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EL SEGUNDO, Calif., Feb. 03, 2010 — Hollywood celebrities, along with current and former NFL stars, will storm Miami on Saturday, Feb. 6 for DIRECTV’s Fourth Annual Celebrity Beach Bowl, presented by SPIKE HD. This nationally televised flag football game has become the must-attend special event of Super Bowl weekend. The action will take place on Miami’s famed South Beach where an 8,000 seat stadium, complete with a regulation size sand-filled football field and concert stage, will be constructed especially for the event.

A veritable who’s who of the entertainment world, along with current and former NFL athletes, will face off in a no-holds-barred matchup in front of thousands of passionate fans. Immediately after the game and trophy presentation, the crowd will fill the beach for a concert featuring The All American Rejects, presented by Palladia HD.

Celebrities scheduled to prove their prowess on the field include Jennifer Lopez (Grammy® Award-winning performer and actress), Taylor Lautner (The Twilight Saga: New Moon, Valentine’s Day), Chace Crawford (Gossip Girl), Marisa Miller (Victoria’s Secret, Harley Davidson and Sports Illustrated model), Ed Westwick (Gossip Girl), Kellan Lutz (Twilight), Olivia Munn (Iron Man 2), Jessica Szohr (Gossip Girl), singer/songwriter Brian McKnight, comedians Marlon, Shawn and Keenan Wayans, Aaron Paul (Breaking Bad, Big Love), Michael Clark Duncan (The Green Mile), C.S. Lee and David Zayas (Dexter on Showtime), Dominic Fumusa (Nurse Jackie on Showtime), Niecy Nash (Clean House) and many, more.

Also scheduled to take part in the action is Super Bowl-winning New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning who will make a repeat appearance as coach of Team Palladia HD, and Mark Sanchez of the New York Jets, who will coach Team Spike HD. Hall of Famer Warren Moon and former NFL MVP Rich Gannon will captain their respective teams as quarterbacks. Other NFL greats scheduled to play in the game include Merrill Hoge, Daryl Johnston, Desmond Howard, La’Roi Glover, Eddie George and Mark Schlereth.

“It’s great to be back in Miami again, because this is where it all began,” said Jon Gieselman, senior vice president of advertising and public relations for DIRECTV. “We created the DIRECTV Celebrity Beach Bowl four years ago on a small patch of South Beach as a way to celebrate our dominance in the sport and give something back to the fans and our customers. It’s been amazing to see how both DIRECTV and this event have grown considerably in size and popularity since then, and this year promises to be bigger and better than ever.”

The event will be televised live on DIRECTV’s The 101 Network® starting at 1:30 p.m. EST, beginning with a pre-game show hosted by Dan Patrick and featuring an interview with Herschel Walker, the retired NFL great, who recently made his victorious MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) debut.. At 2:30 p.m. EST the game will begin when celebrities and athletes take the field. The DIRECTV Celebrity Beach Bowl will be played over two, 20-minute halves and the action will be called by Patrick, entertainment reporter Nancy O’Dell and sideline correspondent Andrew Siciliano (host of DIRECTV’s NFL SUNDAY TICKET™ Red Zone Channel). The DIRECTV Blimp will be flying overhead to add to the excitement.

SPIKE HD is the lead sponsor of the Fourth Annual DIRECTV Celebrity Beach Bowl, which is free and open to the public. The pre-game show will be presented by SHOWTIME® and the post-game concert is sponsored by Palladia HD. Official beverage sponsor Gatorade® will provide refreshments for players and official apparel sponsor Under Armour® will outfit players, coaches and team captains. Participating sponsors Playboy and ESPN will also be on hand for all the fun.

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