Tigers and Wildcats to square-off in Outback Bowl

Tampa, FL - Outback Bowl officials today extended invitations to Auburn University and Northwestern University to play in the 2010 Outback Bowl on New Year's Day in Tampa, Florida. The Tigers will return to the bowl for the first time in 14 years while this will be the Wildcats first appearance in the bowl.

The Tigers feature one of the top offenses in the SEC led by QB Chris Todd and TB Ben Tate, a semi-finalist for the Doak Walker Award given to the nation’s top running back. And the Wildcats boast one of the most successful offenses in the Big Ten, leading the league in First Downs and ranking second in Passing Offense and Third Down Conversions. They are led by QB Mike Kafka, who completed a Big Ten best 65.7% of his passes, and All-Big Ten Safety Brad Phillips.

“When we heard of the Auburn fans chanting at the end of the Iron Bowl “It’s great to be an Auburn Tiger” we knew there was something special about the excitement around this football team,” notes Jim McVay, Outback Bowl President /CEO. “And Northwestern is a quality team and fun to watch. These teams have everything we are looking for in a New Year’s Day match-up – They are both tough, exciting teams, extremely well coached and have some of the best fans in college football.”

“We are very pleased to welcome the Wildcats and Tigers to our Bowl,” added Outback Bowl Team Selection Chairman Mitch Shriber. “We look forward to hosting the players, coaches and their fans for a tremendous week of fun in the Tampa Bay area that we like to call “Football in Paradise.”

“We are very excited about the opportunity to play in the Outback Bowl,” said Auburn Head Coach Gene Chizik. “This is a tremendous reward for our football players as well as our fans that have been so supportive of our program this season. We want the Auburn fans to continue that great support by traveling to Tampa Bay to enjoy the many activities in the area and cheer on the Tigers on January 1.”

"On behalf of the entire Auburn Family, we are absolutely thrilled to accept an invitation to play in the 2010 Outback Bowl,” added Auburn Athletic Director Jay Jacobs. “Auburn has tremendous fans and I know that they will enjoy the Tampa Bay area and support Coach Chizik and the Tigers during bowl week. We want to see Raymond James Stadium packed with Auburn orange and blue on New Year’s Day.”

"We're extremely proud of our football program, which for the second straight year, finished the season by playing its best football,” says Northwestern Head Coach Pat Fitzgerald. “We're proud to represent the Big Ten on New Year's Day at the Outback Bowl against Auburn, a tremendous opponent from the Southeastern Conference. I'm thrilled for our senior class, which is one of the winningest classes in program history. Our number one goal this season was to win our bowl game. Now the opportunity is in front of us and it is time to consistently prepare every day to achieve that goal."

"To be certain, we're extremely excited about taking the Wildcats to Tampa for a New Year's Day bowl game,” added Northwestern Athletic Director Jim Phillips. “This is a tremendous reward for our football program, which made huge strides throughout the course of the season. I know everyone associated with Northwestern and all our passionate fans will have a tremendous experience in Tampa. We are honored and enthusiastically accept this wonderful opportunity to travel to the Outback Bowl and represent the Big Ten Conference."

The Outback Bowl is celebrating its 24th year and will kickoff at 11 A.M. ET on January 1st in Raymond James Stadium. The game is telecast internationally on ESPN TV. Tickets to the Outback Bowl are $70 each and are available at Ticketmaster outlets throughout Florida, via phone at 800-745-3000 and online at www.ticketmaster.com. Tickets are also available through the Auburn and Northwestern ticket offices. Information on the Outback Bowl game, bowl events and area hotels and attractions can be found on the bowls web site at www.OutbackBowl.com