News Release

Dec. 20, 2006

FIESTA FEVER: In anticipation of the upcoming Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, Boise State University’s Office of Communications has identified story ideas that would be of interest to the community. Following is one of these stories. Feel free to use as written, or contact the sources listed at the bottom for more information.

Globe-trotting Alumnus Makes Special Plans to See His Beloved Broncos in Fiesta Bowl

Boise State alumnus Rob Naumann is a big Broncos football fan, but he hasn’t been to one of their games since 1996 because of his worldwide travels as technical director and stage manager for Disney on Ice. However, now that Boise State is in the Bowl Championship Series, he says he isn’t about to miss the biggest game in the school’s history — even if he has to change jobs.

OK, Naumann, 37, didn’t really quit his job so he could attend the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl and watch Boise State battle Oklahoma on New Year’s Day. It just looks that way.

Ironically, Naumann recently accepted a job with the entertainment empire Cirque du Soleil as technical operations director, and Dec. 31 will be his last day with Disney on Ice. After his final show with Disney, he will catch a plane in Florida and travel to Glendale, Ariz., to attend the bowl game between the Broncos and the Sooners. After that, he will spend a few days in Boise visiting friends and family, then start his new job, flying to London for meetings and then to Australia with Cirque du Soleil.

But the real excitement, he says, is the chance to see the Broncos play in the flesh — in a BCS game, no less. “It’s going to be great,” said Naumann from his cell phone after attending a business meeting in Montreal. “I’m excited to see Boise State play again.”

Naumann, whose father Earl Naumann, is the former chair of BSU’s Department of Marketing and Finance, graduated from Boise State in 1993 with a marketing degree and developed an interest in the entertainment industry during a six-year stint as a stagehand at Taco Bell Arena (then the BSU Pavilion). He eventually landed a job with Disney on Ice and worked for the international ice-skating troupe for years, the last seven as tour manager. During that time he has traveled to 57 different countries.

During those travels, he stayed abreast of the Broncos’ football fortunes through the Internet, accessing ESPN videocasts and radio station KBOI’s live feed of some games. “But it’s not the same as being there at the game,” he said.

On New Year’s Day, Naumann will finally get to see his Broncos up close and personal. “They’re doing so much better than last time I saw them live,” he said. “Nine or 10 years ago, when I last attended a game, they were kind of struggling and still losing to Idaho. Now the situation is reversed.”

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Contact: Bob Evancho, University Communications, (208) 426-1643, bevanch@boisestate.edu 

We’re proud to be the home of the undefeated, Fiesta Bowl‑bound Broncos, the national champion student speech and debate team, and the nation's 12th‑ranked engineering program among public, comprehensive universities.
 

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Last reviewed on Wednesday, January 03, 2007