After several years of "sluggish sales, the prospect of an undefeated Clemson facing North Carolina has made tickets scarce" for the Dec. 5 ACC Championship at 74,000-seat Bank of America Stadium, according to Erik Spanberg of the CHARLOTTE BUSINESS JOURNAL. That is "quite a shift from the previous three years, when tarps were in place in the upper levels to cover large swaths of unsold seats." Attendance "was 64,808" for last year's Florida State-Georgia Tech matchup, down from 67,694 in '13 for Florida State-Duke. Clemson ranked No. 1 in the first CFP rankings released last week and then "defeated Florida State on Saturday, clinching a trip to Charlotte as winners of the Atlantic division." North Carolina, which has "never played in the conference football championship, leads Pitt in the Coastal division by one game, with three left to play." If UNC falters, Pitt "would be the likely division winner." The game experienced a "true sellout" in '10 and '11. Organizers have said for years that the qualifying schools "make a big difference in fan interest and ticket sales." At the same time, they have "tried to stir up local interest to convince Charlotte football fans to attend the game no matter which teams are playing." This year "looks like a dream scenario -- teams within easy driving distance and with motivated fans." General public tickets "sold out over the weekend." Each of the participating schools "receives 5,500 tickets" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 11/10).
