Tech, which finished 10–2 in the regular season prior to the Sugar Bowl, defeated 16th-ranked Virginia and ninth-ranked Miami en route to the game.

Auburn, by virtue of its lower ranking in the BCS poll, was left out of the national championship and was selected to play in the Sugar Bowl.

[2] Controversy erupted around Auburn's selection, as the Tigers had been denied a spot in the national championship game in favor of two other undefeated teams: the University of Southern California (USC) and Oklahoma.

[9] Their first win in the ACC was followed by their first loss, however, as the Hokies lost the next week to North Carolina State, 17–16, when Tech kicker Brandon Pace missed a last-second field goal.

[10] Following the loss, Virginia Tech was 2–2 on the season, and faced the potential of being ineligible for a postseason bowl game if it did not improve its winning percentage.

Much was made of that fact and the success of Auburn running backs Carnell "Cadillac" Williams and Ronnie Brown, each of whom were considered among the best players at their position.

On the Virginia Tech side, senior quarterback Bryan Randall performed well for the Hokies during the regular season and was predicted to continue his success in the Sugar Bowl.

Shortly after the final pre-bowl game Bowl Championship Series standings were released on December 4, Auburn was among several teams disgruntled with the system.

One of these was California, which only lost to top-ranked USC, but was denied a bid to the prestigious Rose Bowl after Texas vaulted it in the rankings despite having the same record.

[26] Some pundits and fans considered Auburn's failure to reach the championship game to be based on the fact that the Tigers had started with a lower ranking at the beginning of the season.

"[29] Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer, in the runup to the game, seemingly agreed with the assessment, saying, "We started out playing Southern Cal and I believe this Auburn team is better.

[34] In response to his success, Auburn administrators agreed to a seven-year, $16 million contract extension with Tuberville prior to the Sugar Bowl.

Despite missing most of his first two seasons due to injuries, he ranked second on Auburn's all-time rushing list with 3,770 yards—behind only NFL and MLB star Bo Jackson.

[36] Heading into the Sugar Bowl, the Virginia Tech offense was led by quarterback Bryan Randall, who completed 149 of 268 passes (55.6 percent) for 1,965 yards, 19 touchdowns, and seven interceptions.

[40] In the preseason, Randall competed for the first-string quarterback spot with Marcus Vick until the latter was suspended from Tech for a semester after a criminal conviction.

[42] Tech's rushing offense featured two running backs who shared time on the field: Mike Imoh and Cedric Humes.

[46] Tech's success on special teams was at least partially due to head coach Frank Beamer's emphasis on that aspect of the game, a strategy known as "Beamerball."

[57] Mike Tirico, Tim Brant, Terry Bowden, and Suzy Shuster were the announcers for the television broadcast, which was aired on ABC.

Facing a fourth down at the Virginia Tech six-yard line, Auburn sent in kicker John Vaughn, who kicked a 23-yard field goal for the game's first points.

Tech committed a 10-yard penalty, suffered an eight-yard loss on a play, then had a Bryan Randall pass intercepted by Auburn safety Junior Rosegreen.

The attempted touchdown pass by Randall fell incomplete, and Virginia Tech turned the ball over on downs without scoring any points.

As it had in its two previous scoring drives, Auburn was forced to send in kicker John Vaughn despite being inside the Virginia Tech 10-yard line.

[64] The halftime show was presented by Bowl Games of America, a collection of dance troupes, marching bands, and cheerleading squads from across the United States.

Though the deficit was only 16 points, and could be made up with two touchdowns and two two-point conversions, the limited time remaining meant the task would be difficult, even if Virginia Tech scored quickly.

With time in the game almost exhausted, Virginia Tech was forced to attempt an onside kick in order to have a chance to get another offensive drive.

Despite the hopes of Virginia Tech for a last-second miracle, the Auburn Tigers recovered the kick, allowing them to run out the clock and clinch a 16–13 victory.

[68] On the opposite side of the ball, Virginia Tech quarterback Bryan Randall completed 21 of his 38 passes for 299 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions.

Tech's two running backs, Mike Imoh and Cedric Humes, were stymied by the Auburn defense and managed just 26 yards on 12 combined carries.

Auburn defender Derrick Graves was the most prolific tackler for the Tigers, making seven tackles and catching one interception of an errant Bryan Randall pass.

[76] During the first round of the draft, Auburn had four players selected: Ronnie Brown, with the second overall pick, Carnell Williams (fifth), Carlos Rogers (ninth), and Jason Campbell (25th).