion — they should go to the Insight and play a team from the hottest conference in the nation, the Big 12.