Wednesday, December 17, 2008            
                                         

RFK STADIUM SET TO HOST INAUGURAL EAGLEBANK BOWL THIS SATURDAY

Pregame festivities to include DC Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, Navy’s Napoleon McCallum, Darius Songaila of Wake Forest and a Fighter Jet flyover

WASHINGTON, DC — Great tradition. Great days. Exciting plays. Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium celebrates another great day and kicks off a new tradition when the stadium hosts the inaugural EagleBank Bowl on Saturday, December 20th, the first-ever bowl game in the Nation’s Capital. The Wake Forest University Demon Deacons take on the Midshipmen of the United States Naval Academy in the historic matchup. Kick off is 11:05 am. Gates open at 9:30 am.
D.C. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty opens the day’s activities with a special Washington, D.C. welcome along with Ronald D. Paul, Chairman of EagleBank and Matthew Cutts, Chairman of the DC Sports and Entertainment Commission (DCSEC). The DCSEC operates RFK Stadium and the DC Armory.

“It’s exciting to have football back in historic RFK Stadium,” said Cutts. “Everyone attending the game can expect a great show.”

The electrifying pregame festivities will honor history and pageantry. Starting at 10:40 am, nearly 1,000 Midshipmen will participate in the ‘March-On’, a time-honored tradition of the Brigade of Midshipmen. Following the Mayor’s welcome, a special tribute video highlighting great football moments at RFK from professional, college and high school games will be shown on the stadium video board. Rising R&B artist *Charm* will sing the National Anthem followed by an exhilarating flyover by two F/A-18 Hornets from the VFA-34 Squadron of the Naval Air Station Oceania. Halftime will feature a performance by the Wake Forest Marching Band.           

“We expect a great game between two teams with talented coaching staffs and players,” said Steve Beck, Executive Director of the EagleBank Bowl. “We’ve been looking forward to this game for months and now it’s finally here. We’re happy that the Washington, D.C. region has embraced this game.”

Former Navy and NFL running back Napoleon McCallum and former Wake Forest standout and current Washington Wizard Darius Songaila will represent their respective teams as honorary captains during the inaugural coin toss. Joining them at center field is Colonel Kevin D. Lutz, commander of Task Force Troy, the counter-IED brigade in Iraq.
Tickets for the inaugural EagleBank Bowl are available at www.ticketmaster.com or by calling (202) 397-SEAT. Tickets range in price from $45 to $135 in the following categories:
Spectator:                      $45
Premium:                    $75
VIP:                             $100
Mezzanine:                    $110
Suite/Club/Box:             $135

RFK Stadium parking lots open at 7 am. The stadium is also easily accessible by Metro blue and orange rail lines along with several bus lines. For additional information on the bowl game, please visit www.eaglebankbowl.org.

PREGAME TAILGATES ON RFK STADIUM-ARMORY CAMPUS
Both schools will host pregame tailgates on the RFK Stadium-Armory campus. Following is information regarding each tailgate party.

About the EagleBank Bowl
The DC Bowl Committee, Inc. was formed as a community and charitable organization to host the first-ever NCAA-sanctioned, post-season bowl game in Washington, DC. The collective efforts of the DC Bowl Committee, the DC Sports and Entertainment Commission and EagleBank, the title sponsor, brings the excitement of the bowl season to the Nation’s Capitol while boosting the regional economy and raising money for local charities. Charity partners include Wounded EOD Warriors, Positive Choices, National Kidney Foundation, DC Public Education Fund, Peaceoholics and Title IX Scholarships. The EagleBank Bowl will be televised live on ESPN.

MEDIA CONTACTS:
Teri Washington, DC Sports and Entertainment Commission
(202) 494-5737 or twashington@dcsec.com

Shaun May, Brotman * Winter * Fried Communications
(240) 676-4607 or smay@bwfcom.com