Guilford College and Greensboro College, both in North Carolina, are competitive in almost everything they do. Even in off-field contests, each school tries to outdo the other.

For their annual football matchup, the Gate City Soup Bowl, any fan that brings at least two canned food items to the game doesn’t have to pay the $5 admission price to the Division III matchup.

When Guilford (1-0) blew out Greensboro (0-1) 52-0 on Saturday, the namesake competition was which school collected more cans of food. Guilford won with 5,102 food items to Greensboro’s 2,402. All of the proceeds from the 2,700 fans at Guilford’s sold-out Appenzeller Field benefitted the Greensboro Urban Ministry.

“If they can work toward a common goal of collecting food items, then it unites everyone around that goal,” said Christine Byrd, Director of Development and Communication at the Greensboro Urban Ministry.

The Greensboro Urban Ministry distributes over 1.5 million pounds of food each year and over 100,000 pounds each month. Most donations come from independent food drives, like the Soup Bowl’s. But without these collections, the demand for food in Greensboro would not be met, Byrd said.

Greensboro is one of the most food-insecure cities in America and the Greensboro Urban Ministry’s supply is typically depleted at the beginning of September before the holiday season. With the winter months just around the corner, the Soup Bowl has a strong effect on the Greensboro community.

“Right now, it is most crucial,” said James Shields, Director of Guilford’s Bonner Center for Community Service and Learning. “The Greensboro Urban Ministry, where the cans will be going this year, their food bank is almost completely depleted at this point. So the need is really big.”

Guilford senior Turner Votipka, president of Guilford’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, said that the Soup Bowl is the most hyped-up game of the year. Campus leaders, including resident advisers, set up signs and boxes for donations leading up to the game. Votipka, a member of the men’s tennis team and a resident adviser, said that entire hall goes to the game together.

“The students get into the game because them going to the game helps them defeat Greensboro, also because they’re bringing cans. They’re bringing support for the team,” Votipka said. “So especially what we want is a double win against Greensboro.”

At Greensboro, every residence hall participated to see which one could bring the most cans. Every first-year student seminar also joined in and the winning seminar earned a group prize. Preparation for Greensboro began at freshman orientation when students were told about the Soup Bowl and to begin collecting.

At Guilford, the athletic teams have a challenge to see which team can average the most cans per person. Guilford’s football team also won this with an average of 11.6 cans per team member.

Since 2009, the Soup Bowl has been played during the first week of September. Having this game just a couple weeks after students return to campus has long-lasting benefits, not just for those receiving the canned food.

Said Votipka: “If you unify school right off the bat, then you’re really looking forward to a good school year.”

Published on September 9, 2014 at 12:01 am

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