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Birmingham Bowl
NCAA Approves The Birmingham Bowl
Birmingham is officially back in the postseason bowl business.
The NCAA's Post-Season Football Licensing Subcommittee, meeting Thursday in Orlando, approved a Dec. 23 bowl game for Birmingham, granting the license to Charlotte-based ESPN Regional TV.
Birmingham has not hosted a postseason bowl game since 1990, when the All-America Bowl was discontinued after Birmingham was awarded the first two Southeastern Conference football championship games. Birmingham hosted a postseason bowl game from 1977 until 1990.
At this point, what will be known simply as "The Birmingham Bowl" will match a team from Conference USA with one from the Big East. How those teams will be selected has not been announced.
``Obviously, we're pleased to have worked with local officials and business leaders to bring a bowl game back to what we feel is a great college football market," said Pete Derzis, senior vice president and general manager of ESPN Regional and a former associate athletics director at UAB. "This will provide national exposure for the two conferences, the participating schools and players, and the city of Birmingham, and we're excited that it will allow the many passionate fans of college football in the Birmingham area to participate in a postseason event."
Birmingham Mayor Bernard Kincaid welcomed the announcement.
"I'm really looking forward to our being able to host this," Kincaid said. "On Dec. 23, it's kind of a Christmas present for Birmingham."
Kincaid said the game fits well with Birmingham and Legion Field's long football tradition.
"It has the potential to bring back `The Football Captial of the South.'"
In addition, Kincaid assumed the game would be broadcast on ESPN, giving the city more national exposure. |