TSSAA awards football championships to Chattanooga with two-year agreement
COOKEVILLE – Although the “Road to Cookeville” could have been a somber one for the Cookeville-Putnam County Chamber of Commerce and Visitors’ Bureau along with a delegation of Cookeville and Putnam County leaders Tuesday afternoon, spirits remained high after TSSAA announced that the BlueCross Bowl will move to Chattanooga for the next two years. The decision for the state’s 2021-22 high school football championships was made during the TSSAA Board of Control’s quarterly meeting Tuesday afternoon.
“We are humbled and appreciative that the TSSAA Board of Control has entrusted our community to host the BlueCross Bowl over the past 12 years and offer our congratulations to the city of Chattanooga,” said Amy New, Chamber president and CEO. “Cookeville and Tennessee Tech have been honored to host thousands of student athletes as they have experienced one of the biggest days in their high school careers.”
The Cookeville presentation focused on the hospitality for which the city is so well-known in hosting sporting events as well as the never-wavering partnership with TSSAA. The package presented also offered a continued financial guarantee of $253,000 with proposed streamlining through digital ticket sales, parking and simplified lodging accommodations.
New was joined by Chamber Board President Wayne Cravens, Putnam County Mayor Randy Porter, Cookeville City Manager James Mills, Tennessee Tech University President Philip Oldham, TTU Director of Athletics Mark Wilson, Visitors’ Bureau Executive Director Molly Brown and Visitors’ Bureau Marketing and Sales Director Amber Asberry.
Cookeville is located on Interstate 40, 70 miles east of Nashville with Tucker Stadium being only three miles north. Cookeville is home to more than 1,500 hotel rooms, more than 150 restaurants and hundreds of retail opportunities. Tennessee Tech has 10,492 students on a 235-acre campus. Tucker Stadium seats 16,500 and has an artificial turf surface.
For area information, go to: www.visitcookevilletn.com.
