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Central Arkansas Group Asks NCAA for Division I Bowl at War Memorial

2 min read

A group representing central Arkansas on Wednesday asked the NCAA to play a Division I football subdivision bowl at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock in December.

“We think a college bowl game will be the perfect addition to the event schedule at War Memorial,” Kevin Crass of Little Rock, the chairman of the War Memorial Stadium Commission, said in a press release announcing the application. “Arkansans love college football, and I have no doubt this game will be a success.

“We already have the strong support of key people in both Little Rock and North Little Rock. The game will showcase the attractions that Central Arkansas has to offer for a national television audience while introducing a new group of visitors to the area’s many amenities,” he said.

An application was submitted by “a group of government, civic and business leaders,” according to the news release.

If approved, the game would match teams from the Sun Belt Conference, which includes Arkansas State University at Jonesboro and the American Athletic Conference. Commissioners of the two conferences recently visited Little Rock and “expressed their strong support for such a game,” according to the release

A decision from the NCAA is expected in May.

The mayors of Little Rock and North Little Rock, the chambers of commerce of both cities and the convention and visitors’ bureaus of the two cities are involved in the effort. If NCAA approval is received, the coordinating committee will announce the bowl’s name, title sponsor and television partner at a later date.

The bowl would be the fifth bowl tie-in for the Sun Belt Conference, joining the New Orleans Bowl, the GoDaddy Bowl at Mobile, the Camellia Bowl at Montgomery and the new Cure Bowl at Orlando.

In addition to A-State, football members of the Sun Belt Conference are Appalachian State, Georgia Southern, Louisiana-Lafayette, Texas State, South Alabama, Louisiana-Monroe, Troy, New Mexico State, Idaho and Georgia State.

Football members of the American Athletic Conference are Central Florida, Cincinnati, Connecticut, East Carolina, Houston, Memphis, the U.S. Naval Academy, South Florida, SMU, Temple, Tulane and Tulsa.

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