When the bus from the airport brought the first few hundred traveling West Virginia supporters to the Hyatt Wednesday morning, Richard and Stephanie Rock from Clarksburg were at the front of the line at the registration desk. She said it’s her first visit to Jacksonville, but Richard said he knows his way around because he also followed his favorite team to the 1996 Gator Bowl. The hotel is the Mountaineers’ official fan accommodation site with more than 1,000 of the school’s faithful staying there. A large delegation from the game’s title sponsor, Konica Minolta, is bedding down at the hotel as well. The Hyatt also hosted 1,100 people for yesterday’s Coaches Luncheon and more than 800 had reservations for last night’s New Year’s Eve Gala.
Some West Virginia fans who won’t need hotel rooms for the Gator Bowl are staying aboard a 164-foot yacht moored on the Northbank Riverwalk between the Hyatt and the Landing. It was designed to accommodate up to 12 people (plus a crew of 10) and has all the usual bells and whistles. There are also some extras including a two-person submarine capable of diving to 1,000 feet and a helicopter landing pad if the 37-foot or 21-foot tenders aren’t appropriate for going back and forth to shore. The vessel is available for charters in the Caribbean and Mediterranean, but this weekend the owner and his guests are aboard. The crew wouldn’t divulge any information on his identity, but word on the dock is he has considerable interests in the coal industry in West Virginia. That would certainly explain the WVU pennant flying on the stern and the yacht’s name, “Mine Games.”