The next big sporting event in Nashville could be the Football Championship Subdivision National Championship Game.
Nashville Sports Council president and CEO Scott Ramsey told The Tennessean that his team made a presentation and submitted a bid to the NCAA FCS committee on Nov. 22 to host the championship game in 2025 and 2026.
Vanderbilt and the Ohio Valley Conference partnered with the Athletic Council to develop the bid, which included the proposal that both championship games be played at Vanderbilt’s newly renovated FirstBank Stadium (30,000 capacity).
“We’re keeping our fingers crossed,” Ramsey said. “We’re hoping that in the next few weeks they (the FCS committee) will make a decision and hopefully it will be Nashville and we can start working on it. I believe they want to decide the next city as soon as possible. possible.”
Ramsey told The Tennessean in November that the Nashville Sports Council would also bid for the CFP Football Bowl Subdivision championship, which would be played at the new $2.2 billion Tennessee Titans stadium. dollars. That offer wouldn’t be made until 2028 at the earliest, after the Tennessee Titans play one season in the new stadium.
The 2024 FCS National Championship Game will be played at Toyota Stadium (20,500 capacity) in Frisco, Texas on January 6. This will be the 15th time the championship match has been held at the venue, which is a professional football stadium. Before that, the championship game was played 12 consecutive years at Finley Stadium in Chattanooga (capacity 20,668).
Ramsey takes a group to the championship game in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area to observe what goes into organizing the event.
“Seeing all the moving parts in action at events like this really helps you tighten up your planning,” Ramsey said. “Especially since you’re going to be hosting him after only seeing him for a year. You’re going to kind of be on time, so to speak.”
Ramsey said the size of FirstBank Stadium is ideal for what the FCS committee is looking for in hopes of increasing attendance for the game.
“The new FirstBank renovations will obviously be completed next year and I think we have a very good chance of filling them,” Ramsey said. “(FCS) has sold out in Frisco, excluding COVID, for the last 13 years in a row. FirstBank’s total new capacity will be somewhere in the 30,000s, including new club seats and “We think it’s the right size to hopefully increase attendance and provide a new destination for those fans.”
The 2025 FCS national championship game will be played on January 5, 2026 and the 2026 national championship on January 4, 2027. The game was moved to the first Monday in January when the FBS national championship moved from that date to January 20 of this year. season where the CFP expanded to 12 teams.
The FCS national championship game is broadcast annually on ESPN in prime time.
The FCS is made up of 129 teams from 13 conferences. The playoff system features 24 teams, with eight conference champions earning automatic berths and 16 others receiving at-large berths.
This season, Tennessee State and UT Martin earned at-large berths in the FCS playoffs after each winning a share of the Big South/OVC championship. Other FCS teams in the state, as well as Chattanooga, include Austin Peay, Tennessee Tech and East Tennessee State.
Fox 17’s ‘Football Frenzy Live’ Emmy Nominated
WZTV’s weekly Fox 17 show “Football Frenzy Live” was nominated for Outstanding Sports Program at the 39th Annual Midsouth Regional Emmy Awards.
The show, airing Fridays, features the best high school football games in the Middle Tennessee area each week.
The show is hosted by Fox 17 sports anchor Jill Jelnick and presents journalists Joe Dubin And Kaitlin Miller. Sarah Shiverdecker is the executive producer.
Other programs nominated in the category were Charlotte Sports Live (WJZY, North Carolina) and Panthers Blueprint (Carolina Panthers).
Cumberland adds women’s flag football
Cumberland is adding a women’s flag football team, which will begin competing in 2025-26.
Cumberland will join 22 other NAIA programs that already offer flag football.
The Phoenix will play its home games at the school’s Nokes-Lasater Field.
“Women’s flag football is one of the fastest growing sports in the United States,” Cumberland athletic director said. Ron Pavan said. “Many local high schools are adding this to their programs, which will aid our recruiting efforts.”
The sport debuted at the NAIA level in 2021.
Shelby Golf Course reopened after renovations
Shelby Golf Course, Nashville’s oldest public course, has reopened after undergoing a $2 million renovation.
The 6,079-yard par 72 course, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary, had been closed since March.
Improvements included combining the winter and summer greens into a single green complex on each hole; a new irrigation system; replace and enlarge six tee boxes; wagon path improvements; expansion of the putting green and renovation of the clubhouse.
The project was funded by the Tennessee Golf Foundation.
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This article was originally published on Nashville Tennessean: FCS national championship game could take place in Nashville in 2025 and 2026
