Rita Lowman becomes Outback Bowl chair for 2021 game
TAMPA, Fla. - Rita Lowman is president of Pilot Bank. And now the Outback Bowl is banking on her business experience as the newly named chair of the board of directors.
"I'm so excited," Rita Lowman said. "It's going to be a great year. It's our 35th anniversary."
Lowman has served on the Outback Bowl's board since 2013. In that time, she has been witness to some of the best college football bowl game matchups the sport has to offer.
The 2020 edition of the Outback Bowl may have been the most competitive game of the season. The upstart Minnesota Golden Gophers beat the Auburn Tigers 31-24 in a game that was tied going into the fourth quarter.
"There were two great teams, and Minnesota had not been here before," recalled Lowman. "Every year it gets more and more exciting. And leading up to the game, it's partners becoming involved, the city becoming involved, and being able to give back to our communities. This is not just a January 1 event; this is all year that we work together."
Outback Bowl President and CEO Jim McVay and his team have made the Bay Area's New Year's Day Bowl game a destination. Not just for the teams, but for the fans, the bands, the schools.
“I love football," Lowman continued. "What I really love about the Outback Bowl is what Jim McVay and his team have done to make this a superior bowl game.
When we go for our visits to teams, they are always telling us, 'We want to come to Tampa for Outback.’"
Rita Lowman's first Outback Bowl as the acting chair is scheduled for 1 p.m. January 1, 2021. That schedule is, of course, subject to change as the COVID-19 pandemic has the beginning of this fall's college football season in flux.