Football – UL BOWL SNUB: State taxpayers help foot the bill for Indpendence Bowl’s pick of Northern

In ironic twist, a bowl desperate for an economic boost picked the team with smaller attendance

Mike Hasten • mhasten@gannett.com • December 10, 2008

BATON ROUGE – College bowl games are big money-makers, but it takes money – including state revenue – to put them on, promoters of the events say. 

This year’s state budget contains about $2.2 million to support the Sugar Bowl, New Orleans Bowl and the Independence Bowl. All of the funding is within the lieutenant governor’s budget under the Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism.

The Allstate Sugar Bowl in New Orleans, the state’s only Bowl Championship Series event, received the bulk of that funding, $1.5 million. The PetroSun Independence Bowl in Shreveport received $359,160 and the R�L Carriers New Orleans Bowl received $335,217.

Although not a bowl game, the Bayou Classic, the annual pairing of Southern University and Grambling State in the Superdome, received $300,000 to help promote the event.

The state money is used to pay the costs of teams to travel to the events and for some advertising. But the teams in bowl games and their conferences also receive significant bonuses for participating in the events, primarily from sponsors and television network coverage. I-Bowl participants are paid $1.1 million, according to a Sporting News compilation of bowl payoffs.

Missy Setters, director of the Independence Bowl, said the team payoffs come from ticket sales and the more than 150 corporate sponsors.

"It’s three-and-a-half hours on ESPN" showing the Shreveport area, she said, which is invaluable exposure.

The game has an $18 million to $22 million impact on Shreveport and the state, depending on which teams are selected to participate, she said.

This year’s competitors are Louisiana Tech and Northern Illinois, which has stirred controversy in Lafayette, where UL supporters say their school should have been selected to play Louisiana Tech. They argue that many more Ragin’ Cajun fans than Huskies fans would travel to Shreveport and spent the weekend and bowl officials should seek to promote state schools.

The interest in football at both schools also adds an interesting element over the selection. In six home games this season, NIU drew 109,110 fans for an average 18,185 attendance. UL drew 107,342 for five home dates at Cajun Field, an average of 21,468 fans.

But Setters said the Independence Bowl is more than a game and is an opportunity to show off the Shreveport area. She said that in each ticket inquiry she is inserting a guide "showing what we have to offer. It shows ahead of time where they can stay and what they can do in our area."

Independence Bowl stadium seats 48,000. Setters said average attendance is about 45,000, drawing supporters from the two schools and football fans from Texas and Arkansas.

The $1.5 million state funds allocated to the Sugar Bowl brings a return of more than $150 million from tourism, said John Sudsbury, director of Communications & Media Relations for the Allstate Sugar Bowl. The schools split the money for whatever they want.

"Last year, the impact of the two games (Sugar Bowl and BCS Championship Game) was $400 million," he said. "Two years ago, we were just over $125 million. However, that included LSU as our primary draw" and many LSU fans did not stay in New Orleans.

"With Alabama coming this year, it should be a big boost in hotels and longer stays," he said.

Alabama and Utah, the teams participating in the Sugar Bowl, will reap $18 million each – about the same as the national championship game. Sudsbury said the payouts come from "sponsors, ticket sales and television revenue, primarily."

The New Orleans Bowl, which also is played in the Superdome, brings between $20 million and $25 million return on the $335,217 state investment, said Jay Cicero, president and CEO of the New Orleans Sports Foundation, sponsors of the event.

Cicero said he expects Southern Mississippi and Troy to provide a good game and good hotel and restaurant revenues for the city.

"There will be 10,000 to 20,000 visitors coming at a very, very slow time," he said. "Hotels are traditionally starving around Christmas. We’ve secured $89 rates at the best hotels for the New Orleans Bowl."