Tickets for the 2008 MEAC/SWAC Challenge Presented by Disney
Go on Sale June 1

Fourth Annual Event Features Jackson State vs. Hampton on Aug. 31 in Orlando

Tickets for the 2008 MEAC/SWAC Challenge presented by Disney will go on sale Sunday, June 1, through various distributors, including Ticketmaster and Anthony Travel.  The ESPN Regional Television (ERT) owned-and-operated event will feature a team from two prominent HBCU (Historically Black College/University) leagues -- Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) and Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC).  This year, the event moves to Orlando and will showcase a college football match-up between the MEAC’s Hampton University and the SWAC’s Jackson State University on Labor Day Weekend, Sunday, Aug. 31, live at 2 p.m. ET on ESPN2, from the Florida Citrus Bowl.   

Individual tickets for the game are $20 (plus tax and fees) and will be available through Ticketmaster at 866-448-7849 or by logging on to www.ticketmaster.com.  Fans who want to attend this event can also purchase travel packages through Anthony Travel’s website at www.anthonytravel.com or by calling 800-736-6377.  In addition, tickets can be purchased in Orlando at the Amway Arena box office Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. -6 p.m. or by calling 407-839-3900.

Each year, the game pits a MEAC team against a SWAC member at a neutral site within the footprint of one of the conferences. The inaugural MEAC/SWAC Challenge in 2005 showcased the MEAC’s South Carolina State vs. Alabama State of the SWAC, with South Carolina State prevailing, 27-14.  In 2006, the contest went into overtime with the MEAC’s Hampton University defeating the SWAC’s Grambling State, 27-26. Last year, the SWAC earned its first MEAC/SWAC Challenge trophy as Southern defeated Florida A&M, 33-27.  Teams for future games are determined on an annual basis.

For more information about the MEAC/SWAC Challenge, please visit www.meacswacchallenge.com.

ESPN Regional Television/Event Ownership
The nation’s largest syndicator of collegiate sports programming, ESPN Regional Television (ERT) annually produces more than 900 sporting events. Programming includes football, basketball, NCAA events, golf and NHRA events accounting for more than 2,200 live and/or original hours of programming. In addition to event ownership, ERT is the production headquarters for ESPNU, the 24-hour college sports network; syndication rights-holder and producer of national, regional and local shows for college conferences (e.g. – BIG EAST, Big 12, Mid-American, Sun Belt, WAC).

ESPN Regional Television markets and/or owns several other sporting events, including collegiate football events: the St. Petersburg Bowl; the Papajohns.com Bowl; the Bell Helicopter Armed Forced Bowl; the Sheraton Hawai’i Bowl; the Pioneer Las Vegas Bowl, the New Mexico Bowl; the MEAC/SWAC Challenge; and The Home Depot College Football Awards; collegiate basketball events: the O’Reilly Auto Parts All-College Classic (Oklahoma City); the Old Spice Classic (Orlando, Fla.); the SEC/BIG EAST Invitational; the Anaheim Classic (Calif.); the O’Reilly Auto Parts Puerto Rico Tip-Off (San Juan); and the O’Reilly ESPNU BracketBusters; as well as the ESPN National Golf Challenge presented by Callaway. For more information, visit www.espnplus.com.

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