Press Release

TEXAS MUSIC ARTISTS TO HIGHLIGHT ACADEMY SPORTS + OUTDOORS TEXAS BOWL PREGAME AND BOWL WEEK FESTIVITIES

Kody West to kick off the weekend!

HOUSTON – Kody West will kick off the Academy Sports + Outdoors Texas Bowl weekend on Thursday, Dec. 26 with a free concert at Downtown Houston’s newest bar and live music venue, The Rustic, starting at 8:30 p.m. at the 2019 Kickoff Concert presented by Toyota. This free show does require a ticket which can be secured here.  VIP packages are also available for the show starting at $25 and can be purchased by following the previous link. The show concludes a full night of activities around the Karbach Bowl Bash, the fan celebration event in Eado and Downtown Houston the night prior to the game.  For more information on all the events, please visit http://www.academytexasbowl.com/events/.

The country music does not stop there. On game day, Casey Donahew Band will perform live on the Main Stage of Karbach Love Street TexFest at NRG Stadium prior to the 2019 Academy Sports + Outdoors Texas Bowl. The pregame festivities begin at 3 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 27 leading up to the 5:45 p.m. kickoff between the Oklahoma State Cowboys and the Texas A&M Aggies. 

Kody West started playing music in 2014, eager to take on as many acoustic gigs and songwriting competitions in the Ft. Worth/Dallas area that he could. He took on the role of tour manager in the beginning of 2015. On the road with the band, he rapidly gained valuable hands-on experience working and playing music across the state of Texas. Thanks to this time on the road and his endearing songwriting, he was quick to gain a large following of loyal fans. In the past 3 years, he and his band have traveled across the country playing their good for the soul tunes, and are now working on a new record to be released in the new year. The wheels on the van never stop turning and these boys never stop working.

Country music artist, Casey Donahew, is a Burleson, Texas native that has carved out an impressive niche for himself on the country music scene for over the past 17 years, attracting a solid base of loyal fans who flock to his legendary live shows. Building his career from the ground up one show at a time, Donahew managed to perform on countless stages night after night in front of thousands. For nearly the last two decades, Casey has racked up 18 #1 singles, and became a national headliner, playing coast-to-coast and selling out venues such as Billy Bob’s and The Grizzly Rose multiple times. Donahew has over 120 MILLION on-demand digital music streams, and over 330 MILLION streams on Pandora.

Karbach Love Street TexFest, the official pregame party for the Academy Sports + Outdoors Texas Bowl, will take place in and around Bud Light Plaza throughout the south end of NRG Stadium. Along with live entertainment, the event will feature select $2.50 beers, Texas themed food, giveaways, interactive games and spirit walks as the teams enter the stadium. The event is free of charge for all fans with tickets to the game. More than 50,000 seats have already been sold to date for the Bowl.  Limited seats remain and can be purchased online at www.academytexasbowl.com or www.ticketmaster.com, on the phone at 832-667-2390 or in person at the NRG Stadium box office inside Bud Light Plaza. Ticket prices for this game range from $35-200. Special group packages are available by calling 832-667-2390. Fans can also call 832-667-2160 for more information on suites and premium hospitality.

The following is a media schedule for all Bowl Week team activities leading up to the 2019 Academy Sports + Outdoors Texas Bowl. Addresses are included at the bottom of the schedule. Media should RSVP to allie.leclair@houstontexans.com for all bowl week events. Times and locations are subject to change. Events are closed to the public unless noted.                                            

DATE

TIME (Central)

EVENT

LOCATION

MONDAY, DEC. 23

5 – 7 p.m.

Rodeo Bowl

NRG Arena

TUESDAY, DEC. 24

8:15 – 11:15 a.m.

Scavenger Hunt at the Children’s Museum

Children’s Museum of Houston

THURSDAY, DEC. 26

11:20 a.m. (TAMU) & 11:35 a.m. (OSU)

Final Head Coach Media Availability

Hyatt Regency Hotel

THURSDAY, DEC. 26

Noon – 2 p.m.

Team Luncheon presented by CenterPoint Energy

Hyatt Regency Hotel

THURSDAY, DEC. 26

4:30 – 6:30 p.m.

Media Reception – This event is free and open to all media members

Armadillo Palace

THURSDAY, DEC. 26

6 p.m.

Karbach Hopadillo Bowl Bash V – Open to the public

East Downtown Bar Crawl

THURSDAY, DEC. 26

8:30 p.m.

Toyota Kickoff Concert – Open to the public

The Rustic – Downtown Houston

FRIDAY, DEC. 27

9 – 11 a.m.

Family Spirit Day – Open to the public

Rice Stadium

FRIDAY, DEC. 27

3 – 5:45 p.m.     

Karbach Love Street TexFest – Open to ticket-holding public

Bud Light Plaza – NRG Stadium

FRIDAY, DEC. 27

5:45 p.m.

2019 Academy Sports + Outdoors Texas Bowl

NRG Stadium

 

HEADQUARTER HOTELS

Texas A&M:

Hyatt Regency Downtown
1200 Louisiana St.
Houston, TX 77002 

Oklahoma State:

The Westin Galleria
5060 West Alabama St.
Houston, TX 77056

Media:

Aloft Houston by the Galleria  
5415 Westheimer Road
Houston, Texas 77056

BOWL WEEK EVENT LOCATIONS

NRG Stadium
Two NRG Park, Houston, TX 77054

NRG Arena
One NRG Park, Houston, TX 77054 

Children’s Museum of Houston
1500 Binz St., Houston, TX 77004

Armadillo Palace
5015 Kirby Dr., Houston, TX 77098

 

ACADEMY SPORTS + OUTDOORS TEXAS BOWL

The Academy Sports + Outdoors Texas Bowl is owned and operated by ESPN Events and managed locally by Lone Star Sports & Entertainment. The Bowl will showcase teams from the Big 12 and the SEC, two of the country’s premier conferences. The Academy Sports + Outdoors Texas Bowl has been a tremendous success both on and off the field over the years. The game has ranked fifth in attendance since 2014 behind only the Rose, Peach, Cotton and Sugar Bowls in that time. In terms of its community impact, the bowl has generated an average of $50 million annually for the Houston economy and through its relationship with DePelchin Children’s Center, its official charitable beneficiary, more than $1.6 million in financial support has been donated to the city’s oldest children’s charity.

ESPN Events
ESPN Events, a division of ESPN, owns and operates a large portfolio of 34 collegiate sporting events nationwide. The roster includes three Labor Day weekend college football games, the FCS opening-weekend game, 16 college bowl games, 11 college basketball events, a college softball event and two college award shows, which accounts for approximately 375-plus hours of live programming, reaches nearly 64 million viewers and attracts over 800,000 attendees each year. With satellite offices in Albuquerque, Birmingham, Boca Raton, Boise, Dallas-Fort Worth, Honolulu, Las Vegas, Montgomery and Tampa, ESPN Events builds relationships with conferences, schools and local communities, as well as providing unique experiences for teams and fans.

For more information, visit the official websiteFacebookTwitter or YouTube pages.

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