C.H.A.M.P.S. HOT Bowl out of Cove

By LYNETTE SOWELL
Cove Leader-Press 

Held in Copperas Cove at Bulldawg Stadium for the past 17 years, the C.H.A.M.P.S. Heart of Texas Bowl is looking for a new home in another city, as confirmed by Jack Welch, president of America’s Drug Free Productions, Inc., the group which holds the bowl on the first Saturday of December. 
Welch shared that he was informed by the Copperas Cove Independent School District that the stadium would not be available for use during that time frame. 
“There have been questions about the CHAMPS Heart of Texas Bowl being in Copperas Cove in 2018,” Welch stated in an email on Monday. “The CCISD superintendent gave me this reply: ‘Thank you for your inquiry regarding the use of the stadium for the HOT Bowl on December 1, 2018.  We anticipate that the high school football playoffs will still be underway during the first week in December and therefore the stadium will be unavailable for use.’” 
The HOT Bowl features two college-level bowl games, which according to the marketing proposal for the 2017 event draws a total of 1,000 individuals to include coaches, players, support staff, cheerleaders, drill teams and bands, as well as fans who travel to support their respective schools, with 5,000-10,000 attending the two games. 
For a number of years, the bowl received a portion of the city’s hotel occupancy tax funds and in return, the event consistently had at least 300 hotel room bookings. 
Welch did state that he has been contacted by several potential locations, and confirmed the date will remain the same for this year’s bowl games, on Saturday, December 2.