The 2002 Continental Tire Bowl was a postseason college football bowl game between the West Virginia Mountaineers and the Virginia Cavaliers (UVA) at Ericsson Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina, on December 28, 2002. The first edition of the Continental Tire Bowl, the game was the final contest of the 2002 NCAA Division I-A football season for both teams, and ended in a 48–22 victory for Virginia. West Virginia represented the Big East Conference in the game; Virginia represented the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Team selection In its inaugural season the Continental Tire Bowl had contracts with the Big East and Atlantic Coast Conferences that allowed them to select one team from each conference to participate in their annual game. From the Big East the bowl selected No. 15 West Virginia, the second-highest ranked team in the conference following conference champion and No. 1 Miami; Virginia was selected out of the ACC. The two teams had played each other twenty-two times historically, although not since 1985; the Cavaliers held a 12–10–1 advantage in the all-time series. West Virginia's first game of the 2002 season was against Division I–AA Chattanooga; the Mountaineers won handily 56–7. Their next game was at Wisconsin; West Virginia lost, 34–17. Following two wins against Cincinnati and East Carolina, the Mountaineers lost their second game of the season, against No. 18 Maryland 48–17. West Virginia opened Big East conference play against Rutgers, whom they shut out 40–0. Following a win over Syracuse, the Mountaineers lost their only Big East contest of the year, against No. 1 Miami 40–23. West Virginia would close out their season with four straight wins, over Temple, Boston College, Virginia Tech, and Pittsburgh, finishing the regular season with a record of 9–3, 6–1 within the Big East. Virginia opened their 2002 season with two losses against ranked teams, losing at home to No. 21 Colorado State 35–29 and on the road at No. 16 Florida State 40–19. The Cavaliers bounced back from this early setback, winning their next six games. The first, against No. 22 South Carolina, saw the breakout of future National Football League (NFL) starting quarterback Matt Schaub, who threw three touchdown passes in a 34–21 win. Wins against Akron, Wake Forest, Duke, Clemson, and North Carolina followed, until the winning streak was broken by consecutive losses to Georgia Tech and No. 10 Penn State. Virginia then won consecutive games against ranked