The matchup is set for the 2012 Orange Bowl, which will be held on Wednesday January 4, 2012 at Sun Life Stadium in Miami. The Clemson Tigers, champions of the ACC, will be taking on the West Virginia Mountaineers, who finished in a three-way tie for first place in the Big East Conference. The Orange Bowl is one of the most prestigious Bowl Games in all of College Football, and the fan bases of Clemson and West Virginia are as loyal as any team’s in the country. That means Orange Bowl Tickets are going to be in very high demand over the next three weeks as fans will be jumping at the chance to head down to Miami for an extended Holiday weekend.
Clemson Tigers vs. West Virginia Mountaineers
Wednesday, January 4th, 2012
Miami Gardens, Florida’s Sun Life Stadium
The first Orange Bowl was held in 1935, and it is one of the longest standing Bowl Games, along with being one of the four bowls representing the Bowl Championship Series. Sun Life Stadium, home to the Miami Dolphins, will be play host to the game, and the atmosphere surrounding the Orange Bowl is always electric. For the 2012 edition of the game, kick-off will be at 8:00 on January 4.
The Clemson Tigers started the season by winning their first eight games before losing three of their four in the regular season. That was still good enough to get them into the ACC Championship Game, where they blasted #5 Virginia Tech 38-10. Led on offense by Taj Boyd (36 touchdowns on the year) and Andre Ellington (1,062 rushing yards and 10 TDs), Clemson has the talent to beat any team in the nation. They just need to actually show up mentally, which is something that can’t be taken for granted with this squad. West Virginia finished the season with a 9-3 record overall, and a 5-2 mark in the Big East. They beat South Florida in a tight one to close out the regular season, and ended tied with Cincinnati and Louisville atop the conference, but were ranked #23 and possessed a better BCS computer score than the other two. QB Geno Smith has thrown for nearly 4,000 yards, and both Stedman Bailey and Tavon Austin have topped 1,000 yards receiving. When they’re clicking through the air, West Virginia is as tough to stop as any team in the country. Of course, all that those numbers are irrelevant now — now it’s just time to sit back and watch the offensive fireworks that Clemson vs. West Virginia are sure to engage in.
Whats Your Verdict?