The final numbers for the HokieCentral ticket purchase plans are in.  You may be surprised to hear me say "final," but I'll clarify why I say that in a moment.

We bought over 200 tickets - I don't know the exact number, and again, I'll explain why in a minute - with allocated amounts going to the following groups:

• 60 tix to the Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Jacksonville
• 40 tix to the soldiers in Georgia
• 55 tix to the soldiers in Miami

That's a total of 155 tickets, but we have actually purchased well over 200.  I talked to the Tech ticket office late on Thursday, and now that they've filled the 155 tickets for the three groups listed above, any tickets ordered by the HokieCentral faithful are getting thrown in with the tickets that other fans have ordered for "charity."

See, the line is getting blurred because AD Jim Weaver asked Tech fans in a story released to the papers on Wednesday to purchase tickets for charitable causes.  Fans were told to "designate whether the tickets will be donated to underprivileged children in the Jacksonville or to families of service men and women."

With Weaver's announcement on Wednesday, other (non-HokieCentral) Tech fans started calling in and designating tickets for charity, and the tickets purchased by those fans and the tickets purchased by HokieCentral-inspired fans are now winding up in one big pot.

In addition to the 155 tickets that are being sent to the three causes above, Tech has received additional orders for about 100 tickets - some purchased by HokieCentral readers, some not - that will go to whatever causes Assistant AD (Marketing and Promotions) Tim East can come up with.  Tim flew down to Jacksonville on Thursday to organize some additional donation groups.

So from where I sit, it's a wrap.  From this point on, any of you HokieCentral folks out there who call up will go into the big pot with the other "Internet-challenged" fans who heard about the donation efforts by reading the paper.

If you have a worthy Jacksonville-area cause, then please call the Tech ticket office with the necessary information - a contact name and address, and the required number of tickets.

And if you order tickets, be sure to tell 'em you heard about it at HokieCentral.   Just so they know.

The holier-than-thou baby blues in Chapel Hill are sweeping their brawl problems (see Wednesday's update) under the rug, and I gotta it hand it to 'em, because their reason why is even more pathetic than you would imagine.

Instead of using the no-brainer explanation of "due process," and saying something like, "Well, we don't think it's prudent to discipline our players until they've had their day in a court of law," UNC football Coach Carl Torbush said words to the effect of, "I've been so busy that I haven't had time to review the facts, so any disciplinary action won't take place until we return from the Gator Bowl."

Uh-huh.  Yeah, right.  Make sure you don't rush to judgment, there, Carl.

Greg Roberts of WSLS Channel 10 in Roanoke announced this story on Thursday night's telecast, and you should have heard the sarcasm dripping from his voice and seen the look on his face - it was priceless.  Fortunately for former WSLS anchor Lee Ann Necessary, Lee Ann left Channel 10 about a month ago.

You see, Lee Ann is a UNC grad.  I would have given anything to see her response when Greg did his story.  Alas, it was not to be.

By the way, I just want to remind you of what I said in Wednesday's update:

I don't look for UNC coaches and administrators to "do" anything about this.   I'm betting that all players will play in the bowl game.

Right again.  This is getting boring.

There were a few posts on the message board in the last two days that were priceless, and I didn't want to let them slip by without recording them here for prosperity.   The first is a "Hokie Christmas Carol," posted by Stretch, and sung to the tune of "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" (I think that's the name of the carol - I'm not real good with Christmas carols):

God rest ye merry Hokie men, let nothing you dismay
Remember we are bowl bound and not UVa
Terry Holland and George Welsh may explode any day
Oh tidings of comfort and joy (Gator Bowl joy)
Oh tidings of comfort and joy

In the pros our Hokie grads are doing very well
Freeman catches Brett Favre's pass and Bruce can ring a bell
Instead of jerk Latrell Sprewell, we have Bimbo and Dell
Oh tidings of comfort and joy (NBA joy)
Oh tidings of comfort and joy

God rest ye merry Hokie men, and Hokie women too
We wear maroon with our orange instead of boring blue
We thank our God most every day that we are not some Hoo
Oh tidings of comfort and joy (Tech is joy)
Oh tidings of comfort and joy

*Created by Jimmy Lawrence, Athletic Trainer

And as if that's not enough, here's a little ditty for Rolan Roberts.  It was suggested by VamPIre Hokie and fleshed out by N2VTFTBL, and is sung to the tune of "Rawhide":

Rolan, Rolan, Rolan, Start the dunks a throw'n,
Rolan, Rolan, Rolan, RAWHIDE!

He's gonna swat some leather, he's a Hokie star forever,
We're wishin' that Mims was by his side.

When Jenis get's ta pumpin', and Andre starts ta jumpin',
Rolan's the MAN we want inside.

Dunk 'em in, Swat 'em out, Dunk 'em in, Swat 'em out,
Dunk 'em in, Swat 'em out, RAWHIDE!

Swat 'em out, Dunk 'em in, Dunk 'em in, Swat 'em out,
DUNK 'EM IN, RAWHIIIIIIIIIIIIIDE!!!!!

RAWHIDE!

If you're like me, you're ROTFLOL (Rolling On The Floor, Laughing Out Loud).   Thanks, guys!

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