MARSHALL, Minn. - The seventh annual Ag Bowl, presented by Ralco Inc., will be Saturday, Sept. 7, at the Schwan Regional Event Center and REC parking lot on the campus of Southwest Minnesota State University.
The day is a celebration of agriculture in Minnesota and features numerous events for both kids and adults. Participating sponsors of Ag Bowl include Ralco, Titan Machinery, HyVee, ADM, Pepsi, Hormel, Hagen Distributing, Lockwood Motors and Syngenta.
For the second year in a row, the Ag Bowl Scholarship Challenge will be held, providing an opportunity for young people to learn about and present topics related to the future of agriculture. Local FFA chapters and 4-H groups will compete in three categories: agricultural issues, marketing and communications with the Food, Safety and Modernization Act serving as the theme of the event.
The Scholarship Challenge is open to the public and will start at 10 a.m. in Charter Hall on the SMSU campus. A panel of judges from the event's sponsors - Ralco, ADM, CHS and Midwest Ag - as well as from SMSU will score teams based on state FFA competition criteria.
Over $13,000 in prizes will be awarded, with winning chapters receiving monetary rewards as well as individual team members earning scholarships to SMSU. The winners will be announced at halftime of the SMSU football game versus St. Cloud State later that evening.
Starting at 1 p.m., activities for all ages begin, including a petting zoo, pony rides, tractor displays, mechanical bull ride, Ag Olympics and inflatable games.
The HyVee/Hormel Food Zone is back again and will serve great food and beverages starting at 1:30 p.m. until 5:30 p.m. Also featured will be local musician Kayla Daniels, who will entertain the crowd from 1:30 p.m. to 4:45 p.m.
The day is capped by the SMSU football season-opening game versus St. Cloud State starting at 6 p.m.
Again this year, Ag Bowl raffle tickets will be available for just $10 and gives participants a chance to win numerous great prizes. The grand prize is either a Polaris 50cc youth ATV or a Honda 50cc scooter from Action Sports, while two $500 gift cards from HyVee, a 12-gauge shotgun and a 42-inch flat screen television will also be awarded. The raffle winners will be announced at halftime of the football game on Saturday night.
Proceeds generated by the Ag Bowl will fund scholarships and programming for worthy student-athletes and young people who will dedicate their careers to business success in agriculture, environmental science and the food industries.
SMSU's educational programs in agriculture, environmental science and food arts & sciences develop young people who spend their careers working to grow the economic success of the agricultural industry. In acknowledgement of these efforts, the University has been the recipient of three NCAA Civic Engagement Awards for Ag Bowl.
Southwest Minnesota State University is proud of the fact that it is located in southwest Minnesota, a region where agriculture provides the foundation for the economy.
For more information on Ag Bowl, including a complete listing of events and how to sign-up for the Ag Bowl Scholarship Challenge, click HERE.
2013 Schedule of Events
10 a.m.- 4 p.m. - Ag Bowl Scholarship Challenge
1 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. - Ag Activities (Mechanical Bull, Petting Zoo, Pony Rides, Inflateables, Hay Rides, Ag Olympics)
1:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. - Hy Vee/Hormel Food Zone - Presented by Hy Vee of Marshall
1:30 p.m. - 4:45 p.m. - Performance by Kayla Daniels
4 p.m. - Registration for Peddle Pull Begins - For Kids ages 4-11
4:30 p.m. - Kids Peddle Pull Begins
6 p.m. - SMSU Football Kick-off vs. St. Cloud State
