Ford Center will host the return of quality high school football across America during the inaugural Catholic Bowl over Labor Day weekend.
On September 4, Global Football will work with leaders representing four Catholic diocese that will be represented in the competition.
At 2 p.m., John Paul II High School of Plano will play St. Thomas High School from Houston.
The 7 p.m. matchup will feature Nolan Catholic High School of Fort Worth playing Little Rock Catholic High School of Arkansas.
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"We are excited to welcome not only my alma mater, but all of the teams for the Catholic Bowl at Ford Center," Stephen Jones, Chief Operating Officer of the Dallas Cowboys, said. "This event represents so many of the reasons our family built The Star and so many of the partnerships that have been created with it."
The weekend will begin with a concelebrated Mass hosting more than 800 attendees from the four schools on Friday, followed by a welcome dinner at Roughrider Stadium in Frisco.
The dinner, which will host visiting teams, families, and alumni, will feature Honorary Chairman Rocky Bleier as the keynote speaker.
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Bleier was a Notre Dame team captain and member of the 1966 National Championship team before being drafted to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
His football career was put on hold when he went to serve in the U.S. Army. He was severely injured while serving in Vietnam and told he would likely never walk again, let alone play professional football.
Bleier made a miraculous recovery, and after rejoining the Pittsburgh Steelers, he went on to play in the first four Steeler Super Bowl victories.
Schools are invited to bring their marching bands, drill teams, and cheerleaders, as well as ROTC members who will present the American flag for the dinner and the games.
Games will be played in Ford Center at The Star, the Dallas Cowboys World Headquarters and training facility in Frisco.
The Catholic Bowl is also meant as a special tribute to Captain Emil Kapaun, a priest who served in World War II and Korea as an Army Captain and chaplain.
After he died in Korea, Kapaun was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor and declared a Servant of God by Pope John Paul II, the first stage to canonization.
Tickets for the Catholic Bowl will be on sale in late summer 2021 at https://seatgeek.com/venues/ford-center-3/tickets.
