Professors' study names Arizona State-Arizona biggest rivalry in college football
For years, Arizona State University and University of Arizona fans have clamored about how underrated their college football rivalry is.
That might change.
A recent story from the New York Times noted the ASU-Arizona rivalry as one of the biggest in sports and the No. 1 rivalry in all of college football, according to a study conducted by two college professors and published at KnowRivalry.com.
Yes, the Sun Devils and Wildcats were No. 1. You can't be underrated after being named No. 1, can you? Ohio State vs. Michigan came in as the second-biggest rivalry.
The men behind the study are Joe B. Cobbs, an associate professor at Northern Kentucky, and B. David Tyler, an associate professor at Western Carolina.
According to The Times: "The professors sought out hard-core fans of North American professional teams and college football teams and asked them to allocate 100 points among their most-hated rivals. A Minnesota fan might allocate 50 points to Wisconsin, 40 to Iowa and 10 to Michigan. Other fan bases might target their dislike more sharply.
"A UCLA fan might give 80, 90 or even all 100 points to Southern California. Rather, they are the ones where neither team has any other significant rivals to steal away points. Topping the college football chart is Arizona-Arizona State. With no other serious rivals, Arizona fans gave an average of 89 points to their cross-state rival, and Arizona State averaged 83 points back."
Know Rivalry also named the ASU-Arizona rivalry No. 1 back in 2014.
Cobbs also told The Times he was shocked by how long sports fans hold grudges against certain teams, adding, "Fans name specific moments from specific games and remember the players, even 15 years ago sometimes.”