NCAA Approves Football Bowl Games For DC, St. Petersburg

The NCAA Postseason Football Licensing Subcommittee yesterday licensed 34 bowl games for the ’08 season, including the new Congressional Bowl in DC and the St. Petersburg Bowl. The proposed Rocky Mountain Bowl in Salt Lake City was not approved (THE DAILY). In DC, Christian Swezey reports the Congressional Bowl, the first postseason game in DC, will take place December 20 and "likely will pit" Navy against an ACC opponent. DC Bowl Committee (DCBC) co-Founder Sean Metcalf and member Marie Rudolph said that the game will be held at either RFK Stadium or Nationals Park, with the final location to be "determined within the next week or two." Metcalf and Rudolph added that Army has agreed to play in the '09 game and that they "hope to have a service academy take part in the game each year" (WASHINGTON POST, 5/1). In DC, Tim Lemke reports the game "could have a tie-in with either the ACC's ninth-place team or a team from the Mid-American Conference," though the DCBC still is negotiating with both conferences (WASHINGTON TIMES, 5/1).

ANOTHER FLORIDA GAME: In St. Petersburg, Greg Auman reports the St. Petersburg Bowl will debut sometime between December 20-23 at Tropicana Field and will feature teams from the Big East and Conference USA. ESPN Regional will own and operate the game, marking the sixth bowl game the broadcaster will own. Tickets for the game will cost $30, and organizers will "seek a corporate title sponsor who likely will pay" between $350,000-$500,000 annually (ST. PETERSBURG TIMES, 5/1).

WAIT UNTIL NEXT YEAR: In Utah, Dirk Facer reports the NCAA subcommittee asked the Rocky Mountain Bowl LLC group, which submitted the bid, to "re-apply for certification next year." The December game would have featured teams from the WAC and Mountain West Conference at the Univ. of Utah's Rice-Eccles Stadium (DESERET NEWS, 5/1). NCAA Assistant Coordinator of Public & Media Relations Dana Thomas said that officials were "concerned there was a lack of financial support in Salt Late City" for the bowl (SALT LAKE TRIBUNE, 5/1).

EXTRA INGREDIENTS: In Birmingham, Jon Solomon reports the NCAA yesterday also approved the recertification of the Papajohns.com Bowl, to be played on December 29 with an SEC-Big East pairing, "ending the ESPN-owned game's two-year relationship with Conference USA." The St. Petersburg Bowl will now get the C-USA team that previously was pegged for this game. The bowl will receive the SEC's lowest bowl-eligible team, and tickets to the game at Legion Field will jump to $40, up from $30 in both '06 and '07 (BIRMINGHAM NEWS, 5/1).