Raise your hand if you are surprised to find that Pitt’s allotment of tickets (12,500) are lagging in sales. Liar.

Pitt has sold only 3,000 of its allotted 12,500 tickets for its Continental Tire Bowl game Dec. 27 against Virginia in Charlotte, N.C.

The low number probably indicates that Pitt fans are disappointed because the Panthers failed to live up to preseason expectations.

Probably? I would say definitely. If you want to hedge, maybe “apparently” or “strongly.” Pitt didn’t even live up to mid-season expectations. Going 2-2 over the final four games tends to suck the life out of any fan, especially when you lose the final game, at home, on national TV.

By comparison, UVA sold 20,000 tickets and has asked for an additional 10,000. No great shock considering that Virginia is adjacent to North Carolina, and the alumni of UVA tends to be more diffuse through the state — not concentrated near Pittsburgh.

Pittsburgh is 447 miles from Charlotte. Charlottesville is 304 miles from Charlotte.

Someone at the Post-Gazette was not fact-checking the driving distance.

Charlottesville, Va., is closer to Charlotte than Pittsburgh, but only by about 75 minutes.

I’d love to know how they calculate drive time.

Here’s the site for the Continental Tire Bowl. There are separate parties for the ACC and the Big East the day before — following the pep rally?

Both head coaches and several players will address the fans and get them pumped. Cheerleader and band
performances will also get the hype going. Special guest speakers include WWE Superstar Ric Flair and NFL Hall of Famer Joe DeLamielleure.

The ACC party will be at a bar called Dixie’s Tavern, while the Big East version will be at the two local branches of Bar and Have a Nice Day Cafe. Glad to see, the local Charlotte flavor won’t be lost.

The UVA athletic site has a good collection of information regarding the bowl for its fans. Pitt’s bowl info site, is less so.