Through its first 39 years, the Fiesta Bowl (now branded the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl) attracted over 2.8 million out-of-towners to Arizona. Last year’s contest between Boise State and TCU filled the University of Phoenix Stadium with over 73,000 fans. There were many potential challenges for this year’s game, including complaints about the choice of teams, blizzards socking in East Coast residents during the Christmas holidays, S.B. 1070 boycotts, and colder-than-usual temperatures in Phoenix. But this year’s Tostitos Fiesta Bowl between the Universities of Connecticut and Oklahoma still attracted a large and diverse set of enthusiastic college football fans.
Most were Oklahoma fans. While they came from many different places, they had close ties to either the school or the State. Al Lewis, a first-time visitor to Phoenix, his wife Pat and son Marcus, flew in from Colorado Springs just for the game. He attended high school in Tulsa and likes “everything and anything about the Sooners.”
Harold Sorrell’s extended family occupied two tables at the College Football’s Biggest Party, a pre-game event. Sorrell was raised in Oklahoma, but lives in Utah. This was the first time he and his family (some of whom came in from Vancouver) attended a bowl game.
Ed and Sherri Shirley from Atlanta, Texas, came, not just to cheer for Oklahoma, but for their son, Tanner, who plays trumpet in the band.
There were a few, hearty UConn fans, who seemed to be enjoying the “warm” weather. Ken Griebell, who graduated from UConn in 1991,from Princeton, New Jersey. He was hoping for a “David vs. Goliath” victory. Laurie and Sarah Carlson were the kind of visitors Phoenix covets. They came from Colorado, for their first visit to Arizona. During their stay they enjoyed visits to Jerome, Sedona and other popular attractions.
While they do not contribute as much to the local economy, Phoenicians like Eric and Randi Kinnamon added to the fan spirit. Eric, who works for Waste Management, a major partner for the Fiesta Bowl, became addicted to the Sooners’ traditions when he lived in Oklahoma.
There was no miracle for the University of Connecticut, as Griebell had hoped, and Oklahoma “smoked” the Huskies, as Kinnamon predicted. But Arizonans enjoyed the economic boost the visitors provided and hope that they had a good enough time to consider, at a minimum, vacationing, at best relocating to the Valley.
@font-face { font-family: "Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 10pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; }
Source:
No comments:
Post a Comment