ORANGE BOWL COMMITTEE Across Offi cers Last Year for the BCS - The 2013-14 season will be the 16th year for the BCS, which is a fi ve game arrangement designed to match the two top-rated teams in a national championship game and to create exciting and competitive match-ups among President & Chair...... Andrew P. Hertz eight other highly regarded teams in four other bowl games. It has been undeniably successful in achieving those goals; college Chair-Elect...... Luis E. Boué football has never been more popular, and the BCS is a signifi cant reason for that. According to BCS measurements, the top two Vice Chair...... Lee. E. Stapleton teams have played each other in the title game every year since its inception, and 12 times in the past 15 years according to the Vice Chair...... Michael B. Chavies AP poll. The BCS has taken college football to new heights, but in 2014, the NCAA will introduce the College Football Playoff, a Secretary...... Ann E. Pope four-team playoff to determine the national champion. The semifi nals will be rotated between six bowls (Orange, Sugar, Rose, Treasurer...... Shaun M. Davis Fiesta, Chick-Fil-A and Cotton), each bowl hosting a semifi nal every three years with the national championship being played in Immediate Past President/Chair....O. Ford Gibson a different city each year. The fi rst semifi nal at the Discover Orange Bowl will be December 31, 2015. CEO...... Eric L. Poms

Owning the Rankings - The SEC, which has won the past seven BCS National Championships, enters the 2013 season with Communications Staff the most teams ranked in the initial USA Today Coaches Poll once again. The boasts six teams in the Top-25; fi ve of those ranked in the top-10. Defending champion Alabama leads the way at No. 1, followed by Georgia at No. 5, Larry Wahl (305) 341-4718 Texas A&M at No. 6, South Carolina at No. 7, at No. 10 and LSU at No. 12. VP, Communications & Community Outreach [email protected] Conference Realignment - College football has a new look in 2013. The Western Athletic Conference has dispersed and the Big East has split, with the remaining football-playing schools forming the American Athletic Conference. With Pittsburgh and Mike Liotta (305) 341-4785 Syracuse departing to the ACC, the American added former C-USA schools Houston, Memphis, SMU and UCF. Replacing the Communications & Media Intern departed C-USA teams are Sun Belt schools FAU, FIU, Middle Tennessee and North Texas, in addition to WAC teams L.A. Tech [email protected] and UTSA. Other former WAC teams SJSU and Utah State move to the MWC, Texas State moves to the Sun Belt, and Idaho and New Mexico State are now independents. The Sun Belt also adds Georgia State from the FCS as the 125th FBS member. Nelson Adams (305) 341-4734 Communications & Media Intern Pressure at the Top - The Crimson Tide come into the new season as the preseason favorites to win the national title, but just [email protected] how realistic is that? The last team to win the national championship game as the preseason No. 1 was USC in 2004. In the past 10 years, preseason favorites have done rather well, but only one has accomplished the feat of winning it all. Three teams have fi nished second, two teams have fi nished third and the lowest fi nal ranking was owned by Oklahoma in 2011, fi nishing 15th. The last time Alabama was the preseason favorite was in 2010 and the Tide fi nished 11th with a 10-3 record. Across the ACC ORANGE BOWL COMMITTEE MEMBERS IN PRESS BOXES THIS WEEK Home of the ACC Champion - The Road To South Florida kicks off this week with the fi rst ACC conference matchup of the year: Florida State at Pittsburgh. The ACC Atlantic and Coastal Division Champions will face off in the Dr Pepper ACC Championship Game on December 7. The winner will head to South Florida to compete in the 2014 Discover Orange Bowl.

ACC in the Polls - For the sixth straight year, the ACC has two preseason top-15 teams according to the Coaches Poll. Clemson sits at No. 8, following an 11-2 season and a Chick-Fil-A Bowl victory over LSU, while Florida State ranks 12th, following its fi rst ACC Championship since 2005 and fi rst BCS Bowl victory since 1999 with a 31-10 Discover Orange Bowl win over Northern Illinois. Other ACC teams receiving votes are Miami, and . Georgia at Clemson...... Luis Boué / Ford Gibson Preseason All-ACC - Florida State leads all ACC teams with six players voted to the 25-member Preseason All-ACC Team, followed by North Carolina with four, Clemson with three, Duke, Miami and Wake Forest with two, while , Georgia FIU at Maryland...... Hope Victor / Al Dotson Sr. Tech, Maryland, Pittsburgh, Virginia and Virginia Tech each placed one. Sixteen student-athletes named to the 2013 Preseason Alabama vs Virginia Tech.....Sara Herald / Shaun Davis All-ACC Team were either fi rst- or second-team All-ACC selections last season. Repeat Preseason All-ACC selections include FSU at Pittsburgh...... Lee Stapleton Clemson quarterback Tahj Boyd and receiver Sammy Watkins, North Carolina tackle James Hurst, Florida State corner/safety Lamarcus Joyner and Wake Forest nose tackle Nikita Whitlock. *OBC members are easily identifi ed by their Orange jackets

IMPORTANT MEDIA DATES WHAT THE EXPERTS ARE SAYING

Sun. Oct. 20 First BCS Standings Released Sun. Dec. 8 BCS Selection Show / Coaches’ Teleconference

Matt Murschel 2013 Discover Orange Bowl Online Credential Application Mon. Nov. 3 Sat. Dec. 21 Credential Application / Media Hotel Reservations Closed Opens Mark Schlabach Brad Edwards Stewart Mandel Jerry Palm Ralph Russo Brant Parsons

Sat. Dec. 7 Dr Pepper ACC Championship Game (ESPN) Sat. Dec. 21 2013 Metro PCS Orange Bowl Basketball Classic (FSN) Florida State Clemson Florida State Clemson Florida State Clemson vs. vs. vs. vs. vs. vs. Louisville Michigan Notre Dame Oklahoma Wisconsin Louisville DISCOVER ORANGE BOWL

Sat. Dec. 28 Afternoon Team Arrivals / HC Press Conferences Alabama Alabama Alabama Alabama Alabama Alabama vs. vs. vs. vs. vs. vs. Ohio State Oregon Stanford Ohio State Stanford Ohio State Sun. Dec. 29 Post-Practice HC / Student Athlete Media Availability Wed. Jan. 1

Mon. Dec. 30 8:00 a.m. - 9:45 a.m. Coordinators / Student-Athletes Press Conferences Michigan Ohio State Ohio State Michigan Ohio State Nebraska Tues. Dec. 31 vs. vs. vs. vs. vs. vs. Oregon Stanford Oregon Stanford Oregon Oregon Thur. Jan. 2 8:00 a.m. - 9:15 a.m. Head Coaches Press Conference

Thur. Jan. 2 11:00 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. AvMed Orange Bowl Coaches Luncheon Georgia Georgia South Carolina Georgia South Carolina LSU vs. vs. vs. vs. vs. vs. Oklahoma State Texas Louisville Louisville Louisville Notre Dame Thur. Jan. 2 7:30 p.m. - 11:30 p.m. Media Party

Fri. Jan. 3 1:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. Bud Light Orange Bowl Game Day Fan Zone Texas Oklahoma State Texas Oklahoma State Oklahoma Oklahoma vs. vs. vs. vs. vs. vs. Stanford Louisville Boise State Boise State Boise State Stanford Fri. Jan. 3 8:30 p.m. Discover Orange Bowl Weekend Watch List ACC and Orange Bowl Announce 12-Year Agreement North Carolina at No. 7 South Carolina Thursday, August 29, 6:00 p.m. The Orange Bowl Committee and the Atlantic Coast Conference have agreed to a 12-year commitment to annually The 2013-14 season opens up with a border feature the ACC Champion in the Discover Orange Bowl to be played on either New Year’s Eve or New Year’s war of the . Under Steve Spurrier, the Day beginning in the 2014 season. In addition, the ACC Champion with face an opponent from either the Big Ten Gamecocks are 8-0 in season openers and top Conference, Southeastern Conference or University of Notre Dame. NFL prospect Jadeveon Clowney looks to keep that streak alive as he could become the fi rst If the ACC Champion is identifi ed as one of the top four teams by the College Football Playoff selection committee, defensive Heisman Trophy winner since Charles then the ACC Champion will participate in the national semifi nals and a replacement team from the ACC would Woodson back in 1997. participate in the Discover Orange Bowl.

Ole Miss at Vanderbilt In addition to the partnership between the ACC and the Orange Bowl Committee, the Orange Bowl will host a semifi nal Thursday, August 29, 9:15 p.m. game once every three years in the new college football playoff. In the years that the Orange Bowl serves as a semifi nal host, the ACC Champion would then participate in either the Chick-Fil-A or Fiesta Bowl. The fi rst semifi nal at After Ole Miss landed arguably the best the Discover Orange Bowl will be December 31, 2015. recruiting class in school history (5th in the nation according to ESPN), the Rebels open up the The Discover Orange Bowl has been the home of the ACC Champion since 2006. In the fi rst seven years of 2013 season against conference foe Vanderbilt, partnership, fi ve different ACC teams have competed. Throughout the 78-year history, 10 of the current ACC who also signed a top-25 recruiting class. The institutions have played in at least one Orange Bowl. Commodores squeaked past Ole Miss last year by one point thanks to a Jordan Rodgers touchdown pass with 52 seconds left.

Mississippi State vs. No. 14 Oklahoma State Saturday, August 31, 3:30 p.m. Reliant Stadium - Houston, TX

For the fi rst time in the history of the Big 12, the Cowboys of Oklahoma State are the preseason favorites to win the conference championship, according to a media poll. Head Coach Mike Gundy looks to prove the media right as he kicks off 2013 against Dan Mullen’s Bulldogs in the inaugural Texas Kick Off Classic.

No. 1 Alabama vs. Virginia Tech Orangeg Bowl Youth Football Alliance Kicks Off 15th Season Saturday, August 31, 5:30 p.m. Georgia Dome - , GA The Orange Bowl Youth Football Alliance (Orange Bowl YFA) presented by Sports Authority kicked off its 15th After earning three national titles in four years, season on Saturday, August 17. The Orange Bowl YFA presented by Sports Authority serves more than 16,000 Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide begin their young football players and cheerleaders across nine leagues from north of Lake Okeechobee to Key West. quest for their third in a row against a Virginia Tech team that looks to get back to the ACC title Each Saturday throughout the youth football season, the Orange Bowl Park of the Week program will visit parks game for the third time in the last four years. The in the greater Miami area and recognize the parks for their commitment to youth sports. At the weekly caravan Hokies have not beaten Alabama since 1998. style celebration, Orange Bowl staff members present each park with a commemorative plaque and fi nancial contributions for park improvements and also distribute promotional items and discounts from offi cial Orange Bowl No. 5 Georgia at No. 8 Clemson YFA sponsors. Saturday, August 31, 8:00 p.m. The Orange Bowl has invested more than $5 million and countless volunteer hours in youth sports across South ESPN’s College GameDay crew will be in Florida since 1999. In addition to its continued support of the Orange Bowl YFA, the Orange Bowl directly supports Death Valley for the fi rst top-10 matchup of locally-based festivals and events, including those that provide participatory opportunities to youth from all over the new season. The Bulldogs and the Tigers the world. These events include the Junior Orange Bowl, Orange Bowl International Youth Regatta, Orange Bowl face off for the fi rst time since 2003 in which Lacrosse Classic, Orange Bowl International Tennis Championships, Orange Bowl Swim Classic and Orange Bowl Georgia dominated 30-0. Clemson’s Tahj Boyd Paddle Championships, among many others. and Georgia’s Aaron Murray are both early candidates for the Heisman Trophy.

No. 13 LSU vs. No. 20 TCU Photo of the Week Saturday August 31, 9:00 p.m. USA Todayy Coaches Poll AT&T Stadium - Arlington, TX 1. Alabama (58) The Tigers and Horned Frogs will square off in 2. Ohio State (3) the 2013 Cowboys Classic, their fi rst matchup 3. Oregon since 1968. After losing to Clemson on a last- 4. Stanford second fi eld goal in last year’s Chick-Fil-A Bowl, LSU looks to start 2013 strong against TCU who 5. Georgia is entering its second Big 12 season. 6. Texas A&M (1) 7. South Carolina Ohio at No. 9 Louisville 8. Clemson Sunday, September 1, 3:30 p.m. 9. Louisville In their last season before moving to the ACC, 10. Florida early Heisman candidate Teddy Bridgewater and 11. Notre Dame the Cardinals open up 2013 against the Bobcats. 12. Florida State Louisville capped off last season with a Sugar Bowl win over Florida and will face Ohio for the 13. LSU fi rst time since 1959. 14. Oklahoma State 15. Texas No. 12 Florida State at Pittsburgh 16. Oklahoma Monday, September 2, 8:00 p.m. 17. Michigan 18. Nebraska Last year’s Orange Bowl champions will welcome Pittsburgh into the ACC to cap off 19. Boise State Week One of the new season. Filling in for EJ 20. TCU Manuel, FSU’s redshirt freshman quarterback 21. UCLA has a tough fi rst test ahead In last year’s Discover Orange Bowl game, Florida State defeated MAC 22. Northwestern of him as the Panthers, who took last year’s champion Northern Illinois 31-10 to win its fi rst BCS bowl since winning the national championship runner-up into triple national title in 1999. The defending Orange Bowl champions will welcome 23. Wisconsin overtime before losing, want to make a good fi rst Pittsburgh into the Atlantic Coast Conference in primetime on Labor Day to 24. USC impression in their new conference. wrap up opening weekend of the 2013 season. 25. Oregon State