[Organizers say if they can't count on the people from out-of-state to make it they'll have to count on the people of the host city.] We have a lot of football fans here, ... And so we know that the community loves this event, loves the parade and we want everyone to just step up to support it.

With the economy, gas prices, the hurricanes; we all know individuals and families that have been devastated. And our concern is that we may not have as many out-of-town visitors this year.

As you know, we are definitely concerned about ticket sales.

Gas prices, the (Gulf Coast) hurricanes -- it's a very challenging year for events such as the Classic and many others where we depend largely upon not only local community support, but people driving from a six- to eight-hour radius.

We urge the local community to step up and buy the game tickets.

At last count we exceeded forty thousand and we know we are still selling tickets.

We have to be realistic and recognize that we don't have as many people traveling to the city this year because of the weather and because of rising gas prices.

It's not just a football game. It's not just a big party. Each activity's especially meant with a major purpose.

As a community we have always pulled together to support events and we know this could have happened to any event occurring at this time. We know we have not only been impacted here in Indianapolis.