The Texas Bowl has replaced the now defunct Houston Bowl in the NCAA calendar. The Houston Bowl followed the same pattern and ran from 2000 to 2005, but stopped when the title sponsorship completed its five year deal. The Texas Bowl has been a successful venture ever since its inception, contributing a great deal to the Houston economy and has actively and positively promoted college football in the state and the country as well.
History:
Bowl games refer to the NCAA sanctioned post-season college football games which are contested by teams from the Division One Football Bowl Subdivision. To be eligible to play in Bowl games, teams need to follow a strict eligibility criterion. They have to win at least six games during the regular season and not have a losing record for the season. They can then be invited to Bowl games based on their standing in the table and their conferences’ tie-in to each bowl game.
Bowl games have gained importance over the years, as more teams have started taking them seriously. Firstly, teams involved in Bowl games have extra practice time allotted by the NCAA, something that helps with preparation for the regular season. Secondly, teams are paid to participate in Bowl games and that generates revenue for participating programs. Thirdly, Bowl games offer colleges a wonderful opportunity to recruit new talent for their teams.
The Texas Bowl:
The inaugural Texas Bowl was played in 2006 between Kansas State from the Big 12 conference and the Rutgers from the Big East. The inter-conference match was played at the Reliant Stadium, which is also the home of the NFL team Houston Texans. The Rutgers emerged 37-10 winners and won their first bowl championship in 2005.
Since then a new Texas Bowl Champion has been crowned every year, with TCU, Rice, Navy, Illinois, Texas A&M and Texas Tech each having won the Texas Bowl. The conferences which have participated in the Texas Bowl include the Big 12, Big East, MWC, Independent, C-USA, Big Ten and MAC.
From 2006-2008 the games were broadcast live by the NFL network. Since then they have been broadcast by televised sport powerhouse ESPN. ESPN coverage has made the Texas Bowl even more popular and allows a higher number of people to watch the games live.
The Bowl has been immensely successful ever since its inception and has generated around 30 million dollars per year for the economy in Houston. The Bowl has also donated generously to its official charitable beneficiary, DePelchin Children’s Center, with almost 600,000 dollars in aid and over twelve million dollars in promotional support.
The main aim behind the Texas Bowl has been to deliver a thrilling experience for the fans and to promote inter-conference sports, college sports and the players who participate. It also positively impacts the society via the Texas Bowl’s commitment to help its sponsored charity and overall promotes Houston as one of the great “bowl” cities in America. If you also want to be a part of this experience, then get Texas Bowl tickets and not only enjoy the best college football action, but also be a part of all the other great things the Texas Bowl stands for.