November 18, 2014 – The speaker for our meeting this week was Tommy McQueeney who is the Bowl Chairman for the Medal of Honor Bowl. Mr. McQueeney is a Charleston native a graduate of the Citadel in the class of 1974. Familiar to us all from his years of community service and his leadership in the insurance industry locally, he spoke to us this day about the Medal of Honor Bowl.
The work to bring a bowl game to Charleston began in 2005. When the economy hit the brakes shortly thereafter these efforts were delayed, but in 2011 Charleston hosted a high school all-star game in which a soon-to-be famous player appeared – Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel. But the Medal of Honor Bowl did not make its debut until last year. McQueeney recognized our own Major General James Livingston for making this bowl a possibility. Without General Livingston’s guidance and support the right to use the Medal of Honor name would not have been granted and the ability to make this a major bowl and a fitting testament to our veterans could have been lost.
This bowl, which brings college players from both large and small schools across the nation, outdrew the East-West Bowl game and was second only to Senior Bowl among the college all-star games. Over 100 professional football scouts were involved in last year’s bowl. All this even though the organizers only had 105 days to the bowl set up once approval for the Medal of Honor name was obtained.
This year’s Medal of Honor Bowl, the second annual, will be played on the second Saturday in January. Even though ESPN told McQueeney that a bowl game must be attended by at least 35,000 people to be televised and Johnson Hagood stadium seats less than 30,000, McQueeney has convinced NBC Sports to televise the game and it will reach 34 million viewers. The game itself is the culminating event of a week of activities including a player mentoring and development program and luncheon honoring disabled veterans and our wounded warriors. Each participant in this week of functions will be staying on Charleston hotels and dining in Charleston restaurants meaning that the Medal of Honor Bowl brings a substantial impact to our hospitality industry during the quietest time of the year for that important driver of our economy.
The NFL has openings for over 300 hundred new players every year and college all-star games like the Medal of Honor Bowl provide a vital opportunity for players to be seen by scouts and compete for these positions. Already the Medal of Honor Bowl has obtained commitments this year from players at schools, such as East Carolina, Marshall, Tennessee, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, and many more. This game promises to be a wonderful opportunity for each of us to see future stars of the NFL play locally – a day we will remember and speak of for years to come. McQueeney implored us to purchase tickets to attend this exciting spectacle not just for our enjoyment, but to support the community. We must fill the stadium to ensure that NBC or another broadcaster will agree to televise this event in the future and assure a continuance of this significant marketing opportunity for our community.
It is not just the football game, however, which makes the Medal of Honor Bowl both enjoyable and significant. The SC State University Marching Band is recognized nationally and will provide a half-time show second to none. Invitations have been sent to over a dozen military facilities in the region and veterans of all our nation’s military service branches will be honored in this nationally-televised occasion.
Of course the reason General Livingston was able to secure the use of the name for the game is the commitment of the organizers to make this event a premiere salute not just to our veterans generally, but to the recipients of the Medal of Honor specifically. This year McQueeney expects around 15 to 20 recipients of this our nation’s highest military honor to attend the game.
And lastly, if attending such a note-worthy, honorable and exciting happening were not incentive enough, McQueeney has convinced local luxury car dealership leader Tommy Baker to donate a Mercedes car to the event. To have a chance to win this beautiful car one need only buy a ticket. There’s a catch, though. The winning ticket will be announced at the 2:00 minute warning in the fourth quarter and you must be present to win! Tickets go on sale on November 22!
— Alex Dallis