In light of the huge Michigan-OSU game and Auburn-Alabama, it's time to examine the top rivalries in college football. I tried to factor in pageantry, great moments, history and the scope of these games in determining my order. As an aside, StubHub had a ranking of the bump in ticket interest for rivalry games this season. Of course, Michigan-OSU is the runaway No. 1.
1. Army-Navy: This is the purest essence of what a rivalry is. No other sports rivalry, not Duke-UNC basketball or Red Sox-Yankees, has a richer history or a prouder legacy. Army-Navy actually belongs in a class by itself because every other rivalry always will have some clunker year where both teams don't matter, but in this one the records are irrelevant to the buildup of the game. Everyone in the U.S. gets this one on some level or another -- even if it isn't always so easy to explain. For me, as the son of a captain in the Navy, the lasting image of my father is from a picture of him in uniform that we had near our living room. I've felt a connection to Navy ever since I saw that picture when I was probably 5 years old. I realize you could say that this game doesn't have significance to the national title picture these days, but it's still the one game almost every American has a rooting interest in and I really believe that transcends everything else.
From Gwen in Chicago: "Almost every other 'big' rivalry doesn't give the whole base of sports fans a rooting interest. I don't care about Oklahoma-Texas or FSU-Miami (I hate them all) but I love what Army and Navy represent and I'm a Domer, but Notre Dame-USC just doesn't symbolize or mean as much."
2. Auburn-Alabama: For pure venom, I doubt there is one close to Alabama-Auburn. While writing a story about this rivalry a long time ago, I had asked a former Auburn star why he thought football was so vital to folks in the Deep South and in this state. His answer, while probably not one you'd hear from the chamber of commerce, was interesting: "Well, aside from having legendary coaches like Bear Bryant and a Shug Jordan, you have to keep in mind that traditionally we [the state of Alabama] are always last or close to last in education, in per capita income and a lot of other things that can wear people down. People, by nature, need something to brag on. Football is that for the people here." I'll add in this from Aaron in Auburn: "You have to recognize one thing that sets apart the Auburn/Alabama rivalry from any other -- its utter lack of distractions. In this part of the country, NFL is a distant second-favorite and baseball is a nice spring pastime (college, not the foreign sport of MLB)."
3. Michigan-OSU: This year's installment will be the most hyped in the storied series, but every year it seems something has been on the line: Heisman trophies, Big Ten titles, national championship ramifications, etc. The Woody and Bo factor bred such a level of disdain that, like Auburn-Alabama, this has become a 365 day-a-year deal.
4. USC-ND: I toyed with dropping this one down a few spots because most USC fans hate UCLA more and Notre Dame has some other big rivals, but given the impact this game has had on the Heisman over the last few years, I bumped it back up here. Thanks to reader Ray from Chicago, who points out that, "there have been more Heisman winners (14) who have played in the game than in any other rivalry, and national championship teams among the two schools -- just counting AP and UPI champs 14 -- more than in any other rivalry. ND and USC games count for five of the 10 most-watched college football games in television history."
5. OU-Texas: The beauty of this one, aside from the outgrowth of the Darrell Royal-Barry Switzer rivalry, is that its battleground is in Dallas, smack dab in the middle of Austin and Norman. This game, aka the Red River Shootout, was great 30 years ago and it has been great for the last decade, probably being the one game on the schedule you can always point to as a big factor in the national title picture.
6. Miami-FSU: Over the last 25 years, no game has meant more to the national title race. There have been more crazy finishes and heartbreak in Miami-FSU than any other big series. The downside: It doesn't have a real history before the early '80s and the quality of play has been gruesome in the last few years. Also, Miami and FSU folks have a genuine respect for each other. It's Florida whom they really hate.
7. Harvard-Yale: There is some great history here, although the games don't mean much to most college fans across the country. Reader Dylan, a LB for the Crimson, does make a good argument though, saying Harvard-Yale "represent the purest form of what college football is all about, men playing a game they love while personifying the term 'student'-athlete. Every year the students from both schools attempt to one-up each other with wild T-shirts and pranks, and alums from around the world tune in to watch 'The Game' to see who wins bragging rights for the next year."
8. Cal-Stanford: Fittingly, this rivalry is famous for the wackiest play in college football history, but it's been a lot more than just "the Stanford band play." Something like 50 games have been decided by a touchdown or less.
9. Grambling-Southern: Thanks to a couple of the best bands in college sports, the Bayou Classic may be the greatest show of all the rivalry games. Trouble, is for all the dozens of future NFL stars who have played in these games, they tend to be a sidebar to the halftime festivities.
10. Florida-Georgia: It's still the World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party to most and there have been some great games over the years. Although of late, it hasn't been quite as memorable. Also, it falls a few spots because Florida has a huge rivalry with FSU, and Georgia probably has more hatred for Georgia Tech.
thh: