Students camp for ND tickets

On Sunday night, while many students were asleep, there were several hundred students camping outside Bobby Dodd Stadium in order to trade in their student vouchers for a ticket to Tech's highly anticipated match-up against the No. 2 Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

The hype surrounding the game has generated increased anticipation and excitement in the program from both students and alumni. With that in mind, tickets for the general public have been sold out since over the summer.

Student tickets that were distributed disappeared just as quickly, as the student allotment was sold out less than 30 minutes after the gates opened at the ticket office.

At 10 p.m. on the night before the ticket office gate opened, the line for tickets formed on Bobby Dodd Way and did not end until halfway down Techwood Drive toward North Avenue, with the expectation that the line would get even longer.

Along the street, there was a litany of televisions, video game consoles, iPods, books and playing cards for entertainment.

In order to sleep during the night, many students also setup tents and sleeping bags.

There were also large numbers of couches on the side of the road filled with students conversing amongst themselves.

The line began at 1 p.m. on Saturday afternoon with one student leading the way.

"I was the first in line and there were three people here with me. We have been taking shifts in line," said Matt Guidry, a Navy ROTC student accompanied by his friends playing Madden on their PS2.

"We are ecstatic to be here. This is a once in a lifetime chance, and we can't pass it up. That is why I was first in line."

Among those students in the crowd was one veteran that had been through this experience before.

"I camped out for the Georgia game last year, so I have been out here many a night. I was the only one to camp out for the Auburn ticket last year," said Shane Bowland, a fifth-year Mechanical Engineering major.

As is the case every fall, there are many new faces on campus. There are some students who have been fans of Tech football for many years.

"My dad played for Tech, so I grew up on Tech football," said Melanie Karl, a fourth-year Civil Engineering.

Tech fans old and new will be able to see Notre Dame play in Atlanta, something that has not happened since 1980.

The increased student support is a welcome sign regardless of the outcome in tomorrow's game.