Oh yes, they did that: from 1948 to ’52, Phoenix hosted the Salad Bowl on New Year’s Day. Before you start making jokes — no, the players did not receive radish as swag — know that the region was one of the country’s top lettuce-producing areas, the Arizona Vegetable Growers Association helped organize the game, and the 1948 Salad Bowl queen was a future Miss America. There was even a Salad Bowl parade, with a float shaped like, yes, a salad bowl. Proceeds from the game went to charities that supported disabled children. Why Little Caesars, the pizza chain, never improved its health image by reviving the game and becoming its title sponsor will remain one of the biggest business mysteries of all-time.