Sports
Military Bowl To Feature Parade, Tailgate, Buds And Burgers
The official Military Bowl Pregame will include music, entertainment, military displays, free face painting and more.
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ANNAPOLIS, MD – The Military Bowl official tailgate starts at 9 a.m. in the Blue parking lot on the west side of the stadium, with music, entertainment, military displays, free face painting and more with food and beverages available for purchase.
The Military Bowl Parade, featuring the world-famous Budweiser Clydesdales, 13 Medal of Honor Recipients and including more than 80 entries, kicks off at 9:30 a.m. at City Dock and proceeds to Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. Fidelity First is a sponsor of the Military Bowl Parade.
The third annual Bud and Burgers Battle starts at 10:30 a.m. in the Military Bowl Official Tailgate as several local establishments vie for the title of Best Burger in Annapolis. Tickets are $20.
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Fans are encouraged to be in their seats by 1 p.m. when the Pregame Pageantry begins:
- Team Fastrax Parachute Jump Team consists of military veterans from the Rangers, Special Forces and Airborne units who have combined to make more than 300,000 skydives. GE Aviation is the sponsor of the parachute jump.
- Singing today’s National Anthem is Miss D.C. Briana Kinsey. Briana is a graduate of the University of Alabama and plans to attend medical school and become a pediatric endocrinologist.
- The Giant American Flag will be unfurled by Northrop Grumman and USO-Metro volunteers.
- The flyover will feature two Northrop Grumman E-2C Hawkeyes from the “Bear Aces” of VAW-124 based out of Naval Station Norfolk. Piloting the lead aircraft were lieutenants Andrew “BUgS” Odell, A.J. “Bing Bong” Nunnikhoven and Aaron “Eeyore” Frunzi, USNA Class of 2012. The wing aircraft was piloted by Commander Gregory “Cheese” Machine, USNA Class of 2000, and lieutenants Joel “Deli” Derby and Alexander “HOD” Lloyd.
Tickets for Troops, which provided complimentary tickets for active-duty service members and their family members, is sponsored by Northrop Grumman; 3M; Under Armour; NewDay USA; Dell EMC; Navy Federal Credit Union; Vencore, Inc.; and GE Aviation.
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At midfield for the coin toss will be the Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Command Sergeant Major John Troxell, along with 13 Recipients of the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest military decoration presented for acts of valor in the face of enemy danger:
- Hershel “Woody” Williams, who fought in World War II, is the oldest living Medal of Honor Recipient from the Battle of Iwo Jima. Woody is scheduled to ride atop the Budweiser Clydesdales in the Military Bowl Parade.
- 11 Recipients were presented the Medal of Honor for their actions in the Vietnam War: Bennie Adkins, Doc Ballard, Barney Barnum, Mike Fitzmaurice, Don Jenkins, Tom Kelley, Joe Marm, Jim McCloughan, Bob Patterson, Brian Thacker and Mike Thornton
- Maryland native Florent Groberg was presented the Medal of Honor for his actions while serving in Afghanistan.
Dell EMC and Future Tech Enterprise are the pregame festivities presenting sponsors.
The halftime show is sponsored by the Anne Arundel Economic Development Corporation.
The enlistment ceremony at the end of the first quarter will see at least 115 young men and women take an oath administered by General Robert B. Neller, the 37th Commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps.
The 3M sideline reporter is ESPN 980 personality Bram Weinstein.
The Military Bowl will be held on Dec. 28, in Annapolis.
Image via Pixabay
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