Dec. 8, 2002
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Notre Dame (10-2) is headed to Jacksonville to meet North Carolina State (10-3) in the Toyota Gator Bowl.
That was confirmed Sunday in a joint announcement from South Bend by Notre Dame director of athletics Kevin White and Gator Bowl executive director Rick Catlett.
The game will be played at 12:30 p.m. EST, on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2003, at Alltel Stadium (73,000 capacity) in Jacksonville, Fla. NBC Sports will nationally televise it.
The Irish finished the regular season ranked ninth in the final Bowl Championship Series standings, 11th by the Associated Press and 12th according to ESPN/USA Today. North Carolina State finished 17th in both the AP and ESPN polls.
This marks the third appearance for the Irish in the Gator Bowl, following a 20-9 victory over Penn State in 1976 and a 35-28 loss to Georgia Tech to conclude the ’98 campaign.
The Irish will be attempting to win 11 games, finish in the final 10 in the polls and win a bowl game for the first time since the ’93 season when Notre Dame finished 11-1 with a Cotton Bowl win over Texas A&M that left the Irish second in both major polls.
This marks the first football meeting ever between Notre Dame and North Carolina State, where Irish coach Tyrone Willingham served as an assistant for three seasons (1983-85).
Tickets at $40 each (each school receives 12,750) go on sale to the general public beginning 9:00 a.m. EST, Monday at the Joyce Center second-floor ticket office (enter Gate 1) or by calling 574-631-7356. Cash, checks and credit cards (VISA, MasterCard, American Express) are accepted. A $15 service fee applies to all mail orders (send orders to 112 Joyce Center, Notre Dame, IN 46556).
Tickets will not be mailed or available for distribution until Monday, Dec. 16.
Ticket information for Notre Dame students will be available on Monday and the student ticket sale will begin Thursday.