The GMAC Bowl

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All great things begin with a degree of daydreaming. A simple idea soon becomes a constant thought. Then, when mentioned in random conversation, the idea explodes into action.

Stan Tiner, former editor of the Mobile Register, is the man who first uttered the "What if" scenario in reference to the bowl game being played today. Tiner, a long-time supporter of sports in Mobile, discussed the possibilities of an NCAA-sanctioned bowl game with Mobile Mayor Mike Dow for the first time in 1998, and Dow immediately saw the possibilities.

With phrases such as economic impact, national exposure and hotel occupancy dancing in their heads, Tiner and Dow looked within the city for help and approached the former University of Pittsburgh head coach and longtime resident of the Port City, Mike Gottfried, for leadership and direction.

Gottfried, using his contacts as a former head coach and now college football analyst for ESPN, as well as his established friendships within college athletics circles, assessed the city's efforts and began to build support for attracting a bowl game in Mobile. Almost immediately, the City of Mobile and the mayor got behind the project.

Preliminary inquires were encouraging and as the process continued, positive vibes continued. At each step, the NCAA asked that certain criteria be met and each time the city and Gottfried met those criteria.

In less than a year, NCAA certification was approved, making Tiner's idea of the Mobile Alabama Bowl a reality.

"Getting NCAA certification tells the world that we're in competition in the sports industry," said Dow after the NCAA announcement. "Anybody who can pull off getting a bowl game has to be organized. Now comes the fun part, and that is to execute and make it happen."

Then came one of the biggest public discussions in the city's 300-year history. What to name this new event that the citizens were obviously so proud of?

Mobilians wanted maximum exposure with the name and several ideas were discussed. The Azalea Bowl, after the city flower; the Mardi Gras Bowl, after the famous festival that originated in Mobile; and the Jubilee Bowl, after the natural phenomenon that annually occurs in Mobile Bay (one of only three places in the world) were only some of the suggestions offered.

After lengthy debates, polls and surveys, bowl officials decided there was no better way to let the world know the game's location than by putting the city's name on the bowl. Therefore, what several media outlets called the "Bowl Without A Comma" was officially born.

With Southern Mississippi, Tulane and UAB located nearby, Conference USA's affiliation with the bowl proved a natural fit. Arguably the most improved conference in the nation, C-USA had already looked into other bowl possibilities before the Mobile Alabama Bowl.

"We were interested in getting a third bowl tie-in and began searching what it would take to start a new bowl," C-USA commissioner Mike Slive said. "Mobile's location proved to be a natural fit. We are a relatively new conference and hope to grow with this new bowl in Mobile."

The Western Athletic Conference was eager to participate during the inaugural bowl as well. After several teams left the conference before the 1999 season, the WAC rebounded remarkably by securing a tie-in with the GMAC Bowl.

In 2000 the Mid-American Conference, whose teams are located primarily in the Midwest, replaced the WAC as Conference USA's primary opponent in the GMAC Bowl.

With another successful bowl game already in town, the new bowl had an immediate measuring stick. The Senior Bowl, a mainstay in Mobile since 1949, had long been a popular event each January for football fans of the Gulf Coast.

City officials viewed hosting two annual bowl games as an honor. With the addition of the GMAC Bowl, Mobile joined Miami as the only city in the country to host two major college bowl games every year. Miami, with the Micron PC and Orange Bowls, enjoy a busy and successful bowl season each year. Area hotels reap the benefits of successful December and January months that are notoriously slow for the hotel business.