Meineke Car Care Bowl

Did you ever wonder what goes on behind the scenes of a televised bowl game? The Meineke Car Care Bowl will require approximately 75 people to get it on the air - live - at 1:00 December 27 at Bank of America Stadium and preparations are already underway. Of late, organizational details are being finalized such as transportation needs, accommodations and ID credentials. But the “nuts and bolts” of the technical set-up can’t be put in place until 2-3 days prior to kick-off.

Experienced professionals required on-site include a director, announcers, technicians (ex: camera, audio, replay, video), statisticians, cable-pullers and many more. 15-20,000 feet of cable is needed along with a satellite truck, 8-10 cameras and 8 slow motion techs. Once the competing teams are announced in early December, implementation begins in earnest. Announcers are assigned and statisticians and video personnel begin compiling data, clips, sound bites and the like. By December 24 or 25, the team in the booth will be announced and a full production staff will be in Charlotte.

The best way to describe game day is frenetic. A live telecast begins with weeks of advance preparation but once you go “on-the-air” anything can happen and the production people must be ready and flexible in case of the unexpected. Lastly, as the broadcast is moments from being aired, a final check to the master control room with ESPN in Bristol, Connecticut is done ensuring that the signals are good to go and the feed can be distributed nationwide. “Live from Charlotte, North Carolina - welcome to the 2008 Meineke Car Care Bowl,” that’s what you’ll see and hear but we know there’s a lot more to it than that!

Big East

What an unpredictable year in the Big East! Starting with WVa, the Mountaineers remained unbeaten in conference play after taking UConn 35-13. Cincinnati surprised #24 USF Thursday night 24-10 with a stellar performance by QB Tony Pike who played with a cast on his non-throwing hand. Syracuse picked up its first conference win beating Louisville 28-21 to snap the Cardinals’ 3-game winning streak. Facing a halftime deficit of 17-3 Pitt battled-back against a gritty Notre Dame finally winning 36-33 in the fourth OT. Panther kicker Connor Lee nailed 5 field goals in the victory. Rutgers had an open date.

ACC

In a heartbreaker for the host Cavaliers, UVA lost to Miami 24-17 in OT. Clemson bested Boston College for the first time in six tries since 1958. The final was 27-21 for the Tigers at home. Wake Forest squeaked by Duke Saturday night 33-30 in yet another OT game in the conference. #16 Florida State had their comeback hopes squashed by GaTech 31-28 as Seminole Marcus Sims fumbled into the end zone as time expired. The Yellowjackets win was their first over FSU since 1975. Maryland, NCState, UNC and VaTech were idle.

For the 2008 Meineke Car Care Bowl, all players and coaches will be receiving the following gifts:
-    The “Flip Mino” Video Camera
-    Fossil Chronograph and Sunglasses
-    Armor Gear Back Pack
-    Personalized Throwback Antique Football
-    A Nascar-themed Hat from Charlotte Motor Speedway
-    Individual Picture in a Race Car from the speedway

Will Webb, Executive Director, and his staff carefully consider items that are of good quality, useful and popular with student athletes. The “Flip”, for example, is the latest electronic gizmo catching fire with all ages. New York Times coined it as “one of the most significant electronics products of the year!” The NCAA mandates a $500 limit per player so great care is given to making good choices within that budget.

At the outset of bowl week, the gifts are imprinted, packaged and delivered to the team hotels to be distributed at the discretion of the schools. Within a month following the Meineke Car Care Bowl, Athletic Directors, coaches and 5 players chosen from each school are asked to complete a questionnaire regarding their overall experience and opinions on the gifts. To date, the results have been overwhelmingly positive. In fact two years ago The Meineke Car Care Bowl was rated in the top five out of 32 bowls. We expect those sentiments will continue on December 27, 2008 and beyond

ACC Update

UNC rolled over #23 Boston College 45-24 in Chapel Hill in large part via the efforts of wide-out Hakeem Nicks and his 4 TD’s. A stiffened 2nd half defensive show helped lift Miami over Wake Forest 16-10. In an ugly game Duke prevailed over Vanderbilt of the mighty SEC 10-7 in Nashville despite missing field goals and fumbles. #24 Florida State rallied from a 10-pt deficit to beat VaTech 30-20 and put them atop the Atlantic Division. Surprising UVA upset #21 GaTech 24-17 behind bruising running back Cedric Peerman. In a rain-soaked contest, Maryland outlasted NC State 27-24 in College Park leaving the Wolfpack winless in ACC play. Clemson had an open date.

Big East Update

It was shake-up Saturday this weekend leaving preseason favorite West Virginia as the only unbeaten team in conference play. UCONN broke-out in the second half against Cincinnati 40-16 after trailing by three points at the midway point. At Heinz Field Rutgers put away #17 Pitt 54-34 exposing a previously stellar Panther’s defense. Louisville surprised #14 USF 24-20 in a game penalty-plagued by the Bulls. Scoring 31 straight points, WVA surged past Auburn Thursday night 34-17. Syracuse was idle.

The selection process for the 2008 Meineke Car Care Bowl is underway in earnest as twenty-two Board members and staff are meeting in private on a weekly basis to analyze the best options from both the ACC and the Big East. “Obviously, we’re looking for a good fit”, explains Will Webb, Executive Director of the Meineke Car Care Bowl. “Everyone involved wants to insure that the health of the Bowl is top priority.”

The process begins with Board members being chosen to serve on the Selection Committee. “It’s one of our most popular committee assignments,” adds George Johnson with Team and Stadium Relations. “Since we have many volunteers, we essentially pull names from a hat to determine who gets on.” Beginning with these initial huddles, criteria examined include won-loss records and strength of schedule. “We want to take as high a rank team as we can from both conferences”, Webb explains.  But there are other considerations studied, in particular:  appearances from the previous year in the Meineke Car Care Bowl, match-ups that may have already occurred during the regular season and most importantly, an “eagerness to come to Charlotte”, Webb states.

The frequency of the Selection Committee meetings will increase in the coming weeks as potential participants become more intriguing.  As early December draws near, the Meineke Car Care Bowl finally gets to Selection Sunday when the list of committee preferences is examined. Webb then talks with both conferences after the BCS selections is announced. Next, ESPN is consulted for their acknowledgment and approval and lastly the athletic directors are contacted. By 7 p.m. that night, the public is notified and it’s official.

So let’s support our Board members and staff as they move forward to December 27 at Bank of America Stadium. It should be another great game.

ACC Update

Jim Grobe picked up his 50th win as Head Coach of the Demon Deacons Thursday night in Winston-Salem when Wake Forest squeaked-by Clemson 12-7. The game was dominated by the defenses from both squads. Cedric Peerman ran for 173 yds and 2 TD’s leading UVA over East Carolina 35-20. #22 UNC rallied to beat Notre Dame 29-24 despite losing big-play starter Brandon Tate in the first quarter. The Tar Heels are off to their best start since 1997. In a contest much closer than expected, GaTech tipped a last second field goal attempt to survive against Gardner-Webb 10-7. Miami overwhelmed Central Florida 20-14 as the Hurricanes held-off the Knights throughout the second half. Boston College, Duke, Florida State, Maryland, NC State and #18 VaTech all had open dates.

Big East Update

The Mountaineers of West Virginia, without starting QB Pat White, used a long 4th quarter drive to pull away from Syracuse 17-6. WVa remains unbeaten in Big East play. Cincinnati opened their conference schedule with a win over Rutgers 13-10 at Nippert Stadium. The Cardinals of Louisville won an exciting contest over Memphis 35-28 on the timely play of the defense and special teams. Pitt, South Florida, and UConn were idle.

Sam Meineke may have had the idea 35 years ago but in 1996, Ken Walker, President and CEO of parent company Driven Brands took charge and has lead the automotive service company to enormous growth and success. And Charlotte’s college football enthusiasts get to share in the fruits of Mr. Walker’s labors as The Meineke Car Care Bowl approaches its 4th post-season edition on December 27,2008 at Bank of America Stadium.

Meineke, headquartered in Charlotte, signed on as the Bowl’s title sponsor in 2005 agreeing to a deal through 2009 with Bowl operator Raycom Sports.  “I had served on the Board for the Bowl game for a couple of years. When the sponsorship opportunity came available, I very quickly got the franchisee advertising committee involved. Within a week of receiving a proposal, we made the decision to take on the sponsorship,” Walker explained. “It’s an advertising venue”, he added. “Every time somebody gets tackled on my logo on the 30-yard line, it’s another chance to reinforce my brand.” Since Meineke became the game’s primary sponsor, sales at its 700 U.S. franchises have seen consistent gains during bowl season and Charlotte plays host to 300 franchisees and guests during Bowl Week. Direct spending from the game typically ranges between $10-15 million.

Mr. Walker is a huge college football fan. He attended the University of Texas earning a bachelor’s degree in accounting. “I love the Longhorns but really I’m a fan on the sports itself. I’ve grown particularly fond of the teams that have participated in the Bowl because I’ve gotten to know the players, coaches and athletic personnel.”  Mr. Walker is hands-on during Bowl Week
interacting with franchisees and members of the Charlotte business community. “I think the Bowl has been a terrific success from its inception and the community has gradually embraced the game to the point that our ticket sales coming from the Charlotte area have grown significantly every year.”

Indeed, we all enjoy the Meineke Car Care Bowl, Mr. Walker, and look forward to another great contest between the Big East and the ACC. When asked about a prediction he responded: “It seems as though as the season goes on you figure out which teams won’t be coming long before you figure out who will.” Good answer, Ken!

Each year, after conferences release their schedules, we eagerly await the arrival of our helmet schedule grid for the ACC and Big East. Nothing like some pictures of football helmets to get excited about the upcoming season. Some of the first games to highlight are where those schedules overlap. 

This season, the ACC and the Big East square off just four times in the regular season. The staff here at the Meineke Car Care Bowl (or our inter-office shorthand: MCCB) takes particular interest in these games as we look towards late December. Of note, North Carolina from the ACC and Connecticut from the Big East each play two teams from the other conference.

September 11 

September 13

September 27

October 4

Welcome to the Meineke Car Care Bowl blog. As you might have noticed when you found us, we recently went through a complete overhaul of our website. Along the way, we decided to add a blog to the mix. We’re shooting from the hip here. We’re going to let this thing go where it takes us. 

We’ll try to give some insight into what goes on in a bowl office the other 364 days a year, throw in some tidbits on how the selection process works, and give you some other bowl related musings along the way. You can expect to find some behind the scenes photos and stories as well once the teams arrive here in Charlotte.

Don’t forget to mark your calendar for this year’s Meineke Car Care Bowl. Saturday, December 27, 2008 at 1:00 PM at Bank of America Stadium.

Charlotte, N.C. – The 2008 Meineke Car Care Bowl will take place on Saturday, December 27, 2008, with a 1:00 p.m. kickoff, televised nationally on ESPN, it was announced today by Raycom Sports, owner and operator of the game. The Meineke Car Care Bowl, with a $1 million payout per team, features a matchup of the Atlantic Coast Conference and the Big East Conference. The game is played at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C.

“We are extremely pleased to be playing the 2008 Meineke Car Care Bowl on Saturday, December 27,” said executive director Will Webb. “The prime Saturday afternoon kickoff has been an ideal time slot for us and produced great ratings for ESPN. This year, it will allow fans to travel in after Christmas and still attend the RBC Bank Street Festival & Pep Rally on Friday.”

“The Meineke Car Care Bowl continues to be a tremendous success for the city of Charlotte and everyone involved with the game,” added Webb. “And in this economic climate, we are very fortunate to have a committed local company in Meineke Car Care Centers as the title sponsor.”

The Meineke Car Care Bowl has averaged over 60,000 fans during its first six years, with two sellouts. It has reached over 13.5 million television households. In 2003, it was named one of the five-best start-ups in sports over the past five years by the Sports Business Journal, behind only the NFL Houston Texans and ESPN the Magazine.

The inaugural game, played on December 28, 2002 before a sold-out stadium, saw Virginia defeat West Virginia, 48-22. On December 27, 2003, Virginia once again claimed victory, this time over Pittsburgh, 23-16. The third year again produced a sellout, as Boston College defeated North Carolina, 37-24, on December 30, 2004. NC State defeated South Florida, 14-0, on December 31, 2005. Boston College defeated Navy 25-24, on a field goal as time expired on December 30, 2006. And last year, Wake Forest defeated UConn, 24-10 on December 29, 2007.