Silicon Valley Football Classic Not Renewed for 2005 Season

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Bowl and City Officials Disappointed With NCAA Decision
SAN JOSE, CA -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 04/20/2005 -- Despite a well-executed presentation to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) that was favorably complimented by all of the Postseason Football Licensing Subcommittee members in attendance, the Silicon Valley Football Classic (SVFC) announced today the bowl game held annually at San Jose's Spartan Stadium was not re-licensed for the 2005 season. SVFC officials delivered the news this morning while attending the Football Bowl Association's (FBA) Annual Meeting in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Last year's game, which saw Northern Illinois defeat Troy State 34-21 in the fifth annual SVFC, has been classified as "The Perfect Storm," forcing SVFC officials to battle a number of immense challenges: South Carolina and Clemson's withdrawals from the eligible bowl contingent, which left the 28 existing bowls with only 57 bowl-eligible teams; the SVFC's local conference partners, the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) and Pac-10, who were unable to provide bowl-eligible teams; the match up of two At-Large teams who were unfamiliar to the local market; the tumultuous rain which drove away attendees on game day; and lastly, a stream of negative press leading up to Bowl week, all strongly impacted the SVFC 2004 game.

"We are truly disappointed in the NCAA's decision to deny the Silicon Valley Football Classic a 2005 season," said Chris Hutchins, executive director of the SVFC. "Our Executive Committee worked tirelessly over the last several weeks to present the NCAA with the positive and successful results that are associated with the Bowl. We were 100 percent committed to building upon last year's successes, but unfortunately, attendance criteria became the deciding factor."

During the last five years, the SVFC has been a direct economic influence to the City of San Jose, generating more than $32 million in economic impact during one of the slowest tourism weeks of the year.

"Since the first, the Silicon Valley Football Classic has contributed greatly to our community with significant economic, community and downtown benefits," said San Jose Mayor Ron Gonzales. "I appreciate all the hard work from so many people over the years to create what we all expected to become an outstanding San Jose tradition."

In addition to its economic impact, the SVFC invested and gave back to the community. Last year, the SVFC teamed up with the After-School All-Stars of Greater San Jose (ASAS-GSJ), its official charity partner, hosting its first-ever Team Community Day. The SVFC was recently able to reaffirm its commitment to the community by presenting ASAS-GSJ with a $10,000 donation early this year.

About The Silicon Valley Football Classic (SVFC)

The Silicon Valley Football Classic (SVFC) was conceived in 2000, to form an NCAA Division IA Football Bowl in San José, California. The mission of the SVFC is to utilize college football as the ultimate social platform to positively impact the City of San Jose and its surrounding communities on both an economic and philanthropic level. SVFC seeks to invest and give back to our communities by establishing long term partnerships with businesses, civic groups, schools, families and football fans through a series of year round festival of events highlighting our December Bowl. For more information on the SVFC, visit http://www.svfootballclassic.com.

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