Orange Bowl Betting Odds: Kansas vs. Virginia Tech

It is the most bet on game heading into January 3, This year's Orange Bowl features Kansas vs. Virginia Tech with betting odds that range the gamut of Virginia Tech -3 at Diamond Sports International to Kansas +4 at Bodog.com

At Diamond Sports - part of the oldest US-facing sports betting operation BetCRIS - Virginia Tech is overwhelmingly the biggest bet among gamblers.  In fact, 80% of the gambling public is backing Virginia Tech in this year's Orange Bowl.

Virginia Tech linebacker Vince Hall injured his left knee and will be a game-time decision against Kansas in the Orange Bowl on Thursday night.  This could cause some instability in the line.

Hall was injured during a team outing at the beach, the school said, and practiced little, if at all, the last two days of workouts before Wednesday's walkthrough.

"It's tender right now," coach Frank Beamer said Wednesday. "I'm not sure what's going to happen."

This Orange Bowl will be different than any other as Virginia Tech is still reeling from this past year's massacre, the worst in US history. 

Linda Robertson of the Miami Herald writes:

Football has dulled the ache. Football has knit together a community devastated by violence made more inexplicable by its setting -- a pastoral, small-town campus in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Not only did the Hokies' 11-2 season bring back a sense of joy, but the game-day rituals brought back a sense of normalcy.

The team dedicated its season to the 32 victims and placed a list of their names inside the lunch pail, a dented, rusted but precious old thing that symbolizes the players' dedication to hard work. They read the names before each game and invoke them whenever they're feeling depressed, tired or stuck.

'I think of them and I think, `Why, why, why?' '' said defensive end Orion Martin. ``They make me sad, but then they lift me up. They make me work even harder.''

Orange Bowl History

The second-oldest bowl game was created in 1933 as part of the Miami Palm Festival. It became known as the Orange Bowl in 1935. Originally played in Miami Field Stadium, it moved into its own stadium, also known as the Orange Bowl, in 1938. Since 1996, the game has been staged in Pro Player Stadium, which is in Ft. Lauderdale.

The Orange Bowl in 1965 became the first major bowl game to be played at night, and it's been a night game ever since.
From 1953 through 1963 and 1975 through 1994, it featured the Big 8 champion against an at-large opponent. During the intervening years, the Big 8 champion or runner-up often played in the Orange Bowl, but did not get an automatic invitation.
Federal Express (FedEx) has sponsored the game since 1989.

As a member of the Bowl Alliance, the Orange Bowl hosted the mythical national championship game in 1994. On Jan. 3, 2001, it was again the site of the championship, this time under the auspices of the Bowl Championship Series.

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Dan Shapiro, Gambling911.com

Originally published January 2, 2008 8:48 pm EST