Ticket Situation Ugly in Foxboro

Ten people were arrested when an estimated 7,000 fans converged on Foxboro Stadium in the predawn hours, hiding in trees, cruising the roads and occasionally turning violent in attempts to buy tickets to Sunday’s AFC championship game between New England and Jacksonville.

At noon, 500 fans lucky enough to get vouchers before dawn--90 minutes before they were scheduled to be distributed--lined up one last time to buy a pair of $89 tickets. With vouchers checked several times on the way in, ticket distribution was orderly. Thirty people were turned away with phony vouchers.

The Patriots had announced that nobody would be allowed onto the stadium grounds before 6 a.m. for the 1,500 vouchers, each redeemable for two tickets. Another 3,000 tickets were sold by telephone beginning at 10 a.m.

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After waiting seemingly forever for a national championship, the people of Jacksonville, which has more Florida alumni than any city in the state, celebrated less than a week.

It was old news. The Jaguars are in the AFC title game, and who needs another Gator T-shirt?

“This has got people whipped up in a frenzy,” Fred Fillah said as Shirt Explosion was making new designs for a T-shirt. “It scares me to think about what would happen if they win.”

The first Jaguar shirt said, “Do you believe in miracles?” That one already sold out. The next design reads, “We believe in miracles.”

“It’s crazy. You just can’t believe it,” said Keith Smith, whose sandwich shop has walls adorned with Gator paraphernalia. “Ninety-nine percent of the people, the minute they walk in the door it’s either ‘Go Jags,’ or ‘How ‘bout them Jags?”’

Three travel agencies offered one- and two-day packages to Foxboro for the game, starting at $699. All three were sold out in a day.