LV Bowl, Mitsubishi strike deal

Mitsubishi Motors has agreed to be the title sponsor of the Las Vegas Bowl for the next two games, event officials said Thursday.

The bowl, scheduled for Dec. 15 at Sam Boyd Stadium, will be called the Mitsubishi Motors Las Vegas Bowl.

John Saccenti, the bowl’s executive director, said he was “incredibly excited” to have the automaker as a sponsor. “Mitsubishi is one of those legendary iconic brands, and for us to have them on board is great,” he said.

It’s the first time the automaker has been the major sponsor for a bowl game, and Saccenti said Mitsubishi wants to be involved in college football.

“I think it’s something that is a true sense of a partnership that we can all grow from together, and that’s all you could ask of a sponsor,” he said.

The bowl went without a sponsor last year after Geico was a presenting sponsor in 2016. Royal Purple owned naming rights in 2013-15.

Entering its 27th edition, the Las Vegas Bowl is in its penultimate year at Sam Boyd Stadium. The game moves to the new Raiders’ stadium in 2020.

A new format also could be in the works, with the bowl pitting teams from the Pac12 and SEC.

Saccenti did not specifically address a format change or which conferences might be involved but said he is working on new agreements for 2020, when the game moves on from Sam Boyd.

“The conversations are hot and heavy, and they’re moving fast,” he said. “All the deals for 2020 are going to be made in the next couple of weeks.”

In recent years the Las Vegas Bowl has matched the top pick in the Mountain West and the sixth choice from the Pac-12. The game will continue that format for the next two years before potentially making a switch.

RJ sports reporter Gilbert Manzano contributed to this report. Bill Bradley is sports editor of the Review-journal. He can be reached at bbradley@reviewjournal. com or 702-387-2909. Follow on Twitter at @billbradleylv.