Charlotte, U.S.A. — The Belk Bowl is thrilled to announce Country Music Awards’ 2011 Vocal Group of the Year, Lady Antebellum, will be the featured act at the 2012 Belk Bowl this coming December. The 11th annual Belk Bowl will kick off at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 27 at the Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C. and will feature a matchup of the Atlantic Coast Conference and the Big East Conference.

“Bowl games are always a lot of fun whether your favorite team is playing or not,” said Lady Antebellum. “This is going to be our New Year’s Eve pre-party celebration in Charlotte!” The group’s record breaking third disc “Own the Night” debuted at the No. 1 position on Billboard’s Top 200 chart in October 2011, becoming the biggest first week debut by a country artist last year.

The album has already produced two No. 1 singles—”Just a Kiss” and “We Owned the Night.” The band has now tallied six No. 1 hits since its debut in 2007. The current single, “Wanted You More”, is now being played on country radio stations and is making its ascent up the charts. The trio’s previous two albums, “Lady Antebellum” and “Need You Now”, have sold more than five million albums across the globe, spawned four No. 1 hits, scored six GRAMMYs and more than a dozen other awards.

The group received five nominations for the 2012 Academy Of Country Music Awards and won the Group of the Year award for the third straight year. Additionally, the group received a 2012 Grammy award for Country Album of the Year. Past wins include Vocal Group of the Year at the 45th Annual CMA Awards, Favorite Country Band, Duo or Group for the 2011 American Music Awards and being one of CMT’s five Artists of the Year for 2011.

“College football season is our favorite time of the year,” said the band members of Lady Antebellum. “When we’re out on tour, we make sure a TV is set up so we can all hang out and watch the Saturday games together.” This year’s FanFest event is free to the public and will begin at 1:00 p.m. with Lady Antebellum scheduled to begin their performance at 4:30 p.m.

Individual tickets for the 2012 Belk Bowl will go on sale in early October and will be available through TicketMaster and the participating schools. Fans can visit the official website, www.BelkBowl.com, for more information about the game and surrounding events.

Image Courtesy of  DFree / Shutterstock.com

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USC quarterback, Matt Barkley, has decided to don the Trojan red and yellow for one last season. On Thursday afternoon, the 21-year-old declared that he will not enroll in the 2012 NFL Draft, opting instead to return for his senior year in Los Angeles. Barkley broke the news in a nationally televised event held in the campus’ Heritage Hall with his family, girlfriend, head coach, the USC marching band, and many others in attendance.

When discussing the two options before him, he began by speaking optimistically of his future at the next level. “I am prepared to play quarterback in the NFL,” said Barkley. “It is my dream to play quarterback in the NFL – and I intend to make that dream a reality.” While this initially sounded like a young man that had decided to move on, Barkley would take everyone by surprise and suddenly go in the exact opposite direction.

“But, I know in my heart, that I have not yet finished my journey as a Trojan football player,” said Barkley. “Our USC football team has been through some tough times, and we have persevered. This 2012 team has some serious unfinished business to attend to, and I plan to play a part in it. I have firmly decided to forgo the 2012 NFL draft and finish that.”

The conclusion of that statement quickly brought about wild cheers along with a celebratory tune played by the band. For the first time in two years, the USC football program had good news for their loyal family. Sanctions handed down by the NCAA in 2010 banned the school’s bowl eligibility for the past two years. Barkley’s return will now give him the opportunity to lead the school to its first bowl since defeating Boston College in the 2009 Emerald Bowl.  With USC retaining most of its starters for next season, a national title run after this year’s 10-2 finish could be an inspiration as well.

Head coach, Lane Kiffin, was not shocked at all by Barkley’s announcement. Kiffin had paid Barkley a visit at his home the previous night, and his quarterback gave him a gold Christmas ornament. Displayed on the front of the ornament was a picture of the two embracing after this year’s victory over Colorado. After being told to turn it around, Kiffin found the words, “One More Year”, written on the back and immediately rejoiced.

Kiffin has tremendous respect for Barkley, knowing that most star athletes would not pass up the opportunity to begin making millions of guaranteed dollars and play professionally. “This is a special, special college student-athlete story,” said Kiffin. “To be a part of this story is unbelievable for all of us involved.”

Barkley had an outstanding junior year and was projected to be an early first round pick in the upcoming draft. In 2011, he threw for 3,528 yards along with 39 touchdowns and only 7 interceptions. Stanford’s Andrew Luck and Baylor’s Robert Griffin III were regarded as the only two quarterbacks that could have possibly been selected before him.

However, Barkley is not expected to hurt his draft stock at all by remaining in school. In fact, experts believe that he will be even more prepared for the 2013 NFL Draft and will actually be selected with the number one overall pick. Being a potential frontrunner for next year’s Heisman Trophy does not sound too bad either.

Barkley did not listen to those who believed that this was the wrong route to take. His ultimate goal is to help contribute to the winning tradition established by the historic USC program. All eyes will now effectively be on him in 2012 to see if he is successful in doing so, like those who occupied this prestigious position before him – current NFL quarterbacks, Mark Sanchez, Matt Leinart, and Carson Palmer.

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