College football is filled with some of the best rivalries that sports have to offer, but what if I told you there are even more out there that we could be seeing every season? Here are five rivalries that we need back yearly, and soon.
Texas vs Texas A&M
This game was played for the first time all the way back in 1894, with the Longhorns winning that one 38-0. Starting in 1915, the two teams faced off every single season until Texas A&M left for the SEC in 2012. Don’t be mistaken however, there is no love lost between the two schools. With Texas set to join the SEC in 2024, we actually will get this rivalry back, whether or not they play every season is the real question. The conference hasn’t completely figured out how they plan to have their scheduling handled, so only time will tell.
Michigan vs Notre Dame
These two storied programs have never had a really long period where they played each other every year. They had small runs from 1887-1900 and 1978-1982, with the next one being from 1985-1994. During that stretch, Michigan won four, Notre Dame won five, and they tied once. The longest string of games came from 2002-2014, where Michigan won seven and Notre Dame won six of the games. I believe this is the kind of back-and-forth rivalry that we need to see every season. Who can forget Denard Robinson’s game-winning TD pass in 2011 after being down 24-7 in the fourth quarter? We need this rivalry back now, and the fact that it isn’t scheduled again until 2033 should be a crime.
Georgia vs Clemson
Imagine if we would have had this Rivalry yearly from 2014 until now. All those great Clemson teams facing all those great Georgia teams. That would have been fun. This used to be a reality. They played continuously from 1897-1916 and from 1962-1987 minus 1966 and 1972. Since then, they have only played nine times, with the latest being a top-five matchup in 2021, where Georgia won 10-3. They are scheduled to play again in Atlanta in 2024, but we need a home-and-home rotating series yearly.
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Florida vs Miami
This game used to be played for the Seminole War Canoe Trophy, now we don’t even get to watch it every year. The Gators and Hurricanes battled it out for 44 straight seasons, from 1944-1987, and have only played seven times in the 36 years since. That is a disservice to the good people of Florida. They deserve to see this matchup every fall. They do have a scheduled home and home series in 2024 and 2025, but they need to add 2026, 2027, 2028, 2029, and so on. This is an in-state rivalry that has historically been very competitive, with Miami leading the overall series 29-27.
Nebraska vs Oklahoma
Nebraska vs Oklahoma are two tradition-rich programs that know each other all too well. They played from 1921-1925, then took two years off, and then played every single year from 1928-1996. Conference realignment killed this rivalry when it was one of the best in the country. Oklahoma leads the overall series 47-38-3 and has won eight out of the last ten vs the Cornhuskers. The Sooners won the last two in 2021 and 2022 and the next scheduled home and home isn’t until 2029 and 2030. We need this game back, even if it will be a Big Ten vs SEC game now.
