A week of speculation concluded Sunday with the expected announcement that LSU (7-5) will face Associated Press No. 14 Georgia Tech (9-3) in the Chick-fil-A bowl on New Year’s Eve in Atlanta.”We felt like it was the Chick-fil-A bowl all along after the game in Little Rock,” LSU Athletic Director Joe Alleva said.Alleva said LSU has already sold about 10,000 of its 15,000 bowl tickets allotment. The tickets were available before fans knew the bowl destination.”We have the best fans in America, and our fans will come and support these kids,” Alleva said. “We’re very fortunate to be going to a great venue and a great city. I’m very confident that our fans will come out and support this team.”Chick-fil-A bowl president Gary Stokan said this is the first time the Chick-fil-A bowl, formerly the Peach Bowl, has hosted a defending national champion.”Outback preferred South Carolina, we preferred LSU, the Cotton preferred Mississippi,” Stokan said. “We all got the teams that we wanted. In our case, I think it worked out best, because I think LSU’s seniors are really going to want to put on a show here in Atlanta.”LSU coach Les Miles was unavailable for interviews because of a malfunctioning satellite phone on an airplane. Miles was en route to California for a recruiting trip, team spokesman Michelle Bonnette said.Alleva said Miles wanted to play in the Chick-fil-A bowl, given the quality of the Georgia Tech team.”Miles wanted to play the highest ranked team that we could play,” Alleva said. “He thought that would be the best thing for this program … good for motivation.”Senior defensive end Tyson Jackson was asked to compare this season’s bowl announcement with the hype surrounding last season’s bid to the national championship.”Two different years … two different seasons,” he said. “Things happen differently.”Jackson said most of the players anticipated a bid to the Chick-fil-A bowl, although they weren’t sure until Sunday’s official announcement. “A lot of guys wanted to go there and have a good time, with it being in Atlanta … a really good city,” he said. “With that type of atmosphere, it will be really good for us to play in the Dome.”Senior linebacker Darry Beckwith said he’s enjoyed the Tigers’ downtime after the 31-30 loss to Arkansas.”[It’s good to] get our minds re-focused,” he said. “In a sense, it’s good to have some time away from football to get ready for finals and relax.”Beckwith said he’s eager to get back on the practice field Dec. 14 in preparation for Georgia Tech’s triple-option offensive attack.”You have to be very disclipined,” he said of the offense. “If you mess up on one area or slip on one gap, they can [score] a touchdown. You have to be really in-tune and really focused on what’s your responsiblity.”