OXFORD — Two University of Mississippi students from Vicksburg won a couple of the hottest tickets in town Thursday, joining about 150 lucky winners of an exclusive process for a chance to witness history.

Laura Blackledge, a senior dietetics and nutrition major, and Colin Reid, a junior international studies major and Spanish minor, were informed their names had been pulled by Chancellor Robert Khayat from a pool of applications submitted online by students in positions of leadership for seats inside the Gertrude C. Ford Center for tonight’s planned presidential debate.

It was a surprise to both St. Aloysius High School graduates in slightly different ways. For Blackledge, president of Kappa Omicron Nu, a check of her e-mail about 3 p.m. gave her the news.

“I had kind of given up by that time,” Blackledge said. “I was excited and surprised.”

For Reid, a ringing cell phone selection stopped his bicycle in his tracks.

“I was riding my bike around campus and started getting all these calls,” Reid said. “I hopped off my bike and  just started screaming,” Reid said. “I’ve already had a lot of students offer to buy my ticket, but I don’t know how the Secret Service would feel about that!”

Most of the 1,200 tickets to get inside the Ford Center were reserved by the Commission on Presidential Debates, which owns the event, go to the invited candidates’ campaign staffs and the political parties. Most media, students and faculty will join the rest of the world — watching on TV.

Like other students, Blackledge and Reid had filled out questionnaires online dealing with student participation in campus life. Besides those who won tickets in contests related to the debate, such as a political quiz bowl, participation in campus organizations increased an applicant’s chances, university officials were surprised even 150 had made the cut.

“It’s probably twice as many as we thought,” Media and Public Relations Director Barbara Lago said.

On TV

The first of three presidential debates is scheduled to be televised at 8 tonight

Even as mystery built as to Republican John McCain’s possible absence from the stage tonight enthusiasm was dampened for Blackledge, daughter of David and Jan Blackledge of Vicksburg, and Reid, son of Bruce and Lisa Reid.

“Our debate would be the one with drama centered on it,” Blackledge said before McCain’s announcement this morning that he would attend. “But, I think he’ll show up.”

“I’m hoping to see two candidates debating,” Reid said, adding the national security and foreign policy debate format shouldn’t deter either McCain or Democrat Barack Obama from talking about the current economic crisis.

“I’ve heard very little about foreign policy outside the war in Iraq, but (the candidates) should look at the Euro and the European Union and other economies as we try to save our own,” Reid said.

McCain said Wednesday that he would skip the debate in favor of assisting fellow members of Congress and President Bush address the financial market bailout package.

Some of the shock felt by the scores of volunteers and the university, which had spent months and more than $5 million to plan the debate, has subsided. “It was a little disconcerting at first, but hopefully it will happen,” Jennifer Southall, a Vicksburg native and director of annual giving for the University of Mississippi Foundation, said late Thursday.

Some who roamed Ole Miss campus on the eve of the debate closer to the political angle were sharper in their positions on McCain’s possible snub of the first of three scheduled debates.

“He can’t afford to not be here,” said Gayle Harrison, sister-in-law of Vicksburg Warren School District Deputy Superintendent John Walls, who attended some of the pre-debate programs and events with friends Alice Buford, an Alcorn State alum, and Inez Johnson.

“It was a bad decision on his part,” said Paul Winfield, Warren County Board of Supervisors’ attorney and announced candidate for Vicksburg mayor. Also an alternate delegate for Obama at the Democratic National Convention and treasurer for the state party, Winfield planned prepared notes Thursday to appear on MSNBC’s “Hardball” with Chris Matthews.

State Rep. Alex Monsour, R-Vicksburg, said earlier this week he would attend the debate with other state lawmakers, many of whom obtained tickets via national contacts.

Public Broadcasting Service news anchor Jim Lehrer will moderate for tonight’s debate, introducing topics and allowing 2 minutes for comment and 5minutes for additional discussion.

Subsequent presidential debates are set for Oct. 7 at Belmont University in Nashville — a town hall-style format — and Oct. 15 at Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y. A debate between the nominees for vice president is set for Oct. 2 at Washington University in St. Louis.

The Commission on Presidential Debates has sponsored and produced each presidential debate since 1988. Its chairmen are former heads of the Democratic and Republican parties. Invites to the debates are chosen based on ballot access in a majority of states in the Electoral College and at least a 15 percent draw in five selected national opinion polls.