Country duo Florida Georgia Line will fittingly headline the Tailgate event to kick off Florida-Georgia football game weekend.
The Oct. 31 festival held at the Shipyards in Jacksonville will take place two weeks after the band plans to release its second album.
“With their name and the play on words, it was a no-brainer (to decide on this),” said Billy Catlin, president of Orange Peel Entertainment, which partnered with Gator Bowl Sports and national promoter AEG Live to bring Florida Georgia Line to Tailgate.
Catlin said the event is inspired by large tailgate parties that he’s hosted since 1999 at his home. He said a similar event to Tailgate was hosted last year, which featured Corey Smith and Sister Hazel.
Along with Florida Georgia Line, other musical acts that will appear at Tailgate include Cole Swindell, The Cadillac Three, Clare Dunn, John King and Michael Ray.
The event will feature food trucks and tailgating activities. There will be a VIP section for those 21 and older.
“It’s more festival-esque,” Catlin said. “We’re going to have plenty of activities for everyone.”
Nolan Ehinger, a 20-year-old UF mechanical engineering junior, hasn’t missed a Florida-Georgia game yet.
“It’s always a lot of fun,” Ehinger said. “I think having Florida Georgia Line there will make it better.”
Ticket prices start at $23 and can be found on the Tailgate website, jaxtailgate.com.
[A version of this story ran on page 8 on 9/3/2014 under the headline "Florida Georgia Line to headline Tailgate"]
Tyler Hubbard, of Florida Georgia Line, performs at the O’Connell Center in 2013 as part of a Student Government Productions show.
