Out with Beef O'Brady's, in with Bitcoin.
There's a new bill-payer in St. Petersburg in the bowl sponsorship game, and it's digital currency network Bitcoin, on what is reportedly a three-year deal. Your obligatory ribbon-cutting on Twitter:
The birth of the College Football Playoff brought about some concern for the future viability of smaller bowls such as this one. Bitcoin's step-in is an example of why there probably isn't too much cause for alarm. As long as there is always a new sponsor ready to step in and put its logo on a bowl, that bowl won't be going away. There might be some changes to the landscape in terms of which bowls can get which teams, but sponsorship always has been and will continue to be the bottom line.
The game will be played Dec. 26 this year. East Carolina defeated Ohio 37-20 last year in what proved to be Beef O'Brady's last party.
Follow Chase Goodbread on Twitter *@ChaseGoodbread.*