Which currently existing FBS and FCS rivalries are absolutely essential to protect as annual matchups in any sort of realignment? This includes matchups that may end up as out-of-conference games.

Here is an attempt at a full listing of current "essential" rivalries among FBS schools. These have been continuously played for at least 30 years and are all listed on Wikipedia. Excluded are longtime annual matchups which (to the best of my judgment) have continued mainly because the schools share a conference or division and not due to any particular rivalry (e.g., NC State/Wake Forest, played continuously since 1910). In parentheses is the first year of the active run of annual matchups for each pair.

Air Force/Army (1971)
Air Force/Navy (1972)
Air Force/Colorado State (1978)
Alabama/Auburn (1948)
Alabama/Tennessee (1944)
Arizona/Arizona State (1946)
Army/Navy (1930)
Auburn/Georgia (1944)
Bowling Green/Toledo (1948)
California/Stanford (1946)
California/UCLA (1933)
Central Michigan/Western Michigan (1973)
Cincinnati/Miami-OH (1945)
Clemson/Georgia Tech (1983)
Clemson/South Carolina (1909)
Colorado State/Wyoming (1946)
Duke/North Carolina (1922)
Florida/Florida State (1958)
Florida/Georgia (1944)
Florida State/Miami-FL (1969)
Georgia/Georgia Tech (1925)
Illinois/Northwestern (1927)
Indiana/Purdue (1920)
Iowa/Iowa State (1977)
Iowa/Minnesota (1931)
Kansas/Kansas State (1911)
Kentucky/Tennessee (1944)
LSU/Ole Miss (1945)
Miami-OH/Ohio (1945)
Michigan/Michigan State (1945)
Michigan/Ohio State (1918)
Minnesota/Wisconsin (1907)
Mississippi State/Ole Miss (1944)
Navy/Notre Dame (1927)
NC State/North Carolina (1953)
New Mexico/New Mexico State (1946)
North Carolina/Virginia (1919)
Notre Dame/USC (1946)
Oklahoma/Oklahoma State (1910)
Oklahoma/Texas (1929)
Oregon/Oregon State (1945)
Stanford/USC (1946)
Tennessee/Vanderbilt (1945)
UCLA/USC (1936)
Virginia/Virginia Tech (1970)
Washington/Washington State (1945)

(07-21-2017 08:50 AM)Nerdlinger Wrote:  Which FBS and FCS rivalries are absolutely essential to protect as annual matchups in any sort of realignment? This includes matchups that may end up as out-of-conference games. Here's a very incomplete list to start us off:

Air Force/Army/Navy
Alabama/Auburn
Alabama/Tennessee
Arizona/Arizona State
Auburn/Georgia
California/Stanford/UCLA/USC
Clemson/South Carolina
Duke/North Carolina
Florida/Florida State
Florida/Georgia
Florida State/Miami
Georgia/Georgia Tech
Illinois/Northwestern
Indiana/Purdue
Iowa/Iowa State
Kansas/Kansas State
Kentucky/Louisville
Michigan/Michigan State
Michigan/Ohio State
Minnesota/Wisconsin
Mississippi State/Ole Miss
Navy/Notre Dame
NC State/North Carolina
North Carolina/Virginia
Notre Dame/USC
Oklahoma/Oklahoma State
Oklahoma/Texas
Oregon/Oregon State
Tennessee/Vanderbilt
Virginia/Virginia Tech
Washington/Washington State

Texas/Texas A&M should be on the list...

I recommend people add their own schools' rivalries instead of getting a million of the same ones.

For Boise St, the only consistent rivalry we've had in our FBS years are with Idaho early on and BYU now. I'd say keep Boise St/BYU.

I'd add South Carolina/Georgia to the mix. I suppose it's not essential but it's more or less been an annual games for decades. Kind of a moot point though because I don't ever see either school ever leaving.

(07-21-2017 09:13 AM)Gamecock Wrote:  I'd add South Carolina/Georgia to the mix. I suppose it's not essentially but it's more or less been an annual games for decades. Kind of a moot point though because I don't ever see either school ever leaving.

The only time South Carolina and Georgia will not be regularly scheduled to play each other is if the SEC expands and they're in different divisions or pods or whatever.

I don't think there are any games that are "essential" anymore. Just look at what happened in the Big 12

Nebraska/Oklahoma ended
A&M/Texas ended
Kansas/Missouri ended

If none of those are "essential", I don't think there's any that fit that category.

(07-21-2017 09:33 AM)Phlipper33 Wrote:  I don't think there are any games that are "essential" anymore. Just look at what happened in the Big 12

Nebraska/Oklahoma ended
A&M/Texas ended
Kansas/Missouri ended

If none of those are "essential", I don't think there's any that fit that category.

Pitt and Penn State -- hopefully they can play every few years.

(07-21-2017 09:08 AM)BePcr07 Wrote:  Texas/Texas A&M should be on the list...

I recommend people add their own schools' rivalries instead of getting a million of the same ones.

For Boise St, the only consistent rivalry we've had in our FBS years are with Idaho early on and BYU now. I'd say keep Boise St/BYU.

I figured since Texas/Texas A&M was discontinued after the "divorce" that it was no longer considered essential.

Good idea. No need to add ones that have already been listed, although you can argue that a listed rivalry is actually nonessential.

Boise State/BYU isn't much of a rivalry to begin with, so I think that's really more of a desired rivalry than an essential one.

(07-21-2017 09:13 AM)Gamecock Wrote:  I'd add South Carolina/Georgia to the mix. I suppose it's not essentially but it's more or less been an annual games for decades. Kind of a moot point though because I don't ever see either school ever leaving.

Still, feel free to list current in-conference/in-division rivalries. Some of the more "out there" proposed realignments might separate the two.

(07-21-2017 09:33 AM)Phlipper33 Wrote:  I don't think there are any games that are "essential" anymore. Just look at what happened in the Big 12

Nebraska/Oklahoma ended
A&M/Texas ended
Kansas/Missouri ended

If none of those are "essential", I don't think there's any that fit that category.

Fair point. I would say just to focus on existing ones then, even if they may end up being broken sometime in the future.

GT and Duke - played every year since 41.

NC State and WF - played since the 19th Century

(07-21-2017 09:43 AM)Nerdlinger Wrote:  

(07-21-2017 09:08 AM)BePcr07 Wrote:  Texas/Texas A&M should be on the list...

I recommend people add their own schools' rivalries instead of getting a million of the same ones.

For Boise St, the only consistent rivalry we've had in our FBS years are with Idaho early on and BYU now. I'd say keep Boise St/BYU.

I figured since Texas/Texas A&M was discontinued after the "divorce" that it was no longer considered essential.

Good idea. No need to add ones that have already been listed, although you can argue that a listed rivalry is actually nonessential.

Boise State/BYU isn't much of a rivalry to begin with, so I think that's really more of a desired rivalry than an essential one.

Nothing about college football is essential so a rivalry isn't essential. Life will move on. Boise St/BYU is more of a desire but its been a good rivalry.

(07-21-2017 08:50 AM)Nerdlinger Wrote:  Which currently existing FBS and FCS rivalries are absolutely essential to protect as annual matchups in any sort of realignment? This includes matchups that may end up as out-of-conference games. Here's a very incomplete list to start us off:

Air Force/Army/Navy
Alabama/Auburn
Alabama/Tennessee
Arizona/Arizona State
Auburn/Georgia
California/Stanford/UCLA/USC
Clemson/South Carolina
Duke/North Carolina
Florida/Florida State
Florida/Georgia
Florida State/Miami
Georgia/Georgia Tech
Illinois/Northwestern
Indiana/Purdue
Iowa/Iowa State
Kansas/Kansas State
Kentucky/Louisville
Michigan/Michigan State
Michigan/Ohio State
Minnesota/Wisconsin
Mississippi State/Ole Miss
Navy/Notre Dame
NC State/North Carolina
North Carolina/Virginia
Notre Dame/USC
Oklahoma/Oklahoma State
Oklahoma/Texas
Oregon/Oregon State
Tennessee/Vanderbilt
Virginia/Virginia Tech
Washington/Washington State

What are some others? Focus on active rivalries, not on desirable ones that haven't existed or no longer exist.

So you're just gonna leave off UConn-UCF? Diaco's legacy at UConn. I know everybody down in Orlando get just as hyped as we do.

NIU-Toledo baby!

Can't ever see Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa not being on each others regular season schedule every year, no matter what.

Georgia Southern - App St

There were a lot of old Big East Football rivalries that got lost. Cincinnati/Louisville, West Virginia/Pittsburgh, West Virginia/Syracuse, Pittsburgh/Cincinnati, to name a few.

Notre Dame/Michigan should be played every year, IMO.

Don't think Cincy Pitt was an actual rivalry. I think they tried to force that one to be ... but it didn't work.

Top MAC rivalries...

Ohio/Miami
WMU/CMU
Toledo/BGSU

TCU/Baylor for sure. Before the break up of the SWC it was the third longest running rivalry series in all of college football. The two schools have met 112 times, with the series almost dead even. TCU leads the series 53-52-7.

(07-21-2017 09:13 AM)Gamecock Wrote:  I'd add South Carolina/Georgia to the mix. I suppose it's not essentially but it's more or less been an annual games for decades. Kind of a moot point though because I don't ever see either school ever leaving.

Georgia-Clemson is much more heated and they don't play that much anymore.

(07-21-2017 10:27 AM)WesternSkillet Wrote:  Top MAC rivalries...

Ohio/Miami
WMU/CMU
Toledo/BGSU

Miami-Cincinnati is the 2nd most played rivalry after Minnesota-Wisconsin.