Appalachian State head Scott Satterfield and Toledo head coach Jason Candle were in town Thursday morning for the Raycom Media Camellia Bowl Head Coaches Press Conference at the Multiplex at Cramton Bowl.
The event was sponsored by Beasley Allen, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama and MAX Credit Union.
Appalachian State and Toledo will meet on Saturday, Dec. 17 at 4:30 p.m. (CT) at the historic Cramton Bowl in Montgomery. The game will be televised by ESPN. Tickets to the third annual Raycom Media Camellia Bowl are on sale via the internet www.espnevents.com/guardian-kickoff/tickets/. Tickets are $30 for reserved seats and $20 for general admission seating.
APPALACHIAN STATE HEAD COACH SCOTT SATTERFIELD:
“On behalf of Appalachian State University, I want to thank the Camellia Bowl for hosting again this year. Last year was out first time to go to a bowl game and we were so fortunate to come to this game. The event that was put on here last year and the City of Montgomery was fantastic. It was a great experience for our players, our coaches and our fans. We could not have asked for anything more. Once we got bowl eligible this season, people were asking questions and what bowl are we going too. We were chosen to come back to Montgomery. We are excited to be here. We know it will be a great experience for us. We know what to expect now. Johnny Williams has a lot to live up to after last year. We are excited about being here.
“I have a tremendous amount of respect for Toledo and how they play the game. I was there in 2009. It is a similar program to what we have at Appalachian State, a blue-collar program. Their guys play hard and physical. Jason (Candle) has done an outstanding job taking over there. He won the bowl game they played in last year and had a tremendous season this year. It should be a great game and great matchup between two good teams.”
TOLEDO HEAD COACH JASON CANDLE:
“On behalf of the city of Toledo, our University, our staff and our team and those associated with the program at the University of Toledo, we would like to thank Raycom for having us here at this great bowl game. I’d like to thank Johnny Williams and his crew for making us welcome. We had a group down here earlier this week and the hospitality and support to make this event possible.
“We know this is going to be a great bowl for us. We have a chance to play a tremendous team in AppaIachian State. I certainly have a lot of respect for Scott (Satterfield) and what he has been able to do with that football program. I think it’s really cool. I played at Mount Union and I have a special place in my heart for that program and I know how special it is to be able to coach at his alma mater and put his footprint in that football program. They came from the FCS and went to bowl game last year and had a tremendous season this year. He does and outstanding job. They have a physical football team. This should make for a great football game for us.
“We are excited to bring our brand of football down to this part of the country. This part of the country does not see Toledo often. The state of Alabama is football country. It’s a state that hosts three bowl games and goes all the way back to Bear Bryant. The Iron Bowl and Senor Bowl are played here and the great high school football in this state. The Rockets could not be happier to be part of that. The city of Montgomery will provide great hospitality for team and our fans are certainly looking forward to making the trip down to watch the game. At Toledo, we don’t take these opportunities very lightly. In 2013, we were 7-5 and did not get invited to a bowl game. Everybody thinks in this day and age of college football, you get invited to games when you get to .500 or get close, but we were 7-5 and did not make it. Having to sit in that locker room and tell those seniors they were not going to have one more chance to put on that midnight blue and gold uniform. That was hard for our staff.”
ESPN Events
ESPN Events, a division of ESPN, owns and operates a large portfolio of collegiate sporting events worldwide. The roster includes three Labor Day weekend college football games; FCS opening-weekend game; 13 college bowl games, 11 college basketball events and two college award shows, which accounts for approximately 250-plus hours of programming, reaches almost 64 million viewers and attracts over 700,000 attendees each year. With satellite offices in Albuquerque, Birmingham, Boca Raton, Boise, Dallas-Fort Worth, Honolulu, Las Vegas, Montgomery and St. Petersburg, ESPN Events builds relationships with conferences, schools and local communities, as well as providing unique experiences for teams and fans.
ESPN Events also manages the Big 12 Corporate Partner Program.
Collegiate Football
AdvoCare Texas Kickoff (Houston); AdvoCare V100 Texas Bowl (Houston); Air Force Reserve Celebration Bowl(Atlanta); Birmingham Bowl (Alabama); Boca Raton Bowl (Florida); Camping World Kickoff (Orlando, Fla.); Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (Boise); Gildan New Mexico Bowl (Albuquerque); Hawai’i Bowl (Honolulu); Las Vegas Bowl (Nevada); Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl (Dallas-Fort Worth); MEAC/SWAC Challenge (Baton Rouge, La.); Montgomery Kickoff Classic (Montgomery, Ala.); Popeyes Bahamas Bowl (Nassau); Raycom Media Camellia Bowl (Montgomery, Ala.); St. Petersburg Bowl (Florida); The Home Depot College Football Awards(Atlanta) and Zaxby’s Heart of Dallas Bowl (Dallas-Fort Worth)
Collegiate Basketball
AdvoCare Invitational (Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, Fla.); College Basketball Awards Presented by Wendy’s (Los Angeles); Gildan Charleston Classic (South Carolina); Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic (Honolulu); Jimmy V Men’s Classic presented by Corona (New York City); Jimmy V Women’s Classic presented by Corona (Uncasville, Conn.); NIT Season Tip-Off (Brooklyn, N.Y.); PK80 (Portland, Ore.); State Farm Armed Forces Classic (Honolulu); State Farm Champions Classic (New York City); Tire Pros Invitational (Orlando, Fla.) and Wooden Legacy (Orange County, Calif.)
For more information, visit the official website, Facebook, Twitter or YouTube pages.
-30-
ESPN Media Contact: Rachel Margolis Siegal at 860-766-2798 or [email protected]
