BIRMINGHAM, AL – The Monday Morning Quarterback Club Team Dinner will be held at the Sheraton Birmingham Ballroom on Tuesday, Dec. 18 at 6:30 p.m. Former Penn State quarterback and current ESPN play-by-play commentator Todd Blackledge will be keynote speaker, and former University of Alabama and NFL quarterback Jeff Rutledge will be honored as the 2018 Golden Flake Legend of Birmingham.
The 2018 Jared Birmingham Bowl will feature the University of Memphis Tigers and the Wake Forest University Demon Deacons on Saturday, Dec. 22, at 11 a.m. at historic Legion Field, on ESPN. The Tigers and Demon Deacons football teams will attend the dinner. During the dinner, there will be a Q&A with the head coaches. Individual tickets are available for $75, and tables are available for $750. Tickets can be reserved by contacting the Monday Morning Quarterback Club office at 205-251-8423 or by emailing [email protected].
Todd Blackledge has been a staple of ESPN’s college football coverage since returning to ESPN and ABC in 2006, calling primetime games regularly during the season. Dating back to 2006, Blackledge has called 10 national championships on ESPN Radio. He joined the broadcasting ranks following his playing career, working for a variety of outlets before joining ABC and later CBS. He re-joined ESPN and ABC for the 2006 season, as an established, astute voice calling the sport’s marquee games. In total, Blackledge is now in the midst of his 28th season behind a mic.
As a player at Penn State, Blackledge excelled on and off the field. A three-year starter for the Nittany Lions, he lead his squad to a 29-4 record and the 1982 national championship while also winning the Davey O’Brien Award as the nation’s most outstanding QB in the process. Blackledge was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs seventh overall in the 1983 NFL Draft, beginning a seven-year NFL career in which time, he threw for more than 5,200 yards and 29 touchdowns.
The Jared Birmingham Bowl and Golden Flake annually recognize current or former Birmingham residents who distinguished themselves throughout their athletic career as the Golden Flake Legend of Birmingham. Former honorees include Pat Sullivan (2006), Johnny Musso (2007), Mike Kolen (2008), Bobby Humphrey (2009), Bobby Bowden (2010), Al Del Greco (2011), Jack Crowe (2012), Tony Nathan (2013), Mike Fuller (2014), Major Ogilvie (2015), Joe Cribbs (2016), and Cornelius Bennett (2017).
The 2018 Golden Flake Legend, Jeff Rutledge, was born and raised in Birmingham. A member of the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame, Rutledge earned back-to-back state titles at Banks High School where he was a member of the 1974 High School All-American team. After graduation, he played for the University of Alabama where he was a member of three SEC Championship teams under Coach Paul “Bear” Bryant. He was the starting quarterback, leading Alabama to two Sugar Bowl appearances finishing with a #2 National ranking in 1977 and winning the National Championship in 1978. Rutledge earned All-SEC honors in 1978 and 1979.
Drafted in 1979, he played 14 seasons for three different NFL teams, including the Los Angeles Rams, New York Giants, and Washington Redskins. During his NFL career, he won two Super Bowls; one each with the Giants and Redskins.
Tickets for the 13th annual Jared Birmingham Bowl are on sale now. Ticket pricing is $50 for East and West reserved sideline seating and $30 for general admission corner seats. For information on corporate packages and branding opportunities, contact Mark Meadows at [email protected] or 205-733- 3776, extension 102.
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ESPN Events, a division of ESPN, owns and operates a portfolio of collegiate sporting events nationwide. In the 2025-26 academic year, the 35-event schedule includes three early-season college football kickoff games, 17 college bowl games, 10 college basketball events, two college volleyball events, the premiere regular season college softball and gymnastics events, as well as the Band of the Year National Championship. Collectively, these events account for over 400 hours of live programming on ESPN platforms, reaching 60 million viewers and attracting more than 650,000 annual attendees. Each year, the portfolio of events features more than 20 Division I conferences and hosts over 4,000 participating student-athletes. With satellite offices in more than 10 cities across the country, ESPN Events builds relationships with conferences, schools and local communities, as well as providing unique experiences for teams and fans.
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