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C Spire Pigskins in the Park Presented by BancorpSouth Will Benefit Downtown Tupelo Main Street Association

2015-09-14

Ole Miss and Mississippi State SEC football road games will be broadcast live on a giant-sized jumbotron in front of Tupelo City Hall in Fairpark on Oct. 3

Tupelo, Miss. (September 14, 2015) – Ole Miss and Mississippi State, considered among the nation’s top college football teams, will be going on the road to play important SEC league games next month against Florida and Texas A&M.

Fans in North Mississippi who don’t make the road trip with the teams will still be able to watch the televised games on a giant-sized jumbotron screen and tailgate with other fans as part of the “C Spire Pigskins in the Park presented by BancorpSouth” event on Saturday, Oct. 3 in front of Tupelo City Hall in Fairpark. The annual event is the official watch party for both Ole Miss and Mississippi State alumni in North Mississippi.

The live broadcast of the Ole Miss Rebels road game in Gainesville against the Florida Gators and the Mississippi State Bulldogs’ trip to College Station to play the Texas A&M Aggies is title sponsored by C Spire and presented by BancorpSouth in partnership with the City of Tupelo, the Tupelo Quality of Life Committee, Mitchell Distributing, Coca-Cola and Miss 98. Downtown Tupelo Main Street Association (DTMSA) is the organizer of the event and will receive the sponsorship proceeds.

The games will be shown on a giant 22 foot by 33 foot jumbotron screen, which is elevated 16 feet from the ground bringing the total height to more than six stories with high-resolution HD images for both daylight and night-time viewing. Once game times are announced by the schools, DTMSA will announce tailgate set-up times. The event is free and open to the public.

“This is shaping up to be the ultimate tailgate party in North Mississippi,” said Jim Richmond, vice president of Corporate Communications for C Spire. “We know how passionate fans are about college football and their schools. So whether you’re screaming Hotty Toddy or ringing your cowbell in Fairpark, we’re proud to be a part of making this quality-of-life event possible.”

"BancorpSouth is proud to be the presenting sponsor of Pigskins in the Park," said Mark Burleson, president of BancorpSouth's Northeast Mississippi Division. "We are pleased to join with C Spire, Tupelo Main Street Association, City of Tupelo and the other corporate sponsors in helping make this community-wide event possible."

C Spire Pigskins in the Park presented by BancorpSouth activities will include:

  • SuperTalk Mississippi’s “Head to Head” statewide sports talk radio show with Matt Wyatt and Richard Cross will be broadcast live from the C Spire retail location on West Main in Tupelo on Wednesday, September 30, from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.
  • C Spire and BancorpSouth will host a special VIP tent for business customers. Entry is by invitation only and will include complimentary refreshments, giveaways and a register to win contest for an iPad Mini. The tent will open 30 minutes before each game’s kickoff.
  • C Spire is also sponsoring a “Show Your True Colors” tailgate contest for the most elaborate tent décor with costumes for Ole Miss and Mississippi State fans. The top winner for each university will receive an iPad Mini. Winners will be announced from the stage during halftime for each game.
  • Post pictures to social media from C Spire’s photo booth where there will be fun photo props.

Food and beverages will be available for purchase from various downtown Tupelo food vendors and businesses during the games. No alcoholic beverages other than those sold on site will be allowed at the event. Beer will be sold to individuals 21 and older. Fans are allowed to bring lawn chairs, tents and tailgating items, but personal grills and coolers are discouraged.

For more details, visit www.tupelomainstreet.com or \www.cspire.com/pigskins.

About C Spire
C Spire is a diversified telecommunications and technology services company that provides world-class, customer-inspired wireless communications, 1 Gigabit consumer Internet access as well as a full suite of dedicated Internet, wireless, IP Voice, data and cloud services for businesses. This news release and other announcements are available at www.cspire.com/news. For more information about C Spire, visit www.cspire.com or follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/cspire or Twitter at www.twitter.com/cspire.

About BancorpSouth
BancorpSouth, Inc. is a financial holding company headquartered in Tupelo,Mississippi, with $13.6 billion in assets. BancorpSouth Bank, a wholly-owned subsidiary of BancorpSouth, Inc., operates 287 commercial banking, mortgage, and insurance locations in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee and Texas, including an insurance location in Illinois. “Like” us on Facebook; follow us on Twitter@MyBXS; or connect with us through LinkedIn.

About Downtown Tupelo Main Street Association
The Downtown Tupelo Main Street Association (DTMSA) is a membership-based organization focused on sustaining and enhancing the downtown experience. For more details, contact DTMSA at 662.841.6598 or go to www.tupelomainstreet.com.