Since an Oakland woman announced she has 48 tickets to sell to the Steelers' playoff game Saturday at Tennessee, response has been -- to put it mildly -- strong.
So there has been a change in how Jeanne Hanchett will disperse the $150 hospitality tickets, which include a stocked tent for pregame tailgating outside The Coliseum in Nashville and upper level seats to the game.
The sale is still scheduled for today at Vento's Pizza in East Liberty, but it won't be first-come, first-served.
Beginning at 1 p.m., those interested can submit their names at the restaurant for a raffle ticket. At 2:30 p.m., Hanchett will draw names, and those people can then buy no more than two tickets each at face value for cash.
Al Vento, owner of the restaurant, said yesterday he has been flooded with phone calls and visits from people interested in buying the tickets. He tells them they must go through the raffle process.
Hanchett turned to Vento because she and her family are longtime customers of the pizza shop and have become friends with the owner. Vento, in turn, is friends with folks at DeBolt Unlimited Travel in Homestead.
DeBolt now is offering a bus trip to Nashville for $99 round trip for fans who score Hanchett's extra tickets.
The bus will travel overnight Friday to get the group to Tennessee in time to tailgate, then return after the game with an overnight trip Saturday.
DeBolt representatives will be at Vento's today. Other Steelers fans who were lucky enough to get tickets to the game through other venues can buy seats on the bus by calling 1-800-433-2658.
Hanchett bought a block of 50 tickets Monday when she happened to call the Titans right after someone else forfeited them.
She said she and her husband, Jim, would use two of the tickets and wants the others to go to Steelers fans but does not want to profit monetarily.
Shelly Anderson can be reached at shanderson@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1721.
Raffle today for Steelers' playoff tickets 
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