After the comedy of Bill Cosby and the light rock of the Counting Crows, the Convocation Center has booked Christian rock band Jars of Clay as its next concert.

The two-time Grammy-winning group will perform at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 20, in an intimate theater setting. The doors will open at 6:30 p.m.

Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Convocation Center box office and all Ticketmaster outlets.

“I really enjoy their music,” said Ali McManamon, a sophomore undecided major. “It spiritually helps me to grow and gives me comfort.”

McManamon was surprised at the combination.

“I wouldn’t think a Christian band would come to a public university,” she said.

Junior finance major Pushpa Iype also appreciates the band and plans on attending the concert.

“They are really inspirational,” she said. “The group talks about problems they’ve had and how God’s always there to help them out.”

Ticket prices were unavailable from Convocation Center officials at press time.

However, according to www.jarsofclay.com, the band is “introducing lower ticket prices on this tour, including a limited number of $11 tickets. These ‘festival seating’ tickets will be general admission and will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis in each market … All concerts will also have regular seating tickets for $15 to $18.”

As of Sunday night, the Web site had not listed the show on its tour page, although Convocation Center Director John Gordon confirmed the concert late last week.

Senior math major Deron Baupel has been following Jars of Clay for nine years.

“I’ve heard these rumors of the Convocation Center show,” he said. “It’s awesome if they’ll be here. I’ll definitely go.”

Baupel was unsure about the show’s validity, because the only advertising he’s seen are the flyers displayed at the arena.

“Right now, I’m skeptical if Northern got a band like them,” he said.

Jars of Clay is best-known for its single “Flood,” off its 1995 self-titled album. The acoustic guitar-laden song featured a chorus with the words “lift me up.”

The band has put out three albums since, including 1997’s “Much Afraid” and 1999’s “If I Left the Zoo.”

Its latest, the self-produced “Eleventh Hour,” debuted at No. 28 on the Billboard pop charts when it was released in March. The album has spawned two hit singles, including “I Need You” and “Fly,” and has been covered by media like CBS’s “Early Show,” Music Biz magazine and CNN’s “Music on the Road” and “Headline News.”

The band has had 15 No. 1 singles on the Christian Hit Radio charts. “Fly” was the most recent, going to No. 1 on July 28.

The band’s upcoming tour, which starts Oct. 3, is in support of the album. The tour will visit more than 40 cities through early December, including Chicago’s Riviera Theatre on Oct. 10, with performances mostly in venues holding 3,000 to 5,000 seats. The Convocation Center has a capacity of 10,000, but was designed as a multi-purpose facility to hold events of different types and sizes.

Jars of Clay released its first DVD, “11 Live: Jars of Clay in Concert,” on Tuesday. It features a full-production concert set, acoustic set and behind-the-scenes interviews with band members.

Christian group The Elms, a pop-rock quartet from Indiana, will open the show. After releasing “The Big Surprise” in 2000, the band is touring in support of its forthcoming album, “Truth, Soul, Rock ‘n’ Roll,” which comes out Oct. 22. The group’s single “Hey, Hey” was its first music video and has received play on MTV2’s “120 Minutes.”

“The Big Surprise” netted The Elms two nominations for the 2002 Gospel Music Association Dove Awards.

Assistant campus editor Jenan Diab contributed to this report.