April 19, 2010
GREENSBORO, Ga. – Georgia Tech head coach Paul Johnson will team up with former Yellow Jacket and NBA standout Jon Barry to compete for $400,000 in scholarship money at the annual Chick-fil-A Bowl Challenge charity golf tournament April 27.
Johnson and Barry, who have finished in the top four the last two seasons, will compete against the likes of Nick Saban, Steve Spurrier, Frank Beamer, Jim Grobe, Ralph Friedgen and others for the first-place scholarship prize.
The nation’s premier head coach and celebrity golf event will be held at the beautiful Reynolds Plantation resort on Lake Oconee outside Atlanta. Over the past three years, the Chick-fil-A Bowl Challenge has provided more than $1.3 million in scholarship and charity to its participating universities.
Over the three-day event, several tournament rounds will be played. The complete field of former athletes and celebrities includes four Heisman Trophy winners, 10 members of the College Football Hall of Fame, 20 All-Americans, six Coach of the Year winners, four NFL Hall of Famers and players totaling 51 NFL All-Pro or Pro Bowl selections.
Two-time defending champions Steve Spurrier and Sterling Sharpe from the University of South Carolina will lead an impressive list of top NCAA head coaches and celebrities. In all, 12 teams are scheduled to hit the links in the featured event, all vying for the $120,000 first-place scholarship prize.
“From a golf standpoint, this might be the strongest field we’ve ever had in this tournament,” said Gary Stokan, Chick-fil-A Bowl president and CEO. “Not only are they highly competitive on the football field, but they are ultra competitive when competing for this championship – especially with our largest scholarship purse yet on the line.”
The current field of competitors for the featured event includes:
TEAM: COACH: CELEBRITY:Alabama Nick Saban Steve SloanClemson Dabo Swinney Dwight ClarkFlorida State Jimbo Fisher Terrell BuckleyGeorgia Tech Paul Johnson Jon BarryMaryland Ralph Friedgen Stan GelbaughMississippi Houston Nutt Wesley WallsNorth Carolina Butch Davis Natrone MeansN.C. State Tom O'Brien Sidney LoweSouth Carolina Steve Spurrier Sterling SharpeVanderbilt Bobby Johnson Will PerdueVirginia Tech Frank Beamer Dell CurryWake Forest Jim Grobe Billy Packer
The Chick-fil-A Bowl Challenge main event features pairings that include a university head coach and a celebrity or former athlete from the same school competing in a scramble format against other university teams from around the country.
Past winners: 2009 South Carolina (Spurrier/Sharpe / -12, playoff winners), 2008 South Carolina (Spurrier/Sharpe / -12), 2007 Virginia Tech (Beamer/Curry / -10).
In addition to the $400,000 scholarship purse, additional proceeds will be donated to selected charities including Chick-fil-A’s WinShape Homes. The Chick-fil-A Bowl Challenge is a significant contributor to the Chick-fil-A Bowl’s overall charitable and scholarship donations. The Chick-fil-A Bowl leads all bowls in the country in charitable giving, including gifts of more than $5.8 million since 2002.
The tournament is being taped by ESPN for broadcast in the fall. The date of the broadcast will be announced this summer.
For more information on the event, visit www.Chick-fil-ABowlChallenge.com.
About the Chick-fil-A Bowl
The Chick-fil-A Bowl is the ninth-oldest bowl game in the country and hosts the longest-running rivalry series between the ACC and SEC. Now in its 43rd year, the Chick-fil-A Bowl has established itself as one of the nation’s elite bowl games with a string of 13 consecutive sellouts and has earned a reputation as one of the most competitive bowls in the nation. Ten of the last 18 games have been decided by a touchdown or less. The Chick-fil-A Bowl has disbursed more than $97 million in team payouts during its 42-year history and has increased team payout every year since 1996. The Bowl also leads all other bowl games in charitable and scholarship contributions, giving more than $1.2 million to organizations in need in 2009 alone. Other events under the Chick-fil-A Bowl brand include the Chick-fil-A Bowl Challenge head coach and celebrity golf event each April and the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game season-opening game over Labor Day weekend which will host two projected pre-season top 25 teams, LSU and North Carolina, to open the 2010 season Sept. 4.
