This week marks the beginning of Rivalry week and half. All the rivalry games used to be clustered together, but now they are spread over two weeks. I am fine with this because it prolongs the season.
As a Buckeye fan, I am partial to the Ohio State/Michigan rivalry. The all time record still favors Michigan, 56-40-6, but considering we did not beat Michigan until 1919 (until that year, OSU went 0-12-2 with an 86-0 loss in 1902) and a 2-10-1 record under John Cooper, I would argue the series is about dead even at this point.
Rivalries make college football better than any other sport. Unlike college basketball where you could realistically play your enemy four times each season, and pro sports where you play at least twice but most often many more times during the year, college football rivals play one time each season. The stakes are much higher when there's one game to determine who has bragging rights for the year.
HBO aired a documentary this week about the Ohio State/Michigan rivalry. HBO did a great job with the video, and no one who watched could walk away saying the hatred is deep and real. Just writing this article gets my blood boiling. Admitting you are a Michigan fan is like admitting you are a mass murderer - it's repulsive.
I also love the other rivalries, and there are definitely ones worthy of being the greatest. Army/Navy, Auburn/Alabama, Texas/Oklahoma, USC/UCLA, West Virginia/Pitt, South Carolina/Clemson, all the Ivy League teams and Cal/Stanford. I even like the names, The Red River Shootout, The Civil War, The Egg Bowl and The Apple Cup are just a few of my favorites. The best part is watching the fans debate. The games are beautiful, but the history being argued when the rivals clash is unbelievable. No fan ever wins the argument, but they do try.
This is the best time of the season. The leaves are changing, the weather is cooler, the teams are positioning for championships and bowl bids, the playoffs begin for Div IA, II and III and the holidays are around the corner. How many Turkey Bowls will be played next week? Sit back and enjoy the rivalry games. You might even get a history lesson.
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