WRAL Sports Fan

North Carolina

Orlando bowl interested in UNC

By Dane Huffman

Nov 30, 2008

The Champs Bowl in Orlando, Fla., is intensely interested in grabbing North Carolina for its Dec. 27 game, the head of the bowl told WRAL Sunday.

“Carolina – whoever gets them – is going to be very luck and very happy,” said Steve Hogan, executive director of Florida Citrus Sports, which runs the bowl.

Orlando’s Champs Bowl has the fourth pick among ACC schools.

Where N.C. State will land is less clear in a strange year that has 10 of the 12 ACC schools eligible for bowls. The Wolfpack is 6-6 but nine ACC teams have at least seven wins. An NCAA rule states that "all conference teams with winning records must be placed in one of the contracted bowl games before any institution with a record of six wins and six losses may be placed in a contracted bowl game."

Michael Kelly, the ACC associate commissioner for football operations, said the league is working to secure 10 slots for its teams.

“We are confident that we will find a bowl home for all eligible teams,” Kelly said in an email. “It is true that six-win teams cannot be accommodated in bowls to the detriment/exclusion of a seven-win team, but so long as we able to secure a sufficient number of slots then all of our eligible schools will be fine.”

What is clear is the winner of Saturday’s ACC championship game between Virginia Tech and Boston College will go to the Orange Bowl.

Atlanta’s Chick-fil-A Bowl picks second and could take 9-3 Georgia Tech, even though bowls generally don’t like taking local teams because it means fans aren’t traveling for the games. But the Jackets have a new coach, an exciting offense and a big win over Georgia. All that would bring fans to the Georgia Dome.

Gary Stokan, the president of the Chick-fil-A Bowl, could not be reached Sunday night.

The Gator Bowl selects third is expected to pick 8-4 Florida State. The Seminoles played there in 2002 and 2005 and attendance topped 70,000 both times. In a bad economy, those numbers get a bowl’s attention.

Hogan said it was possible those two bowls looked at UNC, but said, “It looks like Georgia Tech and Florida State will be off the board early on.”

The outcome of the ACC title game could be a factor in where Carolina lands. Virginia Tech (8-4) has a big fan base, which makes it attractive to bowls, while Boston College (9-3) has a smaller fan base and is located a great distance from the bowls.

Will Webb, executive director of Charlotte’s Meineke Car Care Bowl, said Boston College had a small crowd at the 2004 game against UNC, while Carolina had 65,000 fans in the stands. Boston College was in the Big East at the time.

If Virginia Tech loses, Hogan said the Champs likely would choose between the Hokies and Tar Heels but could still take Carolina. Hogan praised UNC coach Butch Davis and said UNC is “one of those coast-to-coast brands” that would attract television viewers.

If Virginia Tech wins the ACC title, the Champs would look at UNC and 7-5 Clemson.

“One thing that bodes well for Carolina is they are 8-4 and had a little bit better season on the football field,” Hogan said.

Boston College likely would land in the Music City Bowl in Nashville, Tenn., if it loses the ACC championship game.

That would leave the Charlotte bowl looking at several teams.

“There are a lot of enticing matchups – Carolina, Clemson, N.C. State,” said Webb. “And Wake Forest brought 30,000 fans last year. They were great.”

San Francisco’s Emerald Bowl, which will be Dec. 27, is in the group of three bowls, along with Charlotte and Nashville, that works with the ACC on the fifth, sixth and seventh selections.

The ACC’s eighth bowl tie-in is the Humanitarian Bowl in Boise, Idaho, on Dec. 30. The ninth is the EagleBank Bowl in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 20.

Also in the hunt for bowls from the ACC are Wake Forest (7-5), Maryland (7-5) and Miami (7-5).