Inside Slant
West Virginia understands one thing about this Gator Bowl matchup with Florida State: It is definitely second banana.
With Bobby Bowden, 80, coaching his final game for FSU and doing it in the state of Florida, the Mountaineers will be viewed as nothing but the Washington Generals to Bowden's Globetrotters.
That shouldn't affect WVU, though. It's nothing new.
The Mountaineers played Georgia in the Sugar Bowl, only to have Hurricane Katrina wipe out New Orleans and have the game moved to the Georgia Dome in partisan Atlanta.
Then last year, West Virginia was matched up with North Carolina in the Meineke Car Care Bowl. Anyone want to guess where that game is played? Charlotte, North Carolina.
It sort of figures that if you are Mountaineer, you spend your life trying to climb mountains.
"Wait 'til we walk in there and there's 75,000 people and 15,000 of them are for us," WVU Coach Bill Stewart said.
"We'll be the villain. That's just the way we like it."
Stewart understands the situation.
After attending a press gathering in Jacksonville in mid-December, Stewart said: "It was like Bobby Bowden Day in Jacksonville. It's like I told our team, the only people there on our side are those who love the old Gold and Blue, just our faithful."
