By Daniel Williams, DENVER DAILY NEWS
The “Rocky Mountain Showdown” will return to Denver next year.
The annual CU vs. CSU football game returns to Invesco Field starting in 2010 and the game will stay there for a decade, the Metro Denver Sports Commission and officials from Colorado State University and the University of Colorado announced Monday.
Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper was the opening speaker at the rivalry’s annual pre-game luncheon that featured additional speakers: CSU athletic director Paul Kowalczyk and CU athletic director Mike Bohn, as well as both school’ head coaches, Dan Hawkins from CU and CSU’s Steve Fairchild.
“I am so excited to have this game back in Denver,” Hickenlooper said.
It will be the 82nd meeting between the two schools ,and the Sunday, Sept. 4, 2010, game will count as a Colorado State University home game.
“The energy and excitement inside the stadium here [at Invesco Field] is very unique and very intense — it’s just a great atmosphere,” Hawkins said.
Game tickets will be split on a 55 percent basis to CU and 45 percent to CSU, with the same revenue split from club seats and suites for Invesco events from their owners who purchase the option to attend the CU-CSU game.
“The economic benefits of playing the game in Denver cannot be understated, and if we expect to compete on the national stage and continue to grow our programs, it will take the kind of revenue this game generates,” Kowalczyk said.
The University of Colorado leads the in-state series all-time 59-19-2, and last year CU won 38-17 CU at Invesco Field in front of 69,619 fans.
“Every sports bar, every restaurant with a TV and every college football fan with an itch for the start of the season will be tuned in watching us go head to head,” Fairchild said.
Next year’s game will be moved from Fort Collins to Invesco Field, where reportedly both schools can generate more than $1 million in revenue.
The game will be played on Labor Day weekend eight times, except in 2011 and 2015 when CU will open the season on the road at Hawaii.
Distributed by Colorado Capitol Reporters
