Land O’Lakes has landed NFL Hall of Famer Jerome Bettis as the latest prominent athlete to commit to participating in its Farm Bowl.

Bettis joins former NFL wideout Greg Jennings, former center Jason Brown and, pending availability, Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph as part of the event, aimed at highlighting the significance of farmers and inspiring the next generation to consider a career in modern agriculture.

The Arden Hills-based farmer-owned food and agricultural cooperative has been around for nearly a century. It began with a mission of finding markets for and adding values to farmers’ milk and it has helped farm-to-fork businesses in everything from animal feed to crop inputs.

Bettis and the other athletes will each be paired with a farmer as part of the competition. They will compete in a test of farm-inspired skills and agility tests. ESPN reporter Marty Smith will host the event with sideline commentary provided by recording artist and actress Jordin Sparks.

“The Land O’Lakes Farm Bowl is a unique event bringing together two seemingly unlike fields – football and farming – to celebrate the important work of farmers and inspire the next generation of leaders in the agriculture industry,” Bettis says. “I look forward to competing and testing my skills alongside some great athletes and outstanding farmers.”

The event will include changing a tractor tire, loading and transporting hay bales across a field, using a drone to drop colored pouches onto targets in a field, putting together a puzzle of milk pipes and moving 500 pounds of feed. It will take place on the Thursday before the Super Bowl, Feb. 1, at 3M Arena at Mariucci, home of the Minnesota Gophers men’s hockey team.

There will be six teams:

  • Bettis and Katie Dotterer-Pyle of Cow Comfort Inn in Union Bridge, MD
  • Rudolph (pending availability) and Darin Johnson of Johnson Farms in Wells, MN
  • Jennings and Amber Horn-Leiterman of Hornstead Dairy in Brillion, WI
  • Brown (who left the NFL to become a farmer) and Dave Ribeiro of Rib Arrow Dairy in Tulare, CA
  • A player to be named and JJ Nunes of Nunes and Sons Dairy in Tulare, CA
  • A player to be named and Craig Roerick of Roerview Dairy in Swanville, MN