The Tennessee Volunteers and Virginia Tech Hokies will meet up on Saturday in the Battle at Bristol at Bristol Motor Speedway. The game is set to be played in front of the largest crowd in the history of college football and both teams are going to be walking out with huge paydays.
The Associated Press reported that both teams are set to take home $4.3 million each from the game this weekend. This makes a lot of sense since it is expected to draw nearly 150,000 fans, which would shatter the NCAA record of 115,109 people set back in 2013.
“We jokingly say we’re a football stadium on steroids,” Bristol Motor Speedway general manager Jerry Caldwell said. “When you walk into the place, that’s what you see. That’s what it feels like. You walk in and you’re completely surrounded by stands just like you would be at a football stadium.”
Caldwell would not disclose how much it cost to convert the track into a stadium, but it is a huge deal for both teams. The Hokies and Volunteers may also take home an additional $300,000 because the grandstands have already sold out.
To compare this massive number for a game in the second week of the regular season, each team that played in a non-playoff New Year’s Six bowl game last year.
Yeah, I think these two teams will be just fine this weekend.
The Hokies and Volunteers meet up on Saturday at 8 p.m. EST on ABC.
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