Practice Starts for FSU Ahead of Sun Bowl

Image via Florida State Football

Sun Bowl preparation starts today as the Florida State Seminoles football team heads to the practice fields. It's been two weeks since the Florida State Football team ended their season with a 6-6 record, and the Seminoles look to increase their winning percentage against Arizona State at the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas.

Image via FSU Football

The Seminoles will face an Arizona State team that went 7-5 with their second season head coach, Herm Edwards. After starting 5-1 this season, ASU ranked as high as No. 17 in the country, pulling off victories against Michigan State and Cal. However, the Arizona State Sun Devils faced more adversity, losing four games in a row before pulling off big wins to end the season against Oregon and the Arizona Wildcats.

Florida State Bowl Practices

Led by interim head coach Odell Haggins, FSU will practice in Tallahasse through December 22, before their Christmas break. Coach Haggins will also lead the Seminoles through the bowl games, while newly acquired head coach Mike Norvell focuses on staffing and recruiting.

All coaches who led FSU during the regular season will coach through the bowl game, unless other programs hire them before December 31. Before today's first practice, Coach Haggins and players will meet with the media.

The Sun Bowl will air live on CBS Tuesday, December 31, at 2 p.m.

Fun Facts: The Cure Bowl

The Cure Bowl taking place on December 21, 2019. To kick things off, we wanted to share some fun facts ahead of the fifth annual FBC Mortgage Cure Bowl.

image Via The Cure Bowl

Fun Facts:

- This is the 5th Annual Cure Bowl

- The Cure Bowl was founded on March 28, 2008

- The Cure Bowl will be the first non-soccer sporting event and the first college football game to take place at Exploria Stadium, since its opening in March 2017.

- Prior to this year, Auto Nation was the title sponsor of the Cure Bowl

- Auto Nation Cure Bowl Facts:

2015
December 19, 2015
San Jose State 27 – Georgia State 16
Game MVP: San Jose State QB Kenny Potter

2016
December 17, 2016
Arkansas State 31 – UCF 13
Game MVP: Arkansas State WR Kendall Sanders

2017
December 16, 2017
Western Kentucky 17 – Georgia State 27
Game MVP: Georgia State QB Conner Manning

2018
December 15, 2018
Tulane 41 – Louisiana 24
Game MVP: Tulane RB Darius Bradwell

- The Cure Bowl is always played on the third Saturday in December each year in Orlando, FL. and is televised nationally on CBS Sports Network.

- Funds raised from the Cure Bowl directly benefit the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF).

- Cure Bowl has an estimated $20 million positive impact on the local economy.

- Orlando is a top-20 television market with 1.4 million viewers; the adjacent Tampa market is ranked in the top 15 with 1.8 million viewers.

Exploria Stadium | Cure Bowl | Orlando Sports Foundation | Florida Citrus Sports

Stay tuned for more updates as we cover your 2019 Cure Bowl from Exploria Stadium.

Mike Norvell Is Florida State's New Head Coach

Via Florida State Football

After almost five weeks of anticipation, Florida State has finally filled the head coach position for its football program. After the announcement was made that Mike Norvell would be taking the job, many fans and former Florida State players had mixed feelings on the new-hire. However, Florida State seems to be embracing change and moving forward with a hopeful future.

In four seasons, Mike Norvell took a staggering Memphis program into unseen territory. Norvell helped Memphis (12-1) to its first AAC title in its third straight conference championship game. Eight days after beating Cincinnati 34-24 at home in their final regular-season game, Memphis pushed for another win, 29-24, on Saturday.

In a statement announcing his hiring at Florida State, Norvell said, "I'm humbled and honored for the opportunity to be the head coach at Florida State University, one of the iconic brands in college football... I'm so very excited about the future and the opportunity to return Florida State football to one of the nation's elite. I'm looking forward to hitting the ground running, putting together a great signing class, a great coaching staff, and joining arms with our current and former players to help elevate our football program each and every day."

Via Florida State

When Norvell took over at Memphis, he was one of the youngest head coaches in the country. Norvell, 38, replaces Willie Taggart, who was fired nine games into his second season at Florida State. Taggart was 9-12 in 21 games as FSU's coach.

Norvell was the offensive coordinator at Arizona State under Todd Graham before getting the head coaching job at Memphis and before that worked under Graham at Pittsburgh as the co-offensive coordinator and at Tulsa as the passing game coordinator.

Sources: The Associated Press, ESPN, and Florida State Football

Gallery: 2019 Florida Blue Florida Classic

Bethune Cookman University (BCU) vs. Florida A&M University (FAMU).

BCU defeats FAMU 31-27 in the 40th installment of the Florida Classic (Orlando, FL.).

Fun Facts: Florida Blue Florida Classic

This year, Sports Marketing Perspective will be live during the 2019 Florida Blue Florida Classic. To kick things off, we wanted to share some fun facts ahead of one of the biggest HBCU (Historically Black College and University) rivalry games.

image Via Florida Classic

Fun Facts:

- This is the 40th installment of the Florida Blue Florida Classic.

- The event has seen many names over its 40 years, but the most recent naming rights ‘Florida Blue’ have been in place since 2011.

- The 2018 final score saw BCU getting the win over FAMU 33 to 19

- The largest recorded attendance was in 2006 (Orlando, FL.) with a total of 71,216 attendees.

- FAMU leads the Florida Classic series 20-18

- The first time these two teams met was in 1925 where FAMU won 25-0

- The Florida Classic has been held in Orlando, FL. Since 1997. Prior to ‘97, the event was held in Tampa, FL.

- FAMU holds a 9-1 record in the 2019 season, with their only loss against the UCF Knights.

Stay tuned for more updates as we cover your 2019 Florida Classic from Camping World Stadium.

Ohio State Football Beyond Four Years

Estimated reading time: 1 minute

Via Ohio State FB

Coming from a university that places great emphasis on networking and building genuine business relationships (Full Sail University), I was excited to hear about the Ohio State Football Real Life Wednesdays program. Although this program is not new, one of their latest videos captures the real mission and vision for Real Life Wednesdays.

Real Life Wednesdays is a three-phase program that takes student-athletes through the process of filling and maintaining their "toolbox" and building brand awareness through internship opportunities and career fairs. By bringing in guest speakers such as Phil Knight (Nike), Dan Gilbert (Cleveland Cavaliers), and Kenneth Chenault (American Express) athletes have the opportunity to shake hands and connect with some of the top executives in the nation. In the words of Ryan Stamper, Director of Player Development for Ohio State Football, "we don't want to make sure our guys are just set for the four years they're here. My goal is to make sure they're set for the next 40 years."

Being that Columbus, Ohio is the 15th largest city in the nation and the state is home to 25 Fortune 500 companies, Ohio State also provides student-athletes with internship opportunities with many companies in Ohio and around the country. Also, through the Real Life Wednesdays program, athletes are given opportunities to shadow companies and executive and are taken through mock interviews.

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From My Perspective:

I think Real Life Wednesdays is a program that every school needs from high schools to colleges and universities. These days, having a high school diploma or a college degree is not enough. Taking advantage of every opportunity, you have to connect and network with potential employers or industry professionals is the key to establishing a long career after graduation.

Many student-athletes are not well-equipped with the tools needed after college or after their sports career. I'm not sure if the Real Life Wednesdays program is for all student-athletes, but Ohio State Football has a very organized plan in place for their athletes.
 

Check out the video below to see what Ohio State is doing to prepare student-athletes for a life and career beyond four years.

Sources: Ohio State Football