6 reasons you should care about the Belk Bowl

The game has been around Charlotte for 15 years, is huge for the city from an economic perspective, and features an excellent ACC and SEC matchup with Virginia Tech and Arkansas.

Oh and if that’s not enough for you somehow, the Belk Bowl FanFest also features Country Music Superstar Tim McGraw.

Here are six reasons why you should care:

(1) It’s your last chance to tailgate for football until next year

We’ve written extensively about tailgating at The Bank on this site because tailgating is the best, and with the Panthers on the road for the last week of the NFL season, the Belk Bowl is your last chance to tailgate at Bank of America stadium until football season starts up again nine loooooong months from now.

So grab a tailgate package from an area restaurant, choose a killer tailgating spot, and make the most of it. The Hokies and Razorbacks are going to bring it, so Uptown promises to be a scene.

(2) Tim McGraw is playing BB&T Ballpark

The Belk Bowl is no slouch when it comes to bringing major headlining acts to Charlotte.

Last year’s musical guest was Carrie Frikkin Underwood and this year’s guest is country music legend Tim McGraw. And he’s playing BB&T Ballpark, which combined with the game at The Bank is the highest and best use of our Third Ward facilities.

If there’s a 90s country song that you like but don’t know the name of, chances are it’s a Tim McGraw song. The man is a legend. He also wears the tightest shirts known to man. They defy physics with their tightness.

The only way to guarantee a spot to check out Tug McGraw’s kid sing his power country ballads is to snag a voucher, which are available on a first-come, first-served basis for the first 10,000 fans who redeem their official Belk Bowl game tickets at the BB&T Ballpark Ticket Office during the two redemption days.

Check out more information on how that whole process works here.

(3) The teams are really good and the game will be too

Even if you’re not a giant fan of the Hokies or Razorbacks this game promises to deliver. Both of these teams had great seasons. Virginia Tech put up a valiant effort against Clemson in the ACC Championship game and Arkansas beat Ole Miss, Mississippi State, and Florida.

Performance on the field aside, both of these fanbases are among the best college football has to offer, so the environment in the stadium promises to be #elite.

(4) The game has a huge economic impact to the city

The Belk Bowl is a major event for the city and for the businesses that serve the visitors who come to town to cheer on their team. The Belk Bowl is expected to contribute roughly $16 million in total economic impact to the city. That’s as much as the city plans to spend on street maintenance and traffic control next year.

That’s a spicy meatball of cash, all in one afternoon of hosting an awesome football game.

(5) It has created something from nothing for 15 years

Charlotte has a ton of stuff to do in Uptown leading up to the holidays. Check out the awesome decorations at the Ritz, take in a creepy singing bear concert, shop at the many pop-up shops around town. But once the Big Day comes and goes, the events quiet down between Christmas and New Year’s Eve. The Belk Bowl is the perfect event to fill that void and energize Uptown during a time in which there’s not much else on the dance card for Uptown facilities.

And it’s not just that the Belk Bowl is better than nothing. Far from it. After fifteen years in Charlotte, the Belk Bowl is a wintertime institution in Charlotte. The Belk Bowl is older than the Lynx Blue Line light rail, Hornets 2.0 and both Common Markets. That’s institution status in Charlotte.

(6) Reward the Belk Bowl for staying in Charlotte amidst the political turmoil

Finally, in a year where Charlotte lost the ACC Championship Game and the NBA All-Star Game, the Belk Bowl stayed in the city that set out to protect all its citizens. That’s something worth celebrating.

The Essentials

Who: Virginia Tech Hokies vs the Arkansas Razorbacks and You
What: The Belk Bowl (tickets here)
When: December 29th, 5:30 p.m. (Tim McGraw plays at BB&T Ballpark at 2 p.m.)
Where: Bank of America Stadium in Uptown
Why: The Belk Bowl is The Game That Stayed, plus it’s a great event for the city and deserves our enthusiasm

All images courtesy of BelkBowl.com