Donovan McNabb and the State of Football
Welcoming the CFP to the Bay Area. (Photo via CFP)
*The College Football Playoff is a Proud Partner of Front Office Sports.
Going beyond just the national championship game, fans and visitors to the Bay Area will have the opportunity to spend four days celebrating college football as well as the pageantry surrounding the biggest game of the year.
With more than 100,000 fans expected to make their way through Championship Campus over the course of the weekend leading up to the game on Monday, the College Football Playoff has put together an experience to indulge fans in all of the great aspects the sport has to offer.
“Championship Campus is the name of the area that encompasses the many public events during the weekend prior to the national championship,” said CFP Executive Director Bill Hancock. “Yes, the national champion will be crowned Monday night. But the weekend will be much more—it will be an opportunity for fans of all ages to sample what college football is all about. With the help of the Bay Area Host Committee, we have developed a fan-friendly, walkable campus that thousands will enjoy come January.”
Thanks to the stature of the event and the opportunities it brings with it, executives with the Bay Area Host Committee see the opportunity as something that will shine a new light on Silicon Valley and do it in a way that is different than others.
“When we talk about bringing mega-events to the Bay Area, the College Football Playoff National Championship ticks all the boxes; it’s more than a football game,” said Bay Area Host Committee Executive Director Patricia Ernstrom. “The entire Bay Area will feel the effect of this event, as well as the huge impact that will be made in the region’s classrooms via the College Football Playoff Foundation’s Extra Yard for Teachers Program. The Championship weekend’s events will allow us to shine a spotlight on Silicon Valley to a national audience in a way that few events can.”
The Bay Area will provide a scenic backdrop for the weekend’s festivities. (Photo via CFP)
The weekend will begin on Friday, January 4 with the opening of Playoff Fan Central at the San Jose Convention Center. The 200,000-square foot interactive event will feature youth clinics, appearances by some of the sport’s greatest legends, pep rallies, marching band performances and hands-on experiences allowing fans of all ages to test their skills.
AT&T will again sponsor AT&T Playoff Playlist Live!, one of the country’s largest annual traveling music festivals featuring some of the biggest names in music.
Over the weekend, SAP Center will play host to Media Day and will give fans the unique opportunity to watch and listen as members of the national media conduct interviews with coaches and student-athletes from the two participating teams.
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Educators will again be the spotlight for the weekend as the College Football Playoff Foundation – and its Extra Yard for Teachers platform – put on the Extra Yard for Teachers Summit, a VIP space reserved solely for educators that will feature a series of activities meant to uplift and inspire our classroom leaders via TED-like talks, informational sessions and some good old-fashioned pampering.
While a majority of the weekend’s events will take place in San Jose, the focus will shift to Levi’s Stadium on Monday where Championship Tailgate will deliver fans with food, activities, and the opportunity to catch College GameDay live and in-person.
Although we may be 200+ days away from crowning a new national champion, expect the Bay Area and the CFP to pull out all the stops for fans, delivering an experience that only one of the biggest sporting events in the U.S. can.
*The College Football Playoff is a Proud Partner of Front Office Sports.
