------A HOUSTON SALUTE – OFFICIAL OPENING
      CEREMONY FOR SUPER BOWL XXXVIII

Emmy Award winner and longtime CBS Sports Anchor Jim Nantz had a vision and a dream when Houston was awarded the 32nd NFL franchise (the Houston Texans) in October of 1999. Along with the franchise, owner Bob McNair had negotiated for Houston to host Super Bowl XXXVIII in 2004.

Jim Nantz was a transplanted Houstonian having moved to Houston as a teenager. Nantz attended the University of Houston on a partial golf scholarship and got his start in broadcasting in the Bayou City. Houston is also home to his mother and father, sister, brother-in-law, nephew and countless friends.

Nantz was excited that his network would broadcast the Super Bowl from his former hometown but he was determined to do something special aside from his duties as anchor of CBS’s coverage of the big game which would beam to well over 150 million people.

Nantz had anchored Olympics on CBS and he thought that the one thing that the Super Bowl was missing was an opening ceremony.

Nantz called his good friend and fellow Houstonian, the 41st President of the United States and asked if he would be a part of his dream. President George Bush agreed to join Nantz as Honorary Chairman and "41" dubbed it, A Houston Salute.

Nantz contacted Houston Texans owner Bob McNair who offered up his full support. After some discussions between Nantz and Commissioner Tagliabue, A Houston Salute and Nantz’s dream "had aligned with the stars" and began to become a reality.

Nantz also contacted his friend Yanni and the international performing and recording star offered his services and his magnificent 27-piece orchestra for free.

Nantz conceived an elaborate and moving opening ceremony for Houston’s first Super Bowl in 30-years. Intertwined with Yanni’s incredible music would be emotional video tributes as Houston would receive the NFL by presenting its rich sports heritage of superstar athletes as Ambassadors to welcome the NFL and the Super Bowl to Houston.

The Ambassadors or Houston Sports Legends were to take part in a football relay of sorts as the actual ball that would kick-off Super Bowl XXXVIII passed through the hands of the greatest sports legends in Houston’s history. From Earl Campbell to Bum Phillips to Mike Munchak to Bruce Matthews to Andre Ware to Hakeem Olajuwon to Clyde Drexler to Guy Lewis to Elvin Hayes to Moses Malone to Carl Lewis to Leroy Burrell to Nolan Ryan to Roger Clemens to Andy Pettitte to Jeff Bagwell to Mary Lou Retton to George Foreman to Fred Couples to AJ Foyt to President Bush and finally to Commissioner Tagliabue.

However, as Nantz’s dream began to become a reality it also began to morph into a monumental event that was bigger than anyone could have imagined. Nantz needed help and he needed help badly.

Nantz turned to a first class team of experienced professionals and among that team was longtime friend Chris Begala of BEGALA CONSULTING. Nantz asked Begala to manage all media related activities as well as produce the video tributes for the event.

RESULT?

A Houston Salute was an overwhelming success and drew rave reviews from the former President, the NFL Commissioner, NFL Head Coaches, local & national media, sports legends and many more.

BEGALA CONSULTING managed all media activity and conceived the media strategy which Jim Nantz said helped make the event "a magical evening and one of the most memorable nights in the history of the city of Houston."

BEGALA CONSULTING oversaw a small army of nearly 500 media which had assembled from all over the world as 23 television trucks and countless radio stations broadcasted live. Hundreds of print journalists and still photographers reported on the event from the moment guests arrived and strode upon the glamorous red carpet to the emotional and ceremonial ending.

The media coverage was incredible as the event was so successful that it is being mentioned as one of the most significant events in Houston’s history.

The NFL Network negotiated successfully for the rights to A Houston Salute and broadcast the event to a national audience on the eve of Super Bowl XXXVIII.

President Bush commented that "this was indeed a special night for Houston and one that we’ll always remember."

NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue was still praising A Houston Salute – Official Opening Ceremony for Super Bowl XXXVIII two days after the event. "Everywhere I’ve gone; people are still talking about Monday night (A Houston Salute)." Tagliabue added, "The night was made even more special because President Bush took part in that incredible event that people are going to remember for a long, long time."

Houstonian and baseball legend Roger Clemens commented, "This is so special. I’m glad we’re celebrating Houston."

Another baseball legend, Nolan Ryan said he felt like a fan. "You look at the list of names and it hits you how special it is. There are some special people here."

Former two-time Heavyweight Champion and Houston legend George Foreman said, "Its one thing to be considered a world champion, but to be honored in your hometown and take part in the opening ceremony of Super Bowl XXXVIII is really special."

------ HOUSTON’S SPORTS VENUES

Houston Texas is recognized as a national leader in relation to sports venues and facilities. The new sports facilities have been a major reason why Houston has experienced a revitalization of its entire downtown area. BEGALA CONSULTING has played a major role in Houston’s sports venue and downtown resurgence.

Where it all started…

Taking on the sports venue issue at its inception, Chris Begala of BEGALA CONSULTING served as Communications Director for the successful 1996 Stadium Referendum in Houston and Harris County. The Referendum asked that voters approve the usage of hotel and car rental taxes for the construction of a baseball stadium and a football/rodeo stadium.

The referendum passed but the process was not over. The State Legislature had to pass a bill creating a Sports Venue District. BEGALA CONSULTING assisted the Houston Legislative team as House Bill 92 was passed in May of 1997.

The Referendum was grandfathered and the Harris County-Houston Sports Authority came into being in September 1997.

Getting started…

BEGALA CONSULTING managed all political, media and public issues as well as assisting in many other areas for the Sports Authority (owner of the stadium) relating to the land acquisition, construction and financing of the baseball stadium. BEGALA CONSULTING was the lead liaison for the owner in all matters relating to the grand opening of the stadium.

BEGALA CONSULTING managed the same issues for the football/rodeo stadium in reference to the original guaranteed maximum construction contract, groundbreaking and the first few months of construction.

When factoring in architectural, construction and all related soft costs, the total price tag for both the baseball and football/rodeo stadium is over $750 million

Working closely with eventual team owner Bob McNair, the NFL, Harris County and the Rodeo, BEGALA CONSULTING also managed all political, media and public issues for the Sports Authority in the effort to acquire the 32nd NFL franchise for Houston.

RESULT?

Due to the success of Houston’s sports venues and the revitalization of downtown Houston, billions of dollars have been pumped into the local economy.

The baseball stadium (Minute Maid Park, then Enron Field) became the first sports stadium in the nation in recent memory to come in on-time and under budget when it opened its doors in March of 2000.

The Houston Astros set a franchise attendance record drawing over 3 million fans in 2000. Houston and Minute Maid Park landed Major League Baseball’s 2004 All-Star game, which focused the eyes of the world, once again, on Houston.

Bob McNair and Houston were awarded the 32nd NFL franchise on October 6, 1999 for a price tag of $800 million.

The Texans play to capacity crowds at Reliant Stadium and in January of 2004, Houston and Reliant Stadium hosted a wildly successful Super Bowl XXXVIII. The economic impact of Super Bowl XXXVIII on Houston was in excess of $275 million.

Thanks in large part to the new sports venues, in 2002 Houston was named one of the four (4) US host finalists for the 2012 Olympic Games. BEGALA CONSULTING devised the media & political strategy and launched Houston’s 2012 Olympic bid effort.

------ YANNI MEDIA MANAGEMENT AT
       SUPERBOWL XXXVIII

International performing and recording star, Yanni was the musical entertainment for A Houston Salute - Official Opening Ceremony for Super Bowl XXXVIII. Yanni had never been to a Super Bowl and after performing in A Houston Salute, he wanted to take part in some of the activities that surround the American sports tradition that is the Super Bowl.

However, he wanted to try to make the most of the opportunity and take advantage of the thousands of media members assembled in Houston for Super Bowl XXXVIII. Therefore, Yanni and Emmy Award winning former CBS Producer George Veras of Veras Communications Inc. hired BEGALA CONSULTING to represent them and manage all media related activities for Yanni at Super Bowl XXXVIII in Houston.

RESULT?

BEGALA CONSULTING was successful in procuring well over $2 million in media placement for Yanni during the week of Super Bowl XXXVIII.

467 national and worldwide media members had attended A Houston Salute. Under the management of BEGALA CONSULTING the media that attended A Houston Salute produced extensive coverage of the Opening Ceremony for Super Bowl XXXVIII. Yanni was featured in countless stories including CBS This Morning, ESPN, front page of the USA Today, TV reports around the nation and much more.

BEGALA CONSULTING was successful in placing Yanni on thirteen (13) radio shows and four (4) national radio shows during Super Bowl week. The radio markets that Yanni appeared on included New York, Boston, Chicago (twice), San Diego, Houston, Dallas, Miami, Palm Beach, Kansas City, Raleigh/Durham and many more, The radio media placement was strategic in that Yanni was preparing for an upcoming tour and the radio placement included over 80% of the cities on the tour. The radio placement that BEGALA CONSULTING procured resulted in a dramatic increase in Yanni concert ticket sales. In one day alone, Yanni was heard by more than 1 million radio listeners.

BEGALA CONSULTING was successful in placing Yanni on FOX Sports Southwest which is seen in 10 states including Texas, Florida, Louisiana, Oklahoma and more. BEGALA CONSULTING also placed Yanni on an additional nine (9) TV stations (not including A Houston Salute) during Super Bowl week. The additional TV markets included Boston, New York, Dallas, Houston, Providence and more.

BEGALA CONSULTING was also successful at placing Yanni prominently into the front page Cover Story of USA Today’s weekend paper which was sold around the world Friday, January 30, Saturday, January 31 and Sunday, February 1, 2004.

In conclusion, a PR Executive said in an email to Yanni’s producer, George Veras of Veras Communications, Inc. that "excluding Tom Brady and Jake Delhomme (the two starting quarterbacks in the Super Bowl), Yanni was the most publicized person at the Super Bowl."