The 2011 Global Kilimanjaro Bowl was the first

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

game played on the continent of

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

. The game at the

Sheikh Amri Abeid Memorial Stadium Sheikh Amri Abeid Memorial Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Kaloleni ward of Arusha, Tanzania. It is currently used mostly for football matches and serves as the home venue for Arusha FC. The stadium was the host of the 2011 Kilimanjar ...

Arusha Arusha City is a Tanzanian city and the regional capital of the Arusha Region, with a population of 416,442 plus 323,198 in the surrounding Arusha District Council (2012 census). Located below Mount Meru on the eastern edge of the eastern bran ...

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...

was played in May 21, 2011, due to the seasonal difference in Africa, featuring Drake against Mexican All-Star team CONADEIP. It marked the first

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of College athletics, intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major ...

bowl game In North America, a bowl game is one of a number of post-season college football games that are primarily played by teams belonging to the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). For most of its history, the Division I Bowl Subdivis ...

versus a Mexican opponent since the 1945 Sun Bowl, and the first to be played after the BCS Championship Game. The title sponsor of the game was Global Football, along with counterpart sponsors Iowa Resource for International Service (IRIS), IRIS Youth Exchange & Study Program alumni from Tanzania, Tanapa Partners and

Younger Optics Younger or Youngers may refer to: People * Younger (surname) * List of people known as the Elder or the Younger Arts and entertainment * ''Younger'', an American novel by Pamela Redmond Satran ** Younger (TV series), ''Younger'' (TV series), an ...

. While in Africa, the teams ran youth camps and worked on orphanage service projects. They also climbed

Mount Kilimanjaro Mount Kilimanjaro () is a dormant volcano in Tanzania. It has three volcanic cones: Kibo, Mawenzi, and Shira. It is the highest mountain in Africa and the highest free-standing mountain above sea level in the world: above sea level and ab ...

before returning to

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

. In all, the trip lasted fifteen days.

Bowl game itinerary

Game recap

American Football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

crossed a new international border when the Drake Bulldogs and CONADEIP Stars from Mexico met on the gridiron painted for the first time on

n soil in

. Fans lined up outside

for at least three hours before kickoff, awaiting an opportunity to see America's version of football played for the first time in Africa. Drake opened with a steady drive that started at their own 20-yard mark, but the drive stalled when quarterback Mike Piatkowski was intercepted in the corner of the end zone by CONADEIP cornerback Carlos Garcia. The Bulldogs turned the ball over on downs (fourth and inches on the CONADEIP goal line) during the next drive and they took the initial lead their third offensive possession courtesy of a Billy Janssen 27-yard field goal. Injury would sock Drake’s quarterbacking core as Piatkowski was injured in the first quarter and his replacement Tyler Castro (the Bulldogs regular back-up Cody Seeger was unavailable for action) left due to an injury later in the second quarter. Both teams went scoreless in the second and third quarter. Two promising CONADEIP drives ended frustratingly with failed field goal attempts. CONADEIP also fumbled inside the Drake 10-yard line. Freshman quarterback Nick Ens took his first snaps under center for the Bulldogs due to the injuries of Piatkowski and Castro. Drake would struggle to find an offensive rhythm. A CONADEIP Dewin Garcia 49-yard pass to Ivan Piña as time expired in the third quarter delighted the capacity crowd, setting up an action filled fourth quarter. Jose Reyes would score the first touchdown of the game on a 5-yards rush to give the Stars a 7-3 lead. Drake would fight back on their ensuing offensive possession. Ens settled into a grove with the Drake offense and sent an 18-yard pass over the middle to wide receiver Joey Orlando on third and long. The gain kept the drive alive leading to the answer touchdown by the Bulldogs, an Ens to Orlando 11-yard pass completed in the corner of the end zone. Having seen Drake regain the lead at 10-7, the CONADEIP offense drove down the field to the Bulldogs 2-yard line, capped by Reyes 37-yard run (he was tripped only two yards short of the end zone). The Stars fumbled on the next possession due to a failed snap from center and the Bulldog defense recovered the loose football. Drake would take advantage of the opportunity, driving 98-yards, resulting in a Patrick Cashmore 2-yard rushing touchdown. The teams would trade possessions from that point. With just over two minutes remaining in the game, Bulldog Matt Buckley intercepted a pass from Garcia to seal the 17-7 Drake victory. The game was an exhibition and was not included on Drake's record. CONADEIP finished their tour with a 1-2 record. The All-Star team selected from

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

’s top college players had played two games in Mexico in order to prepare for the bowl. The game was watched by the American Ambassador to Tanzania Alfonso Lenhardt, the nation’s Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Lazaro Nayland, and a procession of dignitaries. Maasai tribesmen entertained the crowd where cheerleaders would have danced in an American stadium.

Scoring summary

First Quarter Drake- Billy Janssen 27 Yard Field Goal Second Quarter None Third Quarter None Fourth Quarter CONADEIP - Jose Reyes 5-Yard Run (Erick Gomez Vargas Kick) Drake - Nick Ens 11-Yard Pass To Joey Orlando (Billy Janssen Kick) Drake - Patrick Cashmore 2-Yard Run (Billy Janssen Kick)

References

{{Historic college football games Kilimanjaro Bowl Drake Bulldogs football bowl games American football in Mexico 2011 in Tanzanian sport American football in Africa Student sport in Mexico

Bowl game itinerary

Game recap

Scoring summary

See also

References