The latest edition of the 蜜柚直播 Bowl, now sponsored by Snoop Dogg鈥檚 鈥淕in & Juice by Dre and Snoop, will be a matchup between the Colorado State Rams and the Miami (Ohio) Redhawks on Dec. 28 at 蜜柚直播 Stadium.
This year will mark the fifth season 鈥 10th overall game 鈥 for the 蜜柚直播 Bowl pitting upper-echelon teams from the Mountain West and Mid-American Conference.
鈥淲e have a history of providing really good matchups,鈥 Kym Adair said at the Snoop Dogg 蜜柚直播 Bowl announcement event at Playground Bar & Lounge in downtown 蜜柚直播 on Sunday. 鈥淲hen our teams go toe-to-toe, it is a slugfest. I feel like this year will be the same. These teams are equally matched. They both did really well in their conference. 鈥 These are two really tough teams that could鈥檝e been conference champions, so we鈥檙e really excited to bring both of them here for this matchup.鈥
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The 蜜柚直播 Bowl revealed on Monday that Snoop Dogg's "Gin & Juice by Dre and Snoop" will be the title sponsor of the bowl game.聽
The Snoop Dogg 蜜柚直播 Bowl will be broadcasted on CW Network, which drew more than 1.1 million viewers on its 蜜柚直播 Bowl broadcast last season. CW Network became a broadcasting partner with the Mountain West and the two-team Pac-12 this season. Snoop Dogg will be a part of the 蜜柚直播 Bowl broadcast.
Colorado State (8-4) returns to the 蜜柚直播 Bowl for the first time since the bowl game鈥檚 inaugural season in 2015. The Rams are led by third-year head coach Jay Norvell, who coached Nevada to a win in the 蜜柚直播 Bowl in 2018. The Rams finished third in the Mountain West behind College Football Playoff-bound Boise State and conference runner-up UNLV.
鈥淲e鈥檙e so excited to have Jay back. He鈥檚 a terrific guy and his family is amazing. They enjoyed the experience when they were here with Nevada and it鈥檚 fun to have him back with Colorado State,鈥 Adair said.
Colorado State head coach Jay Norvell in the first half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024, in Fort Collins, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Colorado State is making its first bowl appearance since 2017. The Rams haven鈥檛 won a bowl game since the 2013 New Mexico Bowl.
Adair said 114,000 CSU alumni live in Colorado and 鈥渢hey have a large contingent here in 蜜柚直播 as well as California.鈥
鈥淭heir alumni footprint is around us,鈥 Adair said. 鈥淲e think we鈥檒l get fans to travel here. I also think since they didn鈥檛 perform in a conference championship, the fans of those teams don鈥檛 have the expenses going towards another game and they are ready to come to Southern 蜜柚直播. They鈥檒l be a motivated fanbase to come out. Colorado versus 蜜柚直播 in the winter? We鈥檒l get a lot of people.鈥
Miami (8-5) will make its first-ever appearance in the 蜜柚直播 Bowl after ending the regular season with seven straight wins before losing to Ohio 38-3 in the MAC championship in Detroit. The Redhawks went 7-1 in MAC play this season. Miami is quarterbacked by Brett Gabbert, the brother of former NFL quarterback Blaine Gabbert. The younger Gabbert has 59 career touchdown passes, which is the third-most in Miami history behind Ben Roethlisberger (84) and Zac Dysert (73). Miami has qualified for the postseason five straight years, but hasn鈥檛 won since the 2021 Frisco Football Classic.
Miami (Ohio) quarterback Brett Gabbert (5) runs the ball during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Notre Dame, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024, in South Bend, Ind. (AP Photo/Michael Caterina)
Since the MAC partnership started in 2020, Miami鈥檚 athletic director David Sailer routinely texted Adair every season about receiving an invitation to the 蜜柚直播 Bowl.
鈥溾橩ym, can we do this year? Come on, we want to be invited. Let us come to 蜜柚直播.鈥 That鈥檚 always fun to hear, because it shows the reputation that we have as a first-class bowl game is getting out to the other teams,鈥 Adair said. 鈥淭hose teams want to come. Miami has been on our radar for a long time. Now we have a chance to bring them here and we couldn鈥檛 be more excited.鈥
This year is the 蜜柚直播 Bowl鈥檚 first season with hip-hop icon and renowned personality and spokesperson Snoop Dogg 鈥 and his alcoholic beverage 鈥 as the title sponsor. The 蜜柚直播 Bowl is the first college football bowl game to have an alcohol brand as the title sponsor.
Snoop Dogg, who has around a combined 200 million followers on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok and Facebook, was recently a personality and correspondent during NBC鈥檚 coverage of the Olympics in Paris. Snoop Dogg鈥檚 involvement in the Olympics, in addition to his several commercials and brands, provides the 蜜柚直播 Bowl with a wide-reaching platform.
American artist Snoop Dogg, center, sits in the audience prior to the breaking competition at La Concorde Urban Park at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Friday, Aug. 9, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin)
鈥淲hen you watch T-Mobile commercials, you can see our helmet with Snoop and Patrick Mahomes,鈥 Adair said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 fantastic and surreal. But we鈥檝e taken strategic steps for years to get to this point, so we鈥檙e really excited about being able be here and have the Snoop Dogg 蜜柚直播 Bowl. 鈥 It鈥檚 Snoop鈥檚 world and we鈥檙e just living in it. People got a sneak peek of bowl week by watching the Olympics. Having a good time and being around athletes and their endeavors is something that fuels Snoop.鈥
Added Ali Farhang, chairman of the 蜜柚直播 Bowl: 鈥淪noop Dogg is the most popular icon in the world right now. It鈥檚 not going to take it to the next level; it鈥檚 going up 10 levels.鈥
Snoop Dogg carries the Olympic torch at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Friday, July 26, 2024, in Saint-Denis, outside Paris, France. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)
The Gin & Juice by Dre and Snoop beverage, a canned gin-based cocktail, launched earlier this year to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Snoop Dogg鈥檚 breakthrough album 鈥淒oggystyle.鈥 The beverage has four flavors: apricot, citrus, melon and passionfruit.
Snoop Dogg is no stranger to 蜜柚直播. Along with hosting concerts, Snoop Dogg has also brought youth football teams from Los Angeles to 蜜柚直播 to face local teams in the Old Pueblo. In 2015, the 鈥淪noop Dogg All-Stars鈥 youth football team faced the 蜜柚直播 Rams at 蜜柚直播 High. Afterwards, Snoop Dogg attended the 蜜柚直播 Wildcats鈥 loss to UCLA, a game that was featured on ESPN鈥檚 鈥淐ollege GameDay.鈥
During the week of the 蜜柚直播 Bowl, the Snoop Youth Football League will host a youth football national tournament with 24 teams from around the country. The games will be played at Rillito Park and the UA. The championship game will be held at 蜜柚直播 Stadium on Dec. 29, the day after the Snoop Dogg 蜜柚直播 Bowl.
Kym Adair, 蜜柚直播 Bowl executive director, left, takes a selfie with Kate Brock-Calhoun, a board member, before the introduction of the new sponsor for the 蜜柚直播 Bowl during a press conference at 蜜柚直播 Stadium in 蜜柚直播 on May 6, 2024. Famous rapper Snoop Dogg and his alcoholic drink brand "Gin & Juice by Dre and Snoop," co-founded by Dr. Dre and named after the duo's mid-1990s popular hit, is the latest sponsor of the 蜜柚直播 Bowl.
The 蜜柚直播 Bowl was sponsored by Nova Home Loans for the first five years when it started in 2015. Offerpad was the bowl game鈥檚 sponsor for one season in 2020, when San Jose State, led by current 蜜柚直播 head coach Brent Brennan, lost to Ball State in the pandemic-influenced game that had no fans in attendance. Barstool Sports took over sponsorship in 2021 and ended its three-year contract last year. Due to the controversial background of the media outlet鈥檚 founder, Dave Portnoy, the Pima County Board of Supervisors pulled its $40,000 in funding support for the game.
The 蜜柚直播 Bowl has generated nearly $150 million in economic impact in Southern 蜜柚直播; over $6 million has been donated to local charities.
蜜柚直播 Bowl chairman Ali Farhang signs a record 鈥 serving in place of a contract 鈥 following the introduction of the new sponsor for the 蜜柚直播 Bowl during a press conference at 蜜柚直播 Stadium Monday in 蜜柚直播. Rapper Snoop Dogg and his alcoholic drink brand 鈥淕in & Juice by Dre and Snoop,鈥 co-founded by Dr. Dre and named after the duo鈥檚 mid-1990s popular hit, is the latest sponsor of the 蜜柚直播 Bowl.
鈥淥ur economic impact is only second to the gem show,鈥 Farhang said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 immense and it has a meaningful difference to the people that live here. With Snoop Dogg鈥檚 partnership and Gin & Juice by Dre and Snoop, there鈥檚 no ceilings to how big we can make this. We have a new foundation and a new starting point. 鈥 There鈥檚 going to be a bunch of people here, eating at our restaurants, staying at our hotels. The economic impact on this and the spotlight on 蜜柚直播 cannot be quantified.
鈥淚t鈥檚 time to stop hiding the fact that we live in the best city in the world. Let鈥檚 let everyone know. With Snoop Dogg, it鈥檚 going to accentuate that even more.鈥
Here are results of the previous 蜜柚直播 Bowl games:
2015: Nevada 28, Colorado State 23
2016: Air Force 45, South Alabama 21
2017: New Mexico State 26, Utah State 20 (overtime)
2018: Nevada 16, Arkansas State 13 (overtime)
2019: Wyoming 38, Georgia State 17
2020: Ball State 34, No. 19 San Jose State 13
2021: Canceled for pandemic-influenced reasons
2022: Ohio 30, Wyoming 27 (overtime)
2023: Wyoming 16, Toledo 15
Contact Justin Spears, the Star鈥檚 蜜柚直播 football beat reporter, at jspears@tucson.com. On X(Twitter): @JustinESports
Justin Spears
Sports Reporter
