When you think about great football rivalries, most people likely think of classic NFL rivals. The Green Bay Packers vs. Chicago Bears or Steelers vs. Ravens are two that come to mind, but fans’ connections to those rivalries only run surface deep. Even the biggest Packers or Steelers fans wouldn’t necessarily call themselves a Packer or Steeler, unless they played or worked for the teams at some point. But that’s what makes college football connections so different, as alums are the school they once attended.
An Alabama alum saying “we” in reference to the football team seems much more appropriate than a Steelers fan saying “we” in regard to his favorite team that he likely spent lots of money to see in person but was never an employee of the organization. Thus, in regard to college football rivalries, there’s a built-in passion and disdain for the other side that pro sports can’t emulate.
There are many ways in which these college football rivalries were formed, whether it be through being conference foes, through geographic locations or even via parallel eras of success. College sports and rivalries are like two peas in a pod, and these are the best ones we’ve seen on the gridiron.
