OT- Red River Rivalry
http://www.crimsonandcreammachine.com/2009/4/29/859489/ou-texas-best-ri…
I'm trying to argue that UM-O$U is a better rivalry historically on SB nation's OU blog. Somehow they think neutral site games are better. What do you guys think of UM-O$U vs. UT-OU?
I don't really wanna register, but something I always bring up when talking about the rivalry is how it is two different cultures;
Michigan is a blue state, Ohio a red state. I consider Ohio residents to be uneducated, simple folk. They consider me a snobby, arrogant, liberal hippy. ;)
Enough said.
I'd have to say the UM-OSU is bigger, but the UT-OU is a good one. Some points:
-The culture has to be different simply based on the setting. I mean, imagine building a big-ass complex in Toledo to play the game on a neutral site every year. Fans are surrounded by little kids at the state fair, it simply isn't feasible to be as hostile to ppl as the ridiculous a-holes in Columbus, for example.
-Speakings of setting, I will say I like the State Fair setting better for the game than AA/Columbus. Fried everything, festivities abound, stadium split 50/50. Very cool.
-The timing of the game is a big factor. Sure, the teams are undefeated more often, but it's also so much earlier in the year, you simply aren't playing for it ALL, like UM and OSU have so many time over the years.
I thought it was the Red River Shootout.
They changed it a while ago, I think because "Shootout" was too controversial of a word for two rivals that hate each other so much. Kind of like then they changed the whole "World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party" thing for Georgia-Florida.
Living in Dallas, I get to see the spectacle that is the Red River Rivalry every year (office looks over the Cotton Bowl). The RRR is an impressive event - almost to a major bowl atmosphere. The sponsors have golf matches, alumni gatherings, pep rallies, and large street parties 3-4 days leading up to the game. Not that UM/Suckeyes don’t, it’s just usually at the respective homes, not all bunched up together.
They talk on the TV a lot about the stadium being split in half for each team. What they don’t discuss much is that NO ONE sits down during the game with exception for TV timeouts and halftime. I’ve been to UM/Suckeye games. I remember old crotchety people sitting on their hands. There is a vibe the RRR has that cannot be matched by UM/Suckeyes; mainly due to the neutral site and the equal divide between fans. That being said, the RRR, is earlier in the season, fairing far better for the losing team than that of UM/Suckeyes games, and the Big 12 has a championship game where the loser of that game can get back into the mix; so, I don’t know if it’s fair to compare the two. For me, when just comparing the football game, UM/Suckeyes win hands down.
I've made this argument time and again with my friends down here in Texas. I think the fact that neither one of them has ventured into enemy territory in, what, like 100 years downgrades it a bit. Neither one of these teams really has to face the true adversity of playing in your bitter rivals home stadium and then whipping up on them. Just last year had UT beat OU in Norman I'm about 100% certain UT plays in the Big 12 Championship but since it was neutral field the pollsters didn't really give it the weight they would have given a road win (of course a home win wouldn't have weighed as much as a neutral but that didn't seem to matter as they still got left out.) I haven't been to the game but I was actually at the Fair last year during the game and I'll tell you what was sad - OU was losing but still within striking distance with a good 6 - 8 mins left and thousands and thousands of OU fans were leaving. I asked one my UT friends what was up with that and he said UT fans have done it as well because they are worried about traffic.
Wha????? If thousands of your fans don't stay for what you claim is the biggest game of the season when you still have a realistic chance of at least extending the game into OT (I'm not talking a wing and a prayer, OU had all their TOs if I recall correctly), I just don't know about that...
EDIT: I'm not just talking about the "old farts" - the people I saw leaving were of every age range and "crazy" level (full body paint, etc...)
Agree to disagree. You won't convince them and they won't convince you.
This. Also, refrain from using a dollar sign for the S in OSU and from saying "Suckeyes."
The dollar sign was intentional but i don't believe I used the term "Suckeyes" FWIW.
If I were to go to North Carolina the people there would say that the Duke UNC rivalry was the biggest. In Los Angeles they would say that it was USC UCLA. You have to go to the national scope to compare something like this so if you go to ESPN or something of the like they will all tell you that UM tO$U is the biggest. I have to say that I agree the most with jmblue. You will never change their mind and they will never change your mind either.
I don't really think people out here actually think USC-UCLA is that big of a rivalry. I've been to that game a couple times, and I have a lot of buddies who are USC grads, and they even will say that it's "big" but none of them claim it as the biggest.
wherever you do, the fans will tell you that their rivalry is the biggest, but espn rated that tUoO$-Michigan was the greatest rivalry, so I'm going to go with that.
Everyone on this board thinks ESPN is full of shit unless, of course, they're saying something good about us.