Hokie Toasties popped up in cereal aisles; RC Cola bottles sported the Tech colors; a Northern Virginia high-rise office building spelled its Hokie Pride in lighted windows nightly; and legions of vehicles proudly bear the Tech logo. Hokie mania swept the country during the fall, gathering steam as the undefeated team headed to New Orleans.

Sales of orange and maroon Hokie paraphernalia at the campus bookstores—both in Blacksburg and at the Northern Virginia Center—zoomed up more than a third over last year. Licensing revenue from the marketing of Tech hats, shirts, and other merchandise hasn’t yet been calculated, but Tech Director of Licensing and Trademarks Locke White expects to almost double the $340,000 annual licensing revenue. "In past years, we’ve been receiving one or two inquiries a week. We’re getting one or two a day now," he said in mid-January.

When an estimated 54 million people tuned to ABC television and watched Tech take on top-ranked Florida State at the Sugar Bowl, Tech also got an opportunity to showcase its reputation as a top research institution. ESPN, which broadcast its Game Day pregame show from Blacksburg last fall, cast the university in an especially positive light and made an unprecedented return to Blacksburg for a second show. The network praised the football team and also raved about Tech’s academic reputation and the campus scenery. The show drew record crowds both times.

Su Clauson-Wicker and Clara B. Cox