The City of Bowling Green and Western Kentucky University were selected as the host site for the 2009 and 2010 Commonwealth Gridiron Bowl by the KHSAA Board of Control at its meeting on Friday. State championship games will be played in all six Kentucky divisions each year for a total of 12 title games at the WKU facility. The Board had heard a presentation from WKU and Bowling Green representatives at its September meeting and after a follow-up visit to the recently renovated Houchens/L.T. Smith Stadium by KHSAA Commissioner Brigid DeVries and Assistant Commissioner Julian Tackett, voted to award the event to Bowling Green.
"We are thrilled that Houchens Industries - L.T. Smith Stadium will serve as the host of the 2009 and 2010 Commonwealth Gridiron Bowl," said WKU Director of Athletics Dr. Camden Wood Selig. "The recent renovations and additions to the stadium as part of our move to compete at the NCAA's Football Bowl Subdivision (I-A) level have resulted in one of the finest facilities in the country for its size. We are honored and pleased that high school teams throughout the state will now have the opportunity to compete for the state championship in this terrific facility. We know it will be a tremendous experience for all who visit, and we look forward to being a part of this very prestigious event."
Bowling Green was the only site submitting a proposal that complied with the KHSAA date and facility requests. “We are certainly thankful to the Louisville community for its support of our football finals,” DeVries said. “After visiting with the facility and meeting with local supporters, we are excited about the proposal and having the football finals in Bowling Green,” Commissioner DeVries said. “Bowling Green has a lot of experience hosting large events and has excelled in hosting the Houchens/KHSAA Girls’ State Basketball Tournament as well as the Leachman/KHSAA Boys’ & Girls’ State Golf Tournaments.”
“It is such an honor to be awarded the opportunity to host the Commonwealth Gridiron Bowl in 2009 and 2010,” said Bowling Green Convention and Visitors Bureau Sports Sales Director Amy Cardwell. “Louisville has done a fantastic job and set the bar very high for this event. Our goal is to create a new experience and allow each one of these student athletes to feel like a superstar when they arrive in Bowling Green. Our city leaders, WKU, the CVB, and the entire community are collectively ready to step up to the challenge.”
The State Football Finals have been played in Louisville since 1979 (1977 for Class 4A). In 2003, the event moved from the Kentucky Fair & Exposition Center’s Cardinal Stadium to the University of Louisville’s Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium which has hosted the event since. This year’s Commonwealth Gridiron Bowl is set for Dec. 12-13 at Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium.
