Annual CSU Ag Day Barbecue Showcases Colorado Agriculture, Raises Money for Scholarships

Festivities for this Saturday’s home football opener for the Colorado State University Rams will begin long before kick-off. The 29th annual CSU Ag Day barbecue, which showcases Colorado agricultural products while raising money for scholarships, will be served from 10:30 a.m.-1 p.m. in the south parking lot of Hughes Stadium on Overland Trail between Drake and Prospect roads.

Tickets sold to the pregame barbecue will help raise funds for scholarships awarded to CSU College of Agricultural Sciences students. Twelve $2,000 scholarships were awarded for the 2010-2011 school year.

Tickets sales have been brisk and organizers expect a sell-out. Ag Day tickets are $16.50 if purchased in advance or $20 the day of the event. A limited number of combination football and barbecue tickets can be purchased online or in person. Online ordering information is at www.csuagday.com. The Ag Day office, located on CSU’s campus in Room 127A Shepardson Building, will continue to sell tickets through Friday, Sept. 24.

The barbecue menu includes Colorado-grown beef, pork, lamb, beans, dairy products, produce, watermelon, apples and other foods. Barbecue attendees can wash down meals with Pepsi products and Colorado-brewed beer, with all beer sales going directly to the scholarship fund. Colorado-grown flowers also will be handed out to attendees.

Ag Day activities include live music from Kenny Cordova and the Olde Rock Band, agricultural displays, a drawing for two round-trip tickets on Frontier Airlines, a performance from the CSU marching band and visits from CSU President Tony Frank and Colorado Commissioner of Agriculture John Stulp.

Ag Day is a celebration of the university’s rich agricultural tradition and shows the importance of the agriculture industry in the state. Agriculture is the second-largest industry in Colorado, providing more than 86,000 jobs and bringing in more than $12 billion to the state’s economy.

Ag Day 2010 is hosted by Colorado commodity groups, agricultural organizations and associations, CSU’s College of Agricultural Sciences and the university’s Department of Intercollegiate Athletics.

At 2 p.m., the CSU Rams will take on the University of Idaho Vandals at Sonny Lubick Field in the home opener of the 2010 football season. The Rams will wear custom orange throwback jerseys to honor the original school colors of pumpkin and alfalfa.

For more information, visit www.csuagday.com or call (970) 491-6497.

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