Pregame Buildup
In the month prior to the Sugar Bowl, media attention focused on Virginia Tech's sudden rise to national prominence and Florida State's perennial appearance in the national championship game. The Seminoles had the most top-5 finishes and the most national championship game appearances of any team in the 1990s, including a national championship victory in 1993. Many media stories focused on the apparent David and Goliath showdown between the two teams, with the Seminoles in the role of the overdog and the Hokies in the role of the underdog. Because of this fact, spread bettors favored Florida State to win the game by 5.5 points.
Tens of thousands of fans from both teams traveled to the game, often purchasing ticket and travel packages for thousands of dollars. The limited numbers of tickets available for the game were in high demand by fans of both teams.
Read more about this topic: 2000 Sugar Bowl
Famous quotes containing the word buildup:
“I think those Southern writers [William Faulkner, Carson McCullers] have analyzed very carefully the buildup in the South of a special consciousness brought about by the self- condemnation resulting from slavery, the humiliation following the War Between the States and the hope, sometimes expressed timidly, for redemption.”
—Jimmy Carter (James Earl Carter, Jr.)