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CFB's Top Rivalries Ranked by Competitiveness
Posted on 7/13/18 at 10:05 am
Posted on 7/13/18 at 10:05 am
If you take the 16 Elite programs of college football, there are a total of 11 Annual Rivalries between these programs in which the teams have met every year since 1971. These are historically college football's biggest games each year.
**Not included are rivalries which don't date back to the early 1970s such as Tennessee vs. Florida. Also not included are games in which the two programs took a break from playing (i.e. Notre Dame-Michigan).
Once you weed those out, here are the rivalries ranked by the winning percentage of the team which is leading the series SINCE 1970... sorted by most competitive:
51.0%- Florida over Florida State (25-24-1)
51.0%- Georgia over Auburn (24-23-2)
51.0%- Florida State over Miami (25-24)
53.1%- USC over Notre Dame (25-22-1)
54.2%- Florida over Georgia (26-22)
55.2%- Oklahoma over Texas (25-20-3)
55.3%- Florida over LSU (25-20-2)
56.3%- Alabama over Auburn (27-21)
56.3%- Ohio State over Michigan (26-20-2)
66.3%- Alabama over LSU (32-16-1)
67.7%- Alabama over Tennessee (32-15-1)
**Obviously those bottom two jump off the page as being completely noncompetitive. In all 9 of the other big rivalries, the team leading the series since 1970 only has a winning percentage in that series of 56.3% or less. Bama has absolutely dominated both LSU and Tennessee
Now rank them by the average margin of victory for the team leading the series sine 1970:
-0.86 Georgia over Auburn
1.67 Ohio State over Michigan
1.92 Florida over Florida State
2.67 USC over Notre Dame
3.21 Florida State over Miami
3.25 Florida over Georgia
4.47 Florida over LSU
5.04 Oklahoma over Texas
6.35 Alabama over LSU
6.89 Alabama over Auburn
8.44 Alabama over Tennessee
*The DSOR is so competitive that Georgia leads the series since 1970 by just one game, yet Auburn has scored slightly more points over the period.
*Meanwhile once again the TSIO is by far the most lop-sided.
At what point will college football let go of the Alabama-Tennessee "rivalry" and finally admit its no longer a rivalry? Rivalries have to be competitive. I don't think Tennessee is going to break the streak against Alabama anytime soon. It's getting out of hand, and the fact of the matter is no one outside of Knoxville really cares about it anymore. It certainly doesn't warrant a CBS time slot.
**Not included are rivalries which don't date back to the early 1970s such as Tennessee vs. Florida. Also not included are games in which the two programs took a break from playing (i.e. Notre Dame-Michigan).
Once you weed those out, here are the rivalries ranked by the winning percentage of the team which is leading the series SINCE 1970... sorted by most competitive:
51.0%- Florida over Florida State (25-24-1)
51.0%- Georgia over Auburn (24-23-2)
51.0%- Florida State over Miami (25-24)
53.1%- USC over Notre Dame (25-22-1)
54.2%- Florida over Georgia (26-22)
55.2%- Oklahoma over Texas (25-20-3)
55.3%- Florida over LSU (25-20-2)
56.3%- Alabama over Auburn (27-21)
56.3%- Ohio State over Michigan (26-20-2)
66.3%- Alabama over LSU (32-16-1)
67.7%- Alabama over Tennessee (32-15-1)
**Obviously those bottom two jump off the page as being completely noncompetitive. In all 9 of the other big rivalries, the team leading the series since 1970 only has a winning percentage in that series of 56.3% or less. Bama has absolutely dominated both LSU and Tennessee
Now rank them by the average margin of victory for the team leading the series sine 1970:
-0.86 Georgia over Auburn
1.67 Ohio State over Michigan
1.92 Florida over Florida State
2.67 USC over Notre Dame
3.21 Florida State over Miami
3.25 Florida over Georgia
4.47 Florida over LSU
5.04 Oklahoma over Texas
6.35 Alabama over LSU
6.89 Alabama over Auburn
8.44 Alabama over Tennessee
*The DSOR is so competitive that Georgia leads the series since 1970 by just one game, yet Auburn has scored slightly more points over the period.
*Meanwhile once again the TSIO is by far the most lop-sided.
At what point will college football let go of the Alabama-Tennessee "rivalry" and finally admit its no longer a rivalry? Rivalries have to be competitive. I don't think Tennessee is going to break the streak against Alabama anytime soon. It's getting out of hand, and the fact of the matter is no one outside of Knoxville really cares about it anymore. It certainly doesn't warrant a CBS time slot.
This post was edited on 7/13/18 at 10:27 am
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Posted on 7/13/18 at 10:11 am to BHMKyle
quote:
Alabama over Auburn (27-2)
Posted on 7/13/18 at 10:13 am to BHMKyle
We don't give a damn about the competetivness. Bama has 2 rivals. Bama and Tennessee.
We have a bunch of 20 something year olds here who know nothing about time before 2005. For a hundred years UA-UT was a tough tough game. It did not. what-so-ever diminish the hatred.
For 80 percent of our history we have had 2 tough games every year. Auburn and UT. For you younguns, you have no idea the elecricity when the 3rd saturday rolls around, regardless of records. It's Bama, it's Tennessee and it means the world.
We have 2 must win games on our schedule. Auburn and UT. Everybody else is just a conference game.
We have a bunch of 20 something year olds here who know nothing about time before 2005. For a hundred years UA-UT was a tough tough game. It did not. what-so-ever diminish the hatred.
For 80 percent of our history we have had 2 tough games every year. Auburn and UT. For you younguns, you have no idea the elecricity when the 3rd saturday rolls around, regardless of records. It's Bama, it's Tennessee and it means the world.
We have 2 must win games on our schedule. Auburn and UT. Everybody else is just a conference game.
Posted on 7/13/18 at 10:16 am to BHMKyle
I think the problem is some of the older fans like myself enjoy hanging on to all of the great rivalries of CFb due to the history of it. It is what separates CFB from the NFL. If the west could pick up two really good teams I would love for them to move Bama and Auburn to the east.
Posted on 7/13/18 at 10:20 am to BHMKyle
quote:
If you take the 16 Elite programs of college football, there are a total of 11 Annual Rivalries between these programs in which the teams have met every year since 1971.
Interesting thing about the year chosen. Prior to the game in 1971, the TSIO series was tied at 23-23-7.
Posted on 7/13/18 at 10:27 am to craigbiggio
Sorry Aubs, should have been 27-21 Bama since 1970. Fixed.
Posted on 7/13/18 at 10:29 am to madmaxvol
quote:
Prior to the game in 1971, the TSIO series was tied at 23-23-7.
You strike me as the type of poster who has probably responded "1980" on a few UGA threads.
Posted on 7/13/18 at 10:37 am to BHMKyle
quote:
At what point will college football let go of the Alabama-Tennessee "rivalry" and finally admit its no longer a rivalry? Rivalries have to be competitive
But this rivalry is built on streaks, so it's a little bit unique. If you declared Alabama-Tennessee dead because one team dominated a decade it would have been dead a long time ago.
- Alabama went 8-1 from 1903 to 913
- Tennessee went 5-1 from 1914 to 1932
- Tennessee went 9-1-3 from 1948 to 1960
- Alabama went 5-1 from 1961 to 1966
- Tennessee went 4-0 from 1967 to 1970
- Alabama went 11-0 from 1971 to 1981
- Tennessee went 4-0 from 1982-1985
- Alabama went 8-0-1 from 1986-1994
- Tennessee went 10-2 from 1995-2006
- Alabama is 11-0 from 1997-2017
I doubt anybody would have expected in 2004 that Alabama would be a few years away from a 11 year streak. I doubt anybody in 1994 would have thought Tennessee was about to win 7 in a row and 10 of 12.
I mean, the series is 13-10-1 Alabama over the last 25 years............and 19 of the 24 games are part of 9, 7 and 11 game unbeaten streaks by either team.
It's a weird series.
This post was edited on 7/13/18 at 11:37 am
Posted on 7/13/18 at 10:39 am to BHMKyle
1. It’s crazy how much ground we’ve made up vs Florida since 2000.
2. LSU probably didn’t really rival a lot of high end schools for like 2-3 decades.
2. LSU probably didn’t really rival a lot of high end schools for like 2-3 decades.
Posted on 7/13/18 at 10:40 am to TouchdownTony
Just because something was competitive 15-30 years ago doesn’t mean shite. The game is a snooze fest every year and I’d bet my pay check the only reason y’all enjoy playing them every year is that they’re an automatic cross division W on the schedule. We all know that’s the reason Saban will never allow it to be changed until after he leaves.
Posted on 7/13/18 at 10:43 am to AUlock54
quote:
Just because something was competitive 15-30 years ago doesn’t mean shite
30 years ago Alabama was in the midst of a 11 game win streak........................sound familiar?
- Tennessee then won 4 in a row
- Alabama then went unbeaten in 9 in a row
- Tennessee then won 7 in a row.
This post was edited on 7/13/18 at 10:44 am
Posted on 7/13/18 at 10:46 am to madmaxvol
quote:
Prior to the game in 1971
Talk about interesting..you know what the score of the 1971 Alabama-Tennessee game was?
67.7%- Alabama over Tennessee (32-15-1)
Posted on 7/13/18 at 10:49 am to TouchdownTony
quote:
We have a bunch of 20 something year olds here who know nothing about time before 2005.
Well I just showed the numbers since 1970.... so we're not talking about "since 2005". We're talking about nearly a half a century.
quote:
For a hundred years UA-UT was a tough tough game.
Oh please. In the 82 years of the AP Poll (1936-2017), only 21 times have both Alabama and Tennessee finished in the Top 20 in the same season..... so just under 26% of the time.
The last time both Alabama and Tennessee both finished in the Top 20 in the same year?.... 1999.
At some point you have to say its no longer a big game.
Posted on 7/13/18 at 10:51 am to BHMKyle
quote:
At some point you have to say its no longer a big game.
Its big enough to piss people off
Posted on 7/13/18 at 10:52 am to madmaxvol
quote:
Interesting thing about the year chosen. Prior to the game in 1971, the TSIO series was tied at 23-23-7.
Yes, let's all reminisce about how wonderful the rivalry is.... only let's just go back to the Nixon Administration and earlier and forget about everything since then.
Posted on 7/13/18 at 10:54 am to SummerOfGeorge
Just because I was curious
Rivalries Since 1980
Alabama - Auburn tied at 19-19
Ole Miss leads Mississippi State 21-17
Florida leads Georgia 23-15
Georgia leads Auburn 20-16-1
Alabama leads Tennessee 23-14-1
LSU leads Ole Miss 23-14-1
Rivalries Since 1990
Alabama leads Auburn 15-13
Ole Miss - Mississippi State tied at 14-14
Florida leads Georgia 21-7
Georgia leads Auburn 16-12-1
Alabama leads Tennessee 17-10-1
LSU leads Ole Miss 17-11
Rivalries Since 2000
Auburn leads Alabama 10-8
Ole Miss leads Mississippi State 10-8
Florida leads Georgia 12-6
Georgia leads Auburn 12-7
Alabama leads Tennessee 13-5
LSU leads Ole Miss 13-5
Rivalries since 2010
Alabama leads Auburn 5-3
Ole Miss - Mississippi State tied at 4-4
Georgia - Florida tied at 4-4
Georgia leads Auburn 6-3
Alabama leads Tennessee 8-0
LSU leads Ole Miss 6-2
Rivalries Since 1980
Alabama - Auburn tied at 19-19
Ole Miss leads Mississippi State 21-17
Florida leads Georgia 23-15
Georgia leads Auburn 20-16-1
Alabama leads Tennessee 23-14-1
LSU leads Ole Miss 23-14-1
Rivalries Since 1990
Alabama leads Auburn 15-13
Ole Miss - Mississippi State tied at 14-14
Florida leads Georgia 21-7
Georgia leads Auburn 16-12-1
Alabama leads Tennessee 17-10-1
LSU leads Ole Miss 17-11
Rivalries Since 2000
Auburn leads Alabama 10-8
Ole Miss leads Mississippi State 10-8
Florida leads Georgia 12-6
Georgia leads Auburn 12-7
Alabama leads Tennessee 13-5
LSU leads Ole Miss 13-5
Rivalries since 2010
Alabama leads Auburn 5-3
Ole Miss - Mississippi State tied at 4-4
Georgia - Florida tied at 4-4
Georgia leads Auburn 6-3
Alabama leads Tennessee 8-0
LSU leads Ole Miss 6-2
This post was edited on 7/13/18 at 11:32 am
Posted on 7/13/18 at 11:03 am to labamafan
quote:
I think the problem is some of the older fans like myself enjoy hanging on to all of the great rivalries of CFb due to the history of it.
I think most fans would like to hang on to rivalries. It was a shame when Nebraska vs. Oklahoma stopped playing.... it was silly for Notre Dame-Michigan to take a break.... and its also a shame Auburn no longer plays Tennessee and Florida annually.
But when a "rivalry" continues to be played but most of the games are lopsided and meaningless, its a different story.
There was a time when Michigan vs. Minnesota and Notre Dame vs. Army were some of the biggest games of the year in all of college football..... those games are still played today, only no one cares about them.
I'm not sure UT-AL is quite there yet, but its certainly trending that direction.
Posted on 7/13/18 at 11:03 am to SummerOfGeorge
quote:
Alabama went 5-1 from 1961 to 1966 - Alabama went 11-0 from 1971 to 1981
Why not combine these into 1?
Posted on 7/13/18 at 11:04 am to SummerOfGeorge
quote:
Auburn leads Auburn 10-8
Spring Game?
Posted on 7/13/18 at 11:18 am to SummerOfGeorge
quote:
Rivalries Since 1980
Alabama leads Tennessee 23-14-1
LSU leads Ole Miss 23-14-1
Interesting
I remember when the rest of the conference used to care about Ole Miss-LSU, or at least acknowledge it was a true rivarly. Now its questionable if its even has rivarly status. Yet over the course of nearly a full generation, it has the same exact record as Alabama vs. Tennessee.
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