Does Virginia Tech need a special offer to get people to buy tickets to the WVU game?

West Virginia hasn’t played at Lane Stadium since 2004. Facebook was a few months old, Twitter and YouTube hadn’t yet launched.

Virginia Tech shouldn’t need to do something in terms of a special offer to get fans to want to buy tickets when the Hokies and Mountaineers meet in Blacksburg on Sept. 22.

It’s a Thursday night game, for chrissake.

Thursday nights in Lane are legendary.

“Enter Sandman,” people jumping, chills down the spine.

This one sells itself.

And yet.

A ticket and a cool hat for $34, while supplies last.

I’ve worked in sports marketing. We didn’t do special ticket offers unless we were sensing that the tickets weren’t moving.

The Hokies host Wofford on Sept. 17. I can imagine needing to do something to get people to come out for that one, particularly because it has an 11 a.m. scheduled kickoff.

But, West Virginia?

The Hokies and ‘Neers met annually from 1973 to 2005.

One of Michael Vick’s signature plays came in Morgantown in 1999 in the 22-20 come-from-behind win that kept Tech on the road to the BCS national championship game.

These are two once-bitter rivals who are just getting back together to have some good, old-fashioned mountain football fun.

And you need to offer people a hat to get them to hit the buy button?