Corvallis Gazette-Times

Beaver Nation won’t inundate the Sun Bowl in El Paso as it did the 2001 Fiesta Bowl, when an estimated 40,000 fans covered the Phoenix metropolitan area with a sea of orange.

However, Oregon State director of ticket operations Matt Arend said Monday he’s pleased with boosters’ response to the team’s sixth bowl game in the past eight seasons.

The Beavers play Missouri at 11 a.m. on Dec. 29 in the 73rd annual Sun Bowl. It’s OSU’s first appearance in the game, which will be televised nationally by CBS for the 39th consecutive year.

“Last week we told the Sun Bowl folks we were bring about 3,500 fans and they were pretty happy with that,” Arend said.

“I know we’re way ahead of what UCLA did last year,” and Sun Bowl officials told him overall sales are up substantially from the 2005 UCLA-Northwestern game at this point.

OSU’s ticket commitment is 8,000, but the Pacific-10 Conference subsides half of that if necessary so the Beavers are on the hook for 4,000 tickets. Arend said more than 2,000 tickets have been purchased, with more than two weeks remaining before the game.

The athletic department will use most of the unsold tickets for the band, for player and staff complimentary tickets, and for others at their discretion.

“We’re behind Insight Bowl I (2002), but Phoenix is an easier destination,” Arend said, when asked to compare this year’s sales to previous bowls. “We’re about even with Insight II (2004) and Las Vegas (2003).

“All things considered, we’re doing well and if you compare us to what other schools have done (at previous Sun Bowls) we’re ahead.

“Beavers travel well.”

Arend’s numbers don’t include tickets bought by OSU fans directly from the Sun Bowl or from other outlets.

Beaver fans have known since the Nov. 24 victory over Oregon that they were almost certainly headed for the Sun Bowl.

That helped individuals and tour organizers prepare better than some previous years, when OSU’s ultimate destination wasn’t known until the first week in December.

Azumano, the school’s official official travel partner, quickly sold out its 450-seat packages, via charter and commercial airlines.

“We were filled the Friday before the Hawaii game,” Azumano tour coordinator Sally Richards said. “I think El Paso will be fun,” because its a new destination for fans who regularly attend OSU road/bowl games.

The OSU alumni association charter, administered by Teel’s Travel Planners, has no room left on either its 137-seat airplane or its land-tour charter packages.

“I’m happy and sad to say we’re sold out,” said Terry Barker of Teel’s.

With air travel options to El Paso limited, some fans are flying to Albuquerque, Tucson or Phoenix and then driving to El Paso. It’s about six hours from Phoenix, and four from Albuquerque and Tucson.

Beaver fans Jeff and Sandy Ramp of Salem are flying to Phoenix on Christmas day. They’ll be joined by two other couples, and then take a van over to El Paso on Dec. 28. They’ll return to Phoenix the day after the game, and then return to Oregon on Dec. 31.

Missouri athletic department officials are giving away as many as 1,000 free tickets to students to boost their crowd. They told the Kansas City Star newspaper late last week they’d sold about 1,700 tickets, a substantial drop from the number sold for the 2003 (8,200) and 2005 (3,500) Independence Bowls.

Reserved-seat tickets for $40 are still available online at osubeavers.com; at the Gill Coliseum ticket office, or by phone at 737-4455 or 1-800-GO-BEAVS. Orders will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis. All filled orders will be charged a $20 handling fee.