The 12 Top Rivalries

Rivalry is a local issue dealt with at the regional or local level...to try and make a list is as to making a list of how many countries hate the USA and who hates us the most. What a lame article. Slow news week.

UTAH and BYU

UVA and UNC.

Catchy Headline misrepresents contents of article, which is 2 sides of the same coin.

Re: CAL-Stanfurd rivalry. Are you KIDDING me?! You ask one lone (jr. college) alum from one campus who may never have gone to a Big Game what they think about the rivalry--and they call it "light hearted taunting"?!
Well, at least the REAL West Coast rivalry was mentioned instead of the over-rated private and the satellite campus ('sc and ucla) in So Cal. GO BEARS! (btw, I'm from SoCal) :D

Has Jay Mathews been living under a rock? I don't understand how he can be tasked to write this article and do his research so poorly. It's an insult to write an article on the top 12 college rivalries and NOT mention Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. This rivarly goes beyond intense athletics, as both universities compete for top students, academics, research, and a there is a mutual dislike stemming into hatred between the students AND professors from both schools. And when Duke and UNC play each other during basketball, people from all over the country tune in to see what drama will incur. Forget top 12, this rivalry is absolutely in the top 3. Jay Mathews, shame on you for leaving this out. Tar Heels and Blue Devils everywhere are insulted.

Has Jay Matthews been living under a rock? I don't understand how he can be tasked to write this article and do his research so poorly. It's an insult to write an article on the top 12 college rivalries and NOT mention Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. This rivarly goes beyond intense athletics, as both universities compete for top students, academics, research, and a there is a mutual dislike stemming into hatred between the students AND professors from both schools. And when Duke and UNC play each other during basketball, people from all over the country tune in to see what drama will incur. Forget top 12, this rivalry is absolutely in the top 3. Jay Matthews, shame on you for leaving this out.

what is this author smoking?
Amherst would not be around if it weren't for Williams students who couldn't handle it and left
the only thing Pomona and Amherst have in common is that they are both connected with nearby schools, they are across the country from each other, which hardly lends itself to a rivalry
Williams and Amherst, and even Wesleyan, are the oldest rivals in the country, ESPN even had the game(surprising for two D-3 schools) on college gameday because of the rivalry

what is this author smoking?
Amherst would not be around if it weren't for Williams students who couldn't handle it and left
the only thing Pomona and Amherst have in common is that they are both connected with nearby schools, they are across the country from each other, which hardly lends itself to a rivalry
Williams and Amherst, and even Wesleyan, are the oldest rivals in the country, ESPN even had the game(surprising for two D-3 schools) on college gameday because of the rivalry

This is a case of sad reporting. Pomona and Amherst as rivals? Did the reporter bother to ask Amherst students if they are rivals with Pomona? If they get heated up about a game with the school, or think about it as an ugly twin? Like Harvard and Yale, for example? Please come up and visit.
I am sure Pomona students would love to be rivals with Amherst, but so would students at a lot of other schools, like Middlebury and Bowdoin. Just as Dartmouth and Brown students would love to be The Rival of Harvard or Yale.
Its Amherst and Williams. Check your history. And its an academic and sports rivalry stretching over a hundred years. Like Yale and Harvard, for example.

The problem with articles like this is the utter senselessness of the reporting. Pomona and Amherst as rivals? Did the reporter ask any Amherst students if Pomona and Amherst were rivals? I think not. Why not hop on a car and visit to see what they say?
Sure, Pomona students might want to be rivals with Amherst, but so do students at Bowdoin and Middlebury. It takes two hands to clap. A more thorough check would have revealed its Amherst and Williams. These two schools only played each other in the oldest baseball game, play each other at homecoming, and rib each other about the US News rankings, which they top at each others expense.
And then Amherst and Wesleyan, if one insists on going further. Amherst, Williams and Wesleyan are after, the Little Three.

I don't buy Pomona and Amherst as rivals. These two may be similar schools, but I don't think there is a true rivalry between the two institutions. I'm very biased, and I may be bringing up a rivalry that most aren't familiar with in many parts of the country, but the rivalry between Wabash College and DePauw University in Indiana has to be one of the 12 best rivalries in the country. Wabash and DePauw are separated by 30 miles, often vie for the same male students (Wabash is one of four all-male institutions remaining in the U.S.), share a heated athletic rivalry, and are very strong academically.

what about usc vs ucla?

Dude, this article really missed the point of what a true rivalry is: pure hatred of anything related to the opposing school. Most of these rivalries are too scholarly, and exist on paper only. When I see Yale or Harvard students drunkenly brawling out on the quad, or refusing to shake hands, I'll buy it. Same with some of these other schools. I have a hard time imagining Guilford vs. Oberlin as a bloody rivalry. Give us some real venom and bile! UNC vs. Duke, Georgetown vs. Syracuse, USC UCLA. Those are the real rivalries.

I think the author was going for more than just sport. Rivalries aren't only confined to sports anyway. They can be in the classroom too. I don't have too much knowledge of the rivalries you mentioned, but it seems like almost all of them (probably with the exception of Texas/A&M and maybe UNC/Duke) are confined to the gridiron...or basketball court.

I really liked the mention of the Boston College-Notre Dame rivalry. It's good to have a look at it beyond the football field (or hockey rink). Both are national universities, both are traditionally Irish-Catholic, and both draw a number of students from each other schools regions (ND from the East Coast and BC from the midwest). It's a shame that ND will be terminating the football rivalry (at least for the forseeable future) after 2010, as both fans have come to embrace the rivalry. ND fans will boast that they have the edge in the series and some of the most-lopsided victories, while BC fans will remind the Irish that they've won the last 5 meetings and beat the Irish in the NCAA Ice Hockey national championship. What makes the rivalry even better is that both schools are excellent academic institutions, among the most selective in the country and boast great graduation rates in athletics and many notable alumni.

Excellent article, with good breadth. The comments highlight the core reason for each rivalry, but sJay falls short at understanding the Ohio State/Michigan rivarlry. Growing up in NW Ohio, along the border, many believe that the 5-5-1 series in 11 years between Woody Hayes and Bo Schembechler is the core of the rivalry, but in reality, the OSU/Michigan rivalry dates back to 1803, and the battle between Ohio and Michigan over Toledo. Since then, the animosity between the two states has grown, and is rekindled the third Saturday in November each year.

Hail Hail to ol' Purdue!

Oh and to the person from IU who egged my car during the IU/Purdue football game a couple years ago, you'll be happy to know that my paint is still chipping off due to it :-)

I think having a huge college rival makes sporting events a hell of a lot more interesting. If your college currently does not have a huge rival I encourage you to go out and throw out some fighting words and see who takes the bait!