Orchard Park, N.Y. – The Buffalo Bills announced today that the fourth annual M&T Bank Draft Day Challenge, where fans predict the Bills first selection of the NFL Draft, will begin Thursday, March 18, 2010.
In the M&T Bank Draft Day Challenge, fans who correctly guess which player the Bills select first in the NFL College Draft will be entered to win a special prize package that includes the following:
· An autographed jersey signed by the first draft pick
· A chance to meet and be photographed with the first pick
· A private tour of the Bills training facility
This year, there will be five winners randomly chosen from the pool of contestants who correctly pick the Bills first selection of the NFL Draft.
Through April 22nd, fans can visit the Bills Draft micro-site on buffalobills.com to make their prediction. The contest is open to legal residents, 13 and older, of the following states: Delaware, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington, D.C.
Last year's winner was Steve Ginsburg, Williamsville, NY, who correctly picked linebacker Aaron Maybin as the Bills first draft pick of 2010. Ginsburg was randomly chosen from a pool of contestants who correctly predicted the selection. Approximately 5,000 people participated in the M&T Bank Draft Day Challenge last year.
"Football season is a year-round season for avid Bills fans and M&T is always looking for new ways to build on our partnership with the team to offer more to fans, our customers and the community," said M&T Bank Chief Marketing Officer Peter J. Eliopoulos.
M&T Bank is the official bank of the Buffalo Bills and the contest is a popular fan promotion of the partnership between M&T Bank and the Bills. The partnership also includes naming rights to the M&T Bank Club at Ralph Wilson Stadium and exclusive rights to offer specially designed Bills checks and debit cards.
M&T Bank, founded in 1856, is one of the top 20 largest U.S. commercial bank holding companies, with approximately $69 billion in assets. M&T Bank operates more than 750 branches and in New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Delaware, New Jersey and the District of Columbia. For more information, visitwww.mtb.com.**
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Founded in 1959, the Buffalo Bills are one of the most storied franchises in the National Football League (NFL). The Bills have won two American Football League (AFL) Championships (1964 - 1965) and won an NFL record four straight AFC Championships (1990 - 1993) that included four trips to the Super Bowl. The Bills are a progressive organization and pride themselves on the regionalization of their team. They hold their training camp in Rochester, NY and were the first NFL team ever to play a home game in Canada with the Bills Toronto Series that began in 2008. As Western New York's top-rated sports and entertainment choice, the Billsannuallyentertain three quarter of a million fans at Ralph Wilson Stadium, produce the region's number-one rated sports television programming, have one of the NFL's largest fan clubs with the Bills Backers, and host the most visited team website in Western New York. Under the guidance of Pro Football Hall of Fame member and original team founder, Ralph C. Wilson, Jr., the Bills will play one exhibition game and one regular season game in Toronto in 2010.For more Bills information visit **buffalobills.com** or call (716) 648-1800.
