MLS Real Salt Lake

Rio Tinto Stadium to Host Inaugural XFINITY High School Football Challenge

Published on August 17, 2011 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
Real Salt Lake News Release


SANDY, Utah - Comcast and Rio Tinto Stadium are proud to announce the inaugural edition of the XFINITY® High School Football Challenge, a doubleheader of gridiron action at Rio Tinto Stadium featuring Sandy-based teams playing host to high-caliber, out-of-state competition. The first-ever edition of the XFINITY High School Football Challenge will take place Saturday, Sept. 24, 2011, with the 1:00 p.m. MT matinee featuring Jordan High School squaring off against Lawrenceville, N.J.-based Notre Dame High School, followed by a 7:00 p.m. MT nightcap between Alta High School and William Howard Taft High School from Los Angeles.

"We are all very excited to host what should be a great day of football here at Rio Tinto Stadium," said venue President Bill Manning, who also oversees Real Salt Lake of Major League Soccer and ESPN 700 Sports Radio in Salt Lake City. "I personally am very excited to see how the Utah teams match up with two powerful High Schools from the East & West Coasts. My staff and I have talked about putting together an event like this for some time now, and we look to build off this inaugural event to make it one of the premier football game days in Utah year-in and year-out. I am really looking forward to September 24."

"Comcast is proud to help bring these talented high school teams together to compete," said Comcast Regional Vice President Rodrigo Lopez. "The XFINITY High School Football Challenge is another example of our continuing commitment to the communities we serve, and will be a showcase of what is great about high school football in Utah as we compete with teams from across the country."

Tickets for the XFINITY High School Football Challenge are now on sale, with advance and day-of-event pricing as follows:

Advance Prices Day-of-Event Prices

Single-game Student General Seating - $5 Single-game Student General Seating - $6

Single-game Adult General Seating - $10 Single-game Adult General Seating - $12

Single-game Club Seat Sections - $15 Single-game Club Seat Sections - $20

Two-game Student "Super Pass" - $8 Two-game Student "Super Pass" - $10

Two-game Adult "Super Pass" - $15 Two-game Adult "Super Pass" - $20

Tickets can be purchased online on www.RioTintoStadium.com or at the Rio Tinto Stadium Box Office, open weekdays from 10:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. MT.

In addition, parking for the doubleheader will be available on-site at Rio Tinto Stadium in the facility's West, South and North lots for $5. Both contests will be televised locally over Comcast cable systems, while football fanatics worldwide can listen to both games live on ESPN 700 and ESPN700Sports.com.

"We appreciate the invite from Rio Tinto Stadium to participate in what will be a great event not only for our players, but for our student body and everyone associated with Jordan High School. Giving them the opportunity to be in a tremendous atmosphere and to experience something more than just a regular home game is certainly something special," said Jordan High School Athletic Director Marc Hunter. "Five or six years ago we had to travel to Ohio and Georgia to get games against quality, high-profile squads like Notre Dame, but now that we've had some success and built a bit of a name for ourselves it will be outstanding for our school and community to host games like this. Getting those teams to Sandy should mark a significant change to the high school football landscape in Utah."

Already serving as Utah's home for soccer at numerous levels, Rio Tinto Stadium has earned the reputation as one of the country's finest multi-purpose facilities, with the building having hosted multiple football and rugby contests, snocross and monster truck races and several high-profile concerts since opening its doors to the public in October 2008. The building is no stranger to fans of gridiron football, having served as the home of the National Junior College Athletic Association's annual Zions Bank Top of Mountains Bowl since 2008. In addition, Rio Tinto Stadium hosted its first-ever high school football game last August, featuring the local rivalry match-up between Hillcrest and Murray High Schools.

"We are very excited to play at Rio Tinto Stadium against one of the premier teams from California," said Alta High School Football Head Coach Robert Stephens. "We've never played there, and I know our kids are excited not only about the venue but also to face our second California team of the season. This is a big-time game in a big-time stadium, and we hope for a big crowd and expect excitement and enthusiasm from players, fans and coaches. This type of out-of-state competition puts Utah on the map on a national level, which is obviously a great thing for programs across the state of Utah."

The inaugural XFINITY High School Football Challenge will feature a full weekend of events, as Notre Dame and Taft will arrive in Sandy on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively. Following practices for the two out-of-market teams on Friday afternoon, all four squads will gather that evening to take part in a banquet at Rio Tinto Stadium before resting up for Saturday's doubleheader. Representatives from all four teams will be made available via a media conference call in the weeks leading up to the event, with final details for the call to be released later this month.

"We were thrilled to be invited, as this game gives our football team tremendous exposure," said Notre Dame High School Athletic Director Richard Roche. "The trip to Utah will be a great experience for the kids; thanks so much to the folks at Rio Tinto Stadium for providing the experience of a lifetime. We will play hard and play well, and are excited to face stiff competition, which is good for the kids, who will receive a great football experience and a great life experience. The Stadium looks incredible online; we are excited about the opportunity to play in a 20,000-seat venue will be an absolute thrill.

Aside from being an entertaining event for spectators, the XFINITY High School Football Challenge will offer students from the four schools the opportunity to showcase their talents in front of scouts from across the collegiate football landscape. Rio Tinto Stadium's convenient location in the Salt Lake valley will allow easy access for scouts from some of the NCAA's elite conferences to attend this inaugural event, including the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision's PAC-12, Mountain West Conference (MWC) and Western Athletic Conference (WAC).

"We are honored and excited at the same time for this fantastic opportunity to travel out of state," said Los Angeles Taft High School Head Coach Chris Rizzo. "We are focused on both playing the best and being the best. That is something we have done locally and now we get a chance to do that in Utah. We have looked at venue online and Rio Tinto Stadium is by far the nicest stadium we will play in. We know that there is good community support for prep football in Utah, so we imagine that there will be a great crowd on hand. We hope to represent the State of California and the City of Los Angeles very well; playing there is a big opportunity."

About the Competing Schools:

Alta High School

Located in Sandy, Utah, Alta High School plays an important role in the education of students in the communities of Sandy and Draper. With approximately 2,500 students enrolled in grades 10-12, Alta is the second-largest High School in the state of Utah. After a rare down season in 2010, the Alta football program hired former assistant Bob Stephens to the head coaching position last December. The former Brigham Young University center (1987-90) will lead one of Utah's most storied high school football programs, the school winning four state championships in the Beehive State's largest division, including 4A titles in 1983 and 1988 and, more recently, back-to-back 5A championships in 2007 & 2008, which were preceded by a runner-up finish in 2006. Last year, Alta's 4-2 record in Region 4 play allowed the squad to qualify for the playoffs despite an overall 4-6 regular season record, the Hawks bowing out in the first round of the 5A playoffs after a 21-14 defeat to Northridge.

Jordan High School

Located less than a mile down State Street from Rio Tinto Stadium, Jordan High School enrolls nearly 2,000 students yearly and is one of the major contributing schools in the Canyons School District in Sandy, Utah. The Beetdiggers have a proud tradition of football, having won 11 state championships between 1931 and 1994, and they seek to add to that tradition under head coach Eric Kjar (Pronounced "care"), who was appointed during the 2009 offseason. After playing football at Wayne State in Nebraska, Kjar came to Utah and served as a member of the Jordan football coaching staff for six years before being named its head coach. During the 2010 season Kjar led the Beetdiggers to a 9-4 overall record (3-3 in 5A's Region 4), their high-octane offense carrying Jordan all the way to the 5A Semifinals, where it lost to eventual champion Bingham.

William Howard Taft High School (Calif.)

Named in honor of the 27th President of the United States, William Howard Taft High School is located in the northwest Los Angeles community of Woodland Hills and boasts nearly 3,000 students, making it one of the largest public high schools in California. Among the many decorations that the Taft football program has won is the 1998 L.A. City Section Championship, one of six Finals appearances for the school in the city-wide tournament. The school boasts countless players who appeared on NCAA Division I rosters and was also home to six players who would later go on to play in the NFL, including famed Tennessee Titans/Houston Oilers coach Jeff Fisher and current professional performers Steve Smith (Philadelphia Eagles) and Justin Tyron (Indianapolis Colts). After having been an assistant at his alma mater since 2002, Chris Rizzo took over the head coaching reins this past February and will look to lead his Toreadores back to the upper echelon of teams in the football hotbed of Los Angeles.

Notre Dame High School (N.J.)

Located in Lawrenceville, N.J., Notre Dame High School is a Roman Catholic college preparatory school, with grades 9-12 totaling a student body of nearly 1,300 students. The Irish have a proud history in football and have found more success in recent years, having gone an undefeated 9-0 in regular season play in 2009 and 8-1 last season before losing in the first round of New Jersey's Non-Public Division Group 4 Playoffs. Legendary head coach Charles "Chappy" Moore will lead the Irish for an astonishing 30th season in 2011, the New Jersey Football Coaches Hall of Famer looking to add to his nearly 250 wins with the Irish during two stints, the first dating back from 1976-1992 and the second, current run beginning in 1999.

Check out the Real Salt Lake Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Major League Soccer Stories from August 17, 2011


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central