MONROE, LA – For those who remember taking part in the football game day tailgating cooking competition between Arkansas and Louisiana known as the “Rice Bowl,” mark your calendars because: it’s back! Plan to be on the campus of the University of Louisiana Monroe (ULM) on September 27 when the ULM Warhawks host the Arkansas State University (ASU) Red Wolves in Malone Stadium in a Sun Belt Conference showdown that promises to be delicious, no matter which team wins.
The beginnings of this tradition started when a group of rice growers from southwest Louisiana hosted fellow growers from Arkansas at a matchup between then conference rivals McNeese State and ASU. The festivities were dubbed the “Rice Bowl” amongst those who gathered each year, and while the cooking competition ended with the realignment of college conferences, the tradition was not forgotten.
With new teams making up the Sun Belt Conference, another opportunity to celebrate the two rice growing regions has returned, and this year the new Rice Bowl game will be played the last weekend of National Rice Month.
“Special thanks to the college presidents, Dr. Carrie Castille at ULM and Dr. Brendan Kelly at ASU, for resurrecting this rice rivalry that recognizes the important role of the rice industry related to both institutions and their roots in the local rice industry,” said USA Rice’s Josh Hankins who is helping coordinate the event.
Details on the schedule of Rice Bowl activities are still in the works but make plans now to spend Saturday, September 27, celebrating National Rice Month and supporting ULM and ASU as they battle to be crowned the next grid iron “Rice Bowl Champion.”