Tobacco Bowl: Adding New Tradition to Old Rivalry

Source from:  By Naeem McFadden Marion Star & Mullins Enterprise Reporter October 20, 200 10/21/2008

Marion and Mullins varsity football coaches Bryan Carfley and Ron Lanham pose beside the new Tobbacco Bowl trophy sponsored by Anderson Brothers Bank. The winner of the Oct. 31 rivalry game will take possession of the trophy until next season's return bout. Bragging rights aren't the only thing on the line in this year's county rivalry game between Marion and Mullins. This past Thursday, organizers inside the Anderson Brothers Bank Conference Center unveiled a new tradition and a gleaming football trophy, presenting the Tobacco Bowl. Starting on Oct. 31, after the big game, the winning team will get to showcase a trophy for the year, until the following year's game. Sponsored by Anderson Brothers Bank, Bowl organizers Perry Grice, Neal Fairbanks, Richard Marsh and Rodney Berry said they are all excited about the opportunity and excitement surrounding the game's revamped history. Byron Beck, Craig Tucker and Ron Elliott were also on hand for the presentation. Tucker, a former Mullins High School football player, said it's nice to have something to play for-an opportunity his teammates would've loved to have had. The final scores of the rivalry game will be engraved on one of the trophy's 15 plaques, good for the next 60 years, Grice said. Marion Swamp Foxes Head Coach Bryan Carfley and Mullins Auctioneer Head Coach Ron Lanham attended the press conference and will be the first to pace the sidelines in the inaugural Tobacco Bowl game. "This is a great idea. I think it will add a little bit of extra fuel and fire when it comes game week," Carfley said. Lanham said the game follows in the great tradition of great football, giving the kids something to have pride in and showing good sportsmanship. According to a press release, organizers said they want to achieve several goals with the bowl, including creating more excitement for players, student body and fans. Implementing creative fund raising opportunities like the "Mayor's Cup" to coincide with next year's game is another plan. The Tobacco Bowl name is an acknowledgment and preservation of the county's heritage and the industry that supported families, organizers said. "We think it's going to be a tradition we'll tell our grandchildren about," Berry said. "The annual clash between the Mullins and Marion football teams is a featured sports event in this area, and its long and storied history is full of significant memories," Grice said. "We're confident that its designation as the ABB Tobacco Bowl will further elevate this game, and we believe that this trophy will be treasured by the students, faculty and alumni of both schools," he added. "I think it gets the student body involved more, and the community as well, when the fundraising part kicks off for next year," Carfley said. "You're taking a rivalry that's been around long before we were … It's our responsibility to make sure the kids take it with the pride and humility that it should be-two football teams going out and respecting each other as opponents, showing good sportsmanship and just going out and playing for something other than themselves," Lanham said. "I believe this presentation was well received and the communities, once they learn of it, will be real excited about it," Grice said. Enditem