The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

THEY won’t know exactly which two teams will be coming down to compete until the Thanksgiving weekend, but if the first two editions were any indication, organisers anticipate that the third annual Popeyes Bahamas Bowl will be bigger and better.

Scheduled for Friday, December 23, on the new turf laid down on the infield of the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium, the collegiate bowl game will be between schools from the American Athletic Conference, Conference USA and the Mid-American Conference.

The game will be televised nationally in the United States on ESPN. The organising committee, led by Chris Pika, the director of communications for the Popeyes Bahamas Bowl, held a press conference yesterday at the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium to outline the details for this year’s event.

“We’re excited about the third game coming up. We’re getting ready to hit the halfway point in our contract,” said Pete Derzis, the senior vice president of ESPN events. “The word is catching on and everybody who’s been here have had a remarkably great time.

“The people here are so friendly, the games have been competitive and the nature beauty of your country has really won them over. We get constant calls over the last 3-4 weeks as the season started to play out of people asking if they can be a part of the Bahamas Popeyes Bowl.”

Derzis said the event could not be possible here without the support of so many people and that is necessary for the staging of any college football game, which is only second to the National Football League in the United States.

“It’s a hot, hot product that continues to do great things,” he said. “For us, the things that I’m really pleased about is our conference partners have been giving back to the people of the Bahamas.”

Last year, Conference USA interacted with the Ranfurly Home for Children and the Mid American Conference held a press conference to provide a financial gift to the Red Cross Society of the Bahamas. 

Derzis said this year, there are a series of events on tap when the teams and their following, as well as the Popeyes franchise coming with a number of their top executives.

Richard Giannini, the Executive Director of the Popeyes Bahamas Bowl, said by the weekend of Thanksgiving, they will announce which two teams from the conferences will be participating in the game this year.

“We’re the only Bowl that is allowed to announce its teams early,” he said. “The others won’t be able to do so until the week after. So that will give the game a little push and a little time for them to prepare to come down here.”

Once the teams have been announced, Giannini said they intend to hold another press conference for the first weekend in December when the two coaches will be town to address the media about their projections.

“We just hope that we will have a game like the last two games that we have had,” he said. “The teams have been so appreciative of being here and the Bahamians have welcomed them with open arms and the staff at Atlantis has been so accommodating.”

Harrison Thompson, the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Tourism, said they welcome back the Bahamas Popeyes Bowl to their home in December.

He noted that while the Bahamas has emerged from the passing of “Hurricane Matthew, we are back on our feet and we are opened for business.”

With this being the third year that the Ministry has been directly involved in the organizing of the game, Thompson said the Bahamas seek to gain financially from the teams, which bring in more than 100 players each, plus their fans.

“When it first started, there were some challenges,” Thompson said. “But to see how far we have come in the past three years, I think we all need to be commended for the great work that Lea (Miller) and her team and the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture and the National Sports Authority has done.”

Jeffrey Beckles, the General Manager of the NSA, said this is the third year of the six year deal that the Popeyes Bahamas Bowl has with the Bahamas Government and every year, it continues to get better and better.

“The Bahamas Bowl has become a part of the celebratory part of our lives in December,” Beckles said. “While it will not ever rival junkanoo, we do know that it is becoming a part of the Christmas celebrations.”

As a host country, which is fast becoming the most viable sporting destination, Beckles said the team at the NSA and their partners from the Bahamas Popeyes Bowl and the Bahamas Government have made sure that the event continues to improve to make the game one to remember.

Lea Miller, the promoter for the Popeyes Bahamas Bowl, said to have ESPN here is just fantastic and she noted that it could not have been possible without the commitment that has been made by Popeyes franchise.

“We are so excited about their continued participation and their title sponsorship. They have been so amazing,” she said. “We are also excited to hear about the continued efforts of the local franchise down here and the success that they’ve had.”

She also thanked the Ministry of Tourism, from Minister Obie Wilchcombe to Thompson and the rest of the staff; the Atlantis Hotel for their accommodation of the teams with the majority of their players having never left the United States before.

Additionally she expressed their gratitude to Coca-Cola and Kalik, for coming on board as a major sponsor and national partners, The Tribune for the role they play in spreading the message.