The rumors that have gained intensity over the past 24 hours have been confirmed -- Boise State and Georgia will open next season in Atlanta.
And, as an added bonus, the Broncos will get another SEC school in an opener a couple of years down the road.
During a conference call held earlier Friday evening, Chick-fil-A officials confirmed that Georgia and Boise State will play in the Georgia Dome to open the 2011 season on Saturday, Sept. 3. Additionally, it was announced that Boise State and Ole Miss will open the 2014 season in the same game. The latter game will be played on ESPN the night of Thursday, Aug. 28.
“This is the type game that excites me, it will excite our players and I know it will excite our fans,” said Georgia coach Mark Richt. “We know it will put Georgia on a national stage in the season opener. It will make for a great off-season of preparation and anticipation to play a great team at a great facility in our home state.”
“We are excited to participate in the 2011 Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game in Atlanta against Boise State,” said UGA Director of Athletics Greg McGarity. “We are very appreciative of the efforts made by ESPN and the Chick-fil-A Bowl to create this opportunity, and we look forward to competing against one of the nation¹s elite teams. We know our fans will certainly enjoy this experience in the Georgia Dome to start the 2011 season.”
“It was a long time coming, but we wanted to make sure we got our 2011 match-up right. Today, we got it right,” said Gary Stokan, Chick-fil-A Bowl president and CEO. “With this game, we have two nationally significant programs, two teams we expect to be highly ranked and a very interesting game. It’s a win all the way around.”
Boise State was originally scheduled to open the 2011 season against Ole Miss; BYU will replace Boise State on Ole Miss’ 2011 schedule. Georgia was scheduled to play Louisville in a home-and-home series in 2011 and 2012. That series has been canceled, and UGA’s $600,000 buyout will be paid by Chick-fil-A/ESPN.
North Carolina will assume the Georgia series with Louisville, as facilitated by ESPN.
For the 2011 game, Georgia and Boise State will receive $1.7 and $1.4 million respectively; for the 2014 game, Boise State will receive $1.1 million, while Ole Miss will get $2 million.