AutoZone Liberty Bowl

Game to Kick-Off New Year’s Holiday Weekend

The 58^th Annual AutoZone Liberty Bowl Football Classic will be played Friday, December 30, 2016 at 12 Noon EST / 11 AM CST. Friday, December 30 will mark the beginning of the long New Year’s holiday weekend. The AutoZone Liberty Bowl will feature teams from the SEC and Big 12 Conference and will be televised nationally and internationally on ESPN and broadcast by ESPN Radio.

“We’re thrilled to have the AutoZone Liberty Bowl serve as the signature event to start the New Year’s holiday weekend in Memphis,” said Steve Ehrhart, Executive Director of the AutoZone Liberty Bowl. “This date and time gives us a tremendous opportunity to showcase two great teams, our Memphis community and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital to those attending the game and millions of ESPN viewers.”

“We have a great week of events planned for both our local supporters and fans following their team from out of town to enjoy,” said Ehrhart. “This is a wonderful opportunity for Memphis to roll out the red carpet and welcome the teams and thousands of fans to our community for a memorable bowl experience. We invite fans to experience all that Memphis and the AutoZone Liberty Bowl have to offer during the week and then stay over to ring in the New Year at the famous guitar drop on Beale Street.”

The AutoZone Liberty Bowl has an action-packed, fun-filled week of events planned leading up to the game beginning with the Bass Pro Shops Team Welcome Party on December 26^th. The schedule of events will also include the Pro Rodeo presented by Ford Trucks (December 27); Players and Coaches Luncheon (December 28); Beale Street Parade and Bash on Beale Pep Rally (December 29); President’s Gala (December 29) and Pre-Game Buffet (December 30).

With the December 30^th game date announcement, the AutoZone Liberty Bowl continues the excitement and momentum created by last year’s game between Arkansas and Kansas State. The Hogs and Wildcats match up attracted the largest ESPN audience ever for the AutoZone Liberty Bowl (more than 7 million viewers) and a sold out crowd of 61,136.

Tickets to the 58^th AutoZone Liberty Bowl are on sale now. For game and event ticket information, call the AutoZone Liberty Bowl at (901) 795-7700 or CLICK HERE.

TERMS & CONDITIONS

This enter-to-win drawing is operated solely by the AutoZone Liberty Bowl Football Classic (“Promoter”) whose registered office is at 959 Ridgeway Loop Road, Suite 101, Memphis, TN 38120. Employees, board members and partners of the AutoZone Liberty Bowl Football Classic or their family members or anyone else connected in any way with the drawing shall not be permitted to enter. There is no entry fee and no purchase necessary to enter this drawing. The Promotional Period for the drawing will commence at 5:00pm (CST) on Tuesday, October 4, 2016, and will end on Sunday, December 11, 2016, at 11:00pm (CST). After the Promotional Period, no further entries to the drawing will be permitted. No responsibility can be accepted for entries not received for whatever reason.

The rules of the drawing are as follows: (a) Entrants must be at least 21 years of age. (b) One entry per person. (c) All required information must be provided by entrant on or before the closing date for entry to be deemed valid.

The Promoter reserves the right to cancel or amend the drawing and these terms and conditions without notice. The promoter is not responsible for inaccurate prize details supplied to any entrant by any third party connected with this competition. No cash alternative to the prizes will be offered. The prizes are not transferable. At the end of the Promotional Period, one (1) winner will be randomly chosen by the Promoter to receive the Grand Prize ("prize"). The prize consists of a two-night stay for two (2) at Big Cypress Lodge inside Bass Pro Shops at the Pyramid, dinner for two (2) at The Lookout restaurant at Bass Pro Shops at the Pyramid, two (2) excellent tickets to the 58th AutoZone Liberty Bowl on Friday, December 30, 2016, at 11am (CST), and one (1) parking pass to the 58th AutoZone Liberty Bowl. The winner will be notified by phone, text message, and/or email within 7 days of the closing date. If the winner cannot be contacted or does not claim the prize within 72 hours of notification, the Promoter reserves the right to withdraw the prize from the winner and pick a replacement winner. The Promoter will notify the winner when and where the prize can be collected. The promoter’s decision in respect of all matters to do with the competition will be final and no correspondence will be entered into. The winner agrees to the use of his/her name and image in any publicity material. Entry into the drawing will be deemed as acceptance of these terms and conditions.

Carter and Griffin to Coach Teams in

16^th Annual AutoZone Liberty Bowl High School All-Star Game

Memphis – Jerome Griffin and David Carter, two of the top coaches in the Memphis area, will lead the teams in the 16^th annual AutoZone Liberty Bowl High School All-Star Football Game presented by ARS/Conway Services and the Tennessee Highway Safety Office. Griffin, the head coach at Wooddale High School, will coach the Red Team. Carter, the head coach at St. George’s Independent School, will coach the Blue Team. The All-Star Game will feature the top players from Shelby County Schools and private schools in the Memphis area.

The game will be played Saturday, December 9 at Memphis University School. Kickoff is at 2:30 pm. Tickets cost $10, for kids 6 and under the cost is $5. The All-Star Game will be telecast live on WLMT CW30 and broadcast on radio by Sports 56/87.7 FM.

“The AutoZone Liberty Bowl All-Star Game is now well established and entrenched as one of the marquee events on the local high school scene,” said AutoZone Liberty Bowl executive director Steve Ehrhart. “With two of the most outstanding coaches from Memphis leading the teams, we will continue the tradition of excellence the All-Star Game has created over the past fifteen years.”

Jerome Griffin is in his second season as head coach at Wooddale and his thirteenth season overall as a head coach. He served eight seasons as head coach at Sheffield High School, followed by three seasons at Hamilton High School before taking over the Wooddale program in 2016. His teams have been perennial participants in the state playoffs. Griffin’s rebuilding Wooddale team has a record of 5-3 this season. He served as an assistant coach in the All-Star Game the last three years.

“The AutoZone Liberty Bowl All-Star Game gives Memphis a chance to showcase the abundance of talent in the Memphis area,” said Griffin. “It gives many seniors one last opportunity to go out as a winner in their final high school game if they didn’t win the state championship. It’s a great way to kick-off the activities for the AutoZone Liberty Bowl.”

David Carter began his head coaching career in 2010 at SBEC (Northpoint Christian School). He was named head coach at St. George’s in 2013. His Gryphon’s team was State Runner-Up in 2013, reached the State Semi-Finals in 2014 and 2016 and won the State Championship in 2015 with a 13-1 record. Carter served as an assistant coach in the All-Star Game the last three seasons.

“The AutoZone Liberty Bowl All-Star Game gives the fans an opportunity to see local talent that, in many cases, they have only heard or read about,” said Carter. “Because of the exposure the game has created over the past years, there has been an increase in appreciation for the overall talent that Memphis and Shelby County have at all levels.”

The All-Star teams will be chosen by a selection committee comprised of area head coaches and other football analysts.

Each team will consist of players selected from the following schools. Each player must have the recommendation of his head coach and will be selected on the basis of his character, on-field achievement and classroom performance. Player nominations must be submitted to the AutoZone Liberty Bowl by Friday, October 20.

Scotty McCreery to Receive
AutoZone Liberty Bowl’s Outstanding Achievement Award

Country Music Sensation to Perform at President’s Gala and Halftime Show

Award-winning country music star Scotty McCreery has been selected the recipient of the 2019 AutoZone Liberty Bowl Outstanding Achievement Award. Each year, this award is presented by the AutoZone Liberty Bowl and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in recognition of excellence in the field of music and entertainment. This time-honored recognition dates back to the early years of St. Jude and its founder, entertainer Danny Thomas.

The singer/songwriter will receive the award at the President’s Gala at the Peabody Hotel on Monday, December 30 at 6:30 pm. Past recipients include Danny Thomas, Elvis Presley, B.B. King, Lou Rawls, Clint Black, Little Richard, Alabama, The Beach Boys, LeAnn Rimes, The O’Jays, KC & The Sunshine Band, The Temptations, Big & Rich, The Commodores, The Isley Brothers and The Four Tops.

The Triple Tigers/Sony recording artist, who was inspired by Elvis Presley at an early age, will be the headline honoree at the President’s Gala and star in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl’s halftime spectacular on Tuesday, December 31. A portion of McCreery’s performance will be telecast on ESPN during their coverage of the AutoZone Liberty Bowl game. The 61^st annual AutoZone Liberty Bowl game will kick off at 2:45 pm.

McCreery emerged on the national scene in 2011 when he won Season Ten of American Idol at the age of 17. But he achieved new heights this year, earning two back-to-back No. 1 hits from his current album Seasons Change, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Country Album chart: the RIAA Platinum-certified “Five More Minutes” and the RIAA Platinum-certified “This is It,” which stayed at the top of the charts for two weeks.

All four of his albums have debuted at No. 1 on a Billboard Albums chart, with current combined sales surpassing 3 million copies. He’s earned five Platinum and one Gold singles.

In addition to Idol, McCreery has won numerous awards, including the ACM New Artist of the Year in 2011; the CMT Music Award for Breakthrough Video of the Year (“The Trouble with Girls”) in 2012; American Country Awards for New Artist of the Year in 2011 and Breakthrough Artist of the Year in 2013; BMI Awards for writing One of the Top 50 Country Songs of the Year twice (in 2015 for “See You Tonight” and in 2018 for “Five More Minutes”); a Carolina Beach Music Award for National Dance/Shag Song of the Year (“Barefootin’”) in 2018; and the NSAI Nashville Songwriter Award for One of the Top Ten Songs I Wish I’d Written (“Five More Minutes”) in 2018.

In 2017, McCreery teamed with other country music artists to record a charity single, a cover of Alabama’s “Angels Among Us,” to benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. The following year, McCreery and his family appeared on ABC-TV’s “Celebrity Family Feud” and won the $25,000 grand prize for St. Jude. The North Carolina native has also participated in the St. Jude “This Shirt Saves Lives” campaign for the past several years.

For tickets to the AutoZone Liberty Bowl Presidents’ Gala or the AutoZone Liberty Bowl Football Classic, call the AutoZone Liberty Bowl at (901) 795-7700 or visit the Tickets Page of our website.