HBO Sports president Ross Greenburg explains his network's interest in the Tobacco Road rivalry (courtesy of Sports Illustrated):
"Jim Lampley (a UNC graduate) has been telling me about the rivalry for 20 years or so. I was also aware of the subculture of both universities, and even though UNC was the state school, they think of themselves as the dignified force in the rivalry. They think Duke is a bunch of animals even though Duke is supposed to be the Ivy League of the South. That never meshed right with me and it was interesting. Plus, you had all these legends coming out of these two schools, the [Michael] Jordan's, the [Christian] Laettner's and the [Mike] Krzyzewski's and [Dean] Smith's. Unbelievable iconic names have floated through both places and it makes for a great documentary."