By ABC-7 Reporter/X-tra Host Darren Hunt
EL PASO -- The Sun Bowl is one of the biggest events in the Sun City in terms of economic impact and this year's edition is not expected to disappoint.
ESPN has ranked the 75th annual edition -- which pits #18 Pitt against #24 Oregon St. -- as the eighth best bowl match-up this year.
With this in mind, will the Sun Bowl be full on December 31st?
"The better the teams are, the better they travel," said Sun Bowl Executive Director Bernie Olivas. "We've got two top 25 teams and they will come to El Paso. We're expecting a tremendous crowd."
Coaches and officials from both schools were in El Paso Thursday for the annual Rotary Club Sun Bowl Coaches Luncheon. Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt and Oregon State coach Mike Riley are said they hope the house is full on New Year's Eve.
Recently, the Sun Bowl has done pretty well, bringing in crowds in excess of 46,000 eleven consecutive years. This included a sellout in 2004 and nearly 50,000 people for last year's game.
Still, with the troubled economy and fans from both schools having to travel more than 1,700 miles to get to El Paso, there is some concern.
Pitt Athletic Director Steve Peterson and Oregon State Athletic Director Bob Escaroles both think our troubled economy will be a factor in how many people travel for this year's game but are optimistic.
"Our ticket manager has mentioned that he thinks we might hit 2,500," said Decarolis.
"I think we'll bring a very nice-sized group," said Peterson. "It would be hard to guess after three days of selling tickets exactly how many we'll end up bringing."
Olivas wouldn't offer any estimates, but knows the bottom line on economic impact is heads in beds and overnight stays.
Time will tell and factors are not encouraging.
Traditionally, Pitt fans have not traveled well and Oregon State fans will have to come to El Paso for the second time in three years. This year, the Sun Bowl was a small consolation prize after the Beavers missed out on a trip to the Rose Bowl with a season-ending loss.
