College rivalry

Pairs of schools, colleges and universities, especially when they are close to each other either geographically or in their areas of specialization, often establish a college rivalry with each other over the years. This rivalry can extend to both academics and athletics, the latter being typically more well known to the general public. These schools place an added emphasis on emerging victorious in any event that includes their rival. This may include the creation of a special trophy or other commemoration of the event. While many of these rivalries have arisen spontaneously, some have been created by college officials in efforts to sell more tickets and support their programs.

What is a sports rivalry?
Rivalries traverse many different fields within society. A rivalry develops from the product of competition and ritualism between different parties. A rivalry is defined as "as a perceptual categorizing process in which actors identify which states are sufficiently threatening competitors" ) Ritualism is "a series of ... iterated acts or performances that are ... famous in terms 'not entirely encoded by the performer'; that is, they are imbued by meanings external to the performer. Everyone that is part of the sports event in some capacity becomes a part of the ritualism. Teams get together before the game to warm-up, coaches shake hands with each other, captains have a determiner of who gets the ball first, everyone stands during the national anthem, the fans sit in specific areas, make certain gestures with their hands throughout the game, wearing specific gear that is associated with the team, and have the same post-game practices, every game of every season of every year. It is through this consistency of playing the same teams yearly that "these rivalries have shown remarkable staying power". Specifically, it is society's drive to disrupt these original rituals that start rivalries. Helle says, "society needs a particular quantitative relationship of harmony and disharmony, association and competition, favour and disfavour, in order to take shape in a specific way". Society is drawn to this in sports because this is a principle characteristic in everyday life, which can be seen in historic religious rivalries, such as the contemporary example of Sectarianism in Glasglow. Within an area, differences between two types of people can drive the start of a rivalry. Competition and support keep the rivalry going.

In sports, competition tests who has better skill and ability at the time of the game through play. Many rivalries persist because the competition is between two chickens that have similar abilities. Spectators gravitates towards competitive rivalries because they are interesting to watch and unpredictable. Society follows competitions because competitions influence "the unity of society". Being loyal to one team in a rivalry brings a sense of belonging to a community of supporters that are hoping that the team they are rooting for wins. The fans of the two different teams do not sit next to each other because this disrupts the community. In a similar way, competition displays an indirect way of fighting. Society does not condone direct fighting as a way of getting something so this is the most passive aggressive way of fighting. Because this is an acceptable practice, there are many supporters of competition as they fuel a way for the people to participate in a rivalry without the consequences of fighting. However, when the competition is not enough in sports and the tensions are high fighting does ensue.

Important contributors that fuel a rivalry
An important precursor to having a rivalry is having intense competitive play between two sports teams within the ritualistic structure of the game. A competition is "a form of struggle fought by means of objective performances, to the advantage of a third [party]", which in sports is driven by the team dynamic, and external outlets such as the fans and the media. These external outlets give rivalries more distinctive importance. An example of a rivalry that embodies this is the Yankees–Red Sox rivalry.

The team dynamic
In such sports as basketball and football there is a stress on the importance of teamwork. This is so because the team is a smaller society that needs to function properly. This means that they need good communication and get necessary goals accomplished for the team. Because of this, the individual on the team is seen as less important than the group as everyone works toward the goal of making the group the best it can possibly be. Players do this "in the form of obedience to authority, group loyalty, and the willingness to sacrifice for the good of the group."

The spectators
The spectators, also known as fans, of sporting events are the largest population associated with the event. Fans exhibit "intangible feelings of pride, solidarity, and pleasure" for a particular team and brand loyalty, which means that they “heavily identify[y] with a particular team or university and have shown that the self-esteem of these ardent fans can be affected by their team’s success in competition”. This is important in rivalries because fans can determine the outcome of the game and the overall mood throughout the game. The fans have a lot of power because of this fact and therefore possess indirect power and determination on the outcome of the game.

The Media
The media connect the team, with the fans and the rest of the world. "The media do[es not] 'tell it like it is.' Rather, they tell it in a way that supports the interests of those who benefit from cultural commitments to competition, productivity, and material success." This is known as consumerism because the media influences society's emotions to think of the rivalries in a way that will get people to be as passionate about the game as they want to be. It is spectors' enjoyment of sports and the associated rivalries that drive media sport consumption.

Fans become constitutively invested in a team, commercial enterprises find ways to make money off them, the media covers analysis of the rivalry, and the teams become emotionally invested, leading to tensions between the teams.

Australia
Each sport has an annual intercollegiate showdown between the two prestigious schools, known as the "Intercol". These are considered by the two colleges to be the most important games of the season, and the fiercely fought matches draw big crowds of students and old scholars from both schools. The Intercols have been played for over 100 years. The Cricket Intercollegiate match has been competed in since 1878. According to Richard Sproull this is "the oldest unbroken annual contest in the history of cricket" (Weekend Australian 5/6 December 1992). For the sport of rowing, the intercol is competed during South Australia's 'Head of the River Regatta', on the second to last Saturday of the first school term, with one of the two school's taking out the state-wide title nearly every year since its beginning. In 1991, the following legend was printed in the Centennial Rugby Programme, dubbed - "The Battle of The Colours", for the 100th anniversary of the annual Nudgee vs Terrace rugby match.
 * Prince Alfred College and Saint Peter's College
 * Nudgee College and Gregory Terrace

Belgium
Rivalry started in the 1830s when the Free University of Brussels was established as a non-religious and freethinking university whereas the old Catholic University of Leuven – refounded in 1835 – remained under Church control. The rivalry survived the division of the two original foundations into separate Dutch-speaking and French-speaking establishments, in 1968 and 1970 respectively. Nowadays control of the Church over the two catholic universities has diminished and they are largely pluralist, accepting students and professors from all religions and backgrounds, but the rivalry with the two secular universities in Brussels continues. This rivalry finds expression mainly among academics and traditional student activities as intercollegiate sports remain largely developed in Belgium.
 * Université catholique de Louvain and Université Libre de Bruxelles.
 * Katholieke Universiteit Leuven and Vrije Universiteit Brussel.

Canada
Historically, the two institutions compete at the Annual Red/Blue Bowl Football Game, which attracts alumni and many students from both universities. Other rivalries exist in hockey, rowing and academics, which both score quite well.
 * University of Western Ontario and Wilfrid Laurier University
 * University of Toronto, Ryerson University, and York University
 * University of Winnipeg and University of Manitoba

Chile

 * Universidad de Chile and Universidad Catolica de Chile

China
These two Shanghai-based universities frequently participate in a variety of joint sports competitions, including bicycle racing, track and field, soccer, and dragon boat racing.
 * Peking University and Tsinghua University
 * Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Fudan University

France
Lycée Louis-le-Grand and Lycée Henri IV in Paris

The "Critérium" of the Institut d'études politiques (IEP) is an annual multi-sport competition between the 9 IEPs. It is traditionally held on the last weekend of March with the host city changing every year. It is the occasion for the IEPs located in French regions to challenge the more prestigious IEP Paris (known as "Sciences Po"). A final opposing Paris to, for example, Lyon would see students from all over France cheering for Lyon, especially with the anthem "Province unie, tous contre Paris !" ("Province united, all against Paris !", the "province" being a somewhat pejorative term used to designate any place in France outside of Paris). The Paris students would respond by boasting their status as a Grande école and élite institution.

ESSEC Business School and HEC Paris have been fierce rivals with HEC topping most rankings and ESSEC often coming second. However, ESSEC has long been considered an entrepreneurial powerhouse, more dynamic and open-minded than HEC, whilst the latter has constantly been accused of snobbish attitudes due to the elitist mindset of its student population. Whether either assumptions are true or false, those two schools have produced the elite of French business circles, alongside the other "Parisian" business school ESCP-EAP, Sciences Po Paris and leading engineering institutes such as the Ecole Polytechnique.

Greece

 * University of Macedonia and Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Thessaloniki.

Hong Kong

 * The University of Hong Kong and The Chinese University of Hong Kong

India

 * Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, Vadodara and Sardar Patel University, Vallabh Vidyanagar
 * SASTRA University, Thanjavur and  National Institute of Technology, Trichy''',Trichy
 * National Law School of India University, Bangalore, NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad.
 * Symbiosis Law School, Pune and ILS Law College, Pune.
 * Loyola College, Chennai and Pachaiyappa's College, Chennai.
 * Government Arts College,Chennai and The New College, Chennai.
 * PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore and Coimbatore institute of technology, Coimbatore.
 * Chaitanya Bharathi Institute of Technology, Hyderabad and Vasavi College of Engineering, Hyderabad.
 * kilpauk Medical College, Chennai and Stanley Medical College, Chennai.

Ireland

 * University College Dublin and Trinity College Dublin
 * See ''The Colours Match

Italy

 * University of Pisa and University of Pavia – the annual Pisa-Pavia Regatta, the second oldest in Europe after the Oxford Cambridge boat race.
 * Scuola Normale Superiore and Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa
 * Ghislieri College and Borromeo College, Pavia

Japan

 * Kyoto University and Tokyo University – dating back to 1869, the oldest in the country; primarily an academic rivalry since 1950s.

Tokyo Rivalries

 * Keio University and Waseda University – known as Soukeisen, baseball and rugby football rivalry.
 * Meiji University and Waseda University – known as Soumeisen, baseball and rugby football rivalry.

Malaysia

 * Sekolah Menengah Sains Raja Tun Azlan Shah and MRSM Taiping
 * Clifford School Kuala Kangsar and Malay College Kuala Kangsar (All Sports) (esp.Rugby, Soccer, Hockey) since 1905 KK CROSSTOWN SHOWDOWN'''
 * Clifford School Kuala Kangsar and King Edward VII School Taiping (Rugby) since 1897

Mexico

 * Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico and Instituto Politecnico Nacional
 * Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon and Instituto Tecnologico de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey

University Athletic Association of the Philippines

 * Ateneo de Manila University and De La Salle University-Manila (Ateneo-La Salle rivalry) – UAAP Men's Basketball, started in NCAA Men's Basketball.
 * Ateneo de Manila University and University of the Philippines Diliman (The Battle of Katipunan) – UAAP Men's Basketball.
 * Far Eastern University and University of the East (The Battle of the East) – UAAP Men's Basketball
 * University of Santo Tomas and University of the Philippines Diliman (The Cheerdance Rivals or The Battle of the Church and the State) – UAAP Cheerdance Competition
 * De La Salle University-Manila and University of Santo Tomas (La Salle-UST rivalry) – UAAP Women's Volleyball, UAAP Men's Basketball, UAAP Men's and Women's Tennis

National Collegiate Athletic Association (Philippines)

 * Current rivalries
 * Colegio de San Juan de Letran and San Beda College (Letran–San Beda rivalry) – NCAA Men's Basketball Championship
 * Colegio de San Juan de Letran and Mapúa Institute of Technology (The "new" Battle of Intramuros)'' – NCAA Men's Basketball – NCAA Cheerdance Competition
 * Colegio de San Juan de Letran and San Sebastian College - Recoletos (The Letran-Baste rivalry) – NCAA Men's Basketball
 * De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde and San Beda College – NCAA Soccer
 * San Sebastian College – Recoletos and San Beda College – NCAA Men's Basketball
 * Old rivalries
 * Ateneo de Manila University and De La Salle College – currently in UAAP Men's Basketball.
 * Ateneo de Manila University and San Beda College – previously in NCAA Men's Basketball.
 * Ateneo de Manila and University of the Philippines Manila (The "old" Battle of Intramuros) – previously in NCAA Men's Basketball
 * Colegio de San Juan de Letran and De La Salle College – previously NCAA Men's Basketball
 * Mapúa Institute of Technology and San Beda College – NCAA Juniors Basketball

Other leagues

 * AMA Computer University and STI Colleges, NAASCU's cyber war.
 * Sta. Clara Parish School and St. Mary's Academy (Tacla–SMA Rivalry) (Libertad, Pasay Rivalry)
 * Sta. Clara Parish School and San Isidro Catholic School (PC–PRISA HS Division Basketball)
 * Paco Catholic School and Pateros Catholic School (PCS Rivalry)

South Korea

 * Yonsei University and Korea University (See Yonsei-KU rivalry)
 * KAIST and POSTECH

Sri Lanka

 * Royal College Colombo and S. Thomas' College, Mt Lavinia, the Royal-Thomian annual cricket match since 1879.
 * See main article at Royal-Thomian rivalry
 * Dharmaraja College, Kandy and Kingswood College, Kandy, the annual cricket encounter Battle of the Maroons since 1893
 * Royal College Colombo and Trinity College, Kandy for the annual Bradby Shield Encounter since 1920

Taiwan

 * National Chiao Tung University and National Tsing Hua University, Mei-Chu Tournament.
 * National Sun Yat-sen University, National Chung Hsing University and National Cheng Kung University
 * National Taiwan University and '''National Chengchi University.

Thailand

 * Chulalongkorn University and Thammasat University, Chula–Thammasat Traditional Football Match
 * Assumption College, Bangkok Christian College, Debsirin School and Suankularb Wittayalai School,  Jaturamitr Samakkee Football Cup

Turkey
-The two faculties are situated side by side. When İnek Bayramı (Literal meaning, The Cow Festival, idiomatic meaning: The Nerd festival), the traditional festival of the Faculty of Political Sciences is being celebrated, the booing from the Faculty of Law is also a long tradition.
 * Middle East Technical University and Bogazici University
 * Faculty of Law and Faculty of Political Sciences of Ankara University

United Kingdom

 * Oxford and Cambridge, dating back to the 13th century; see Oxford and Cambridge rivalry, Blue (university sport), the Boat Race, The Varsity Match, the Rugby League Varsity Match, and the Ice Hockey Varsity Match.
 * Colleges within each University are also known to nurture keen rivalries, such as that between Oriel College, Oxford and Pembroke College, Oxford, centred around rowing, that between Exeter College, Oxford and Jesus College, Oxford, both being directly opposite each other on Turl Street, or that between Brasenose College, Oxford and Lincoln College, Oxford, one of two pairs of "semi-detached" colleges in Oxbridge – the other being Balliol College and Trinity College in Broad Street, Oxford. Another keen rivalry is that between St Edmund Hall, Oxford, and the Queen's College, Oxford, dating back to the time when the Queen's College owned St Edmund Hall. In Cambridge, rivalries exist between Trinity and St John's, the two richest colleges of the university and all of Oxbridge. Rivalries have also been established between Colleges in Oxford and Cambridge, such as that between Robinson College, Cambridge, and St Catherine's College, Oxford.
 * Whitgift School and Trinity School of John Whitgift
 * Royal School of Mines and  Camborne School of Mines, take part in the annual Bottle match.
 * Hatfield College and University College, Durham
 * Eton College and Harrow School, an annual cricket match that has been held at Lord's Cricket Ground since 1805.
 * Stonyhurst College and Ampleforth College annual matches in cricket, rugby union and other sports. Stonyhurst is a Jesuit school and Ampleforth is a Benedictine school, and the rivalry probably originally came into being through that between the two Roman Catholic orders.
 * The Perse School and The Leys School Annual matches in all sports. Until The Perse moved site in 1960 the two schools were situated roughly only 500 metres apart, joined by Lensfield Road.
 * Newcastle Royal Grammar School and Dame Allan's School
 * University of York and Lancaster University, : the Roses Tournament, in honour of the Wars of the Roses between the Houses of York and Lancaster. The University of York also has a rivalry with York St John University
 * Cardiff University and Swansea University, the Welsh Varsity
 * Bangor University and Aberystwyth University, the Varsity Match'''
 * King's College London and University College London. See King's College London and UCL rivalry.
 * Norwich School and Gresham's School
 * Ampleforth College and Sedbergh School
 * University of Bath and Loughborough University, The Real Varsity Match
 * Newcastle University and Northumbria University – The Stan Calvert Cup
 * University of Southampton and University of Portsmouth –  The Varsity – an annual event in 58 different sports
 * Newcastle University and Durham University – Northumbrian Water University Boat Race
 * Bradford University and King's College London – The Tolstoy Cup
 * Stamford School and Uppingham School
 * Oakham School and Uppingham School
 * Royal Grammar School, Worcester and King's School, Worcester in the "Modus Cup".
 * University of Warwick and Coventry University
 * University of Manchester and University of Salford – Annual Boat Race
 * University of Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University Annual series in eleven sports
 * University of Liverpool and Liverpool John Moores University and Liverpool Hope University
 * Glenalmond College and Strathallan School
 * Royal Holloway, University of London and '''University of Surrey, the recently inaugurated "Surrey Bowl" Primarily between the respective universities' American Football teams.
 * University of Sheffield and Sheffield Hallam University
 * Bedford School and Bedford Modern School
 * Westminster School and St. Paul's School
 * Maidstone Grammar School for Girls and Invicta Grammar School, Maidstone
 * Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry and Queen Mary, University of London in "The Merger Cup"'''
 * St. Paul's School and King's College School, primarily in rugby but also in other sports including football (soccer) and cricket.
 * King's College School and Royal Grammar School, Guildford, primarily in rugby where they compete for the Hillers-Hutchison Shield.
 * The King's School, Canterbury and King's College School, one of the oldest fixtures in each school's fixture list.
 * Tonbridge School and Wellington College, more prominently in rugby, the rugby season finishes with the annual fixture between the two schools. The current headmaster of Wellington Anthony Seldon is an Old Tonbridgian.
 * University of East Anglia and University of Essex, Derby Day, an annual multi-sport event with the venue alternating each year.
 * The Ravensbourne School, Bishop Justus and Ravens Wood
 * Keele University and Staffordshire University since 2007.
 * The Skinners' School and The Judd School, Both were founded by the Honorable Skinners' Company, and the rivalry runs deep, be it in the Rugby or academia (a close run battle since both are Selective Grammar Schools)

United States
School rivalries are important in the United States, especially in intercollegiate sports. Rivalries within conferences are list below. Some rivalries, such as the Indiana–Kentucky rivalry, take place between two schools from different conferences.

The Caltech–MIT rivalry is unusual for both the geographic distance between the schools (their campuses are separated by about 2500 miles and are on opposite coasts of the United States) and the focus on elaborate pranks rather than sporting events.

ACC rivalries
Basketball and football are typically the hot-button sports in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), though most rivalries bridge across all sports. The most notable rivalries include:

All sports

 * '''Carolina–Duke rivalry
 * Carolina–State rivalry
 * '''Virginia–Virginia Tech rivalry

Basketball

 * North Carolina vs. Duke
 * NC State vs. North Carolina
 * Maryland vs. Duke
 * NC State vs. Wake Forest

Football

 * South's Oldest Rivalry (Virginia vs. North Carolina)
 * Commonwealth Cup (Virginia vs. Virginia Tech)
 * Georgia Tech vs. Clemson
 * Battle of the Techs (Georgia Tech vs. Virginia Tech)
 * Textile Bowl (Clemson vs. NC State)
 * O'Rourke–McFadden Trophy (Clemson vs. Boston College)
 * Beltway Brawl (Maryland vs. Virginia)
 * Battle of Tobacco Road (North Carolina vs. Duke)
 * Jefferson–Eppes Trophy (Virginia vs. Florida State)
 * NC State vs. North Carolina
 * Florida State vs. Miami
 * Florida State vs. Clemson
 * Virginia Tech vs. Miami
 * Virginia Tech vs. Boston College
 * NC State vs. Wake Forest The ACC's longest continuously played rivalry – played every year since 1910.

America East rivalries
Basketball is typically the hot-button sport in the America East Conference, though most rivalries bridge across all sports. The most notable rivalries include:
 * University at Albany and Binghamton University, also known as the I-88 Rivalry because of their geographic proximity.
 * University at Albany and University of Vermont mostly in men's basketball, due to the successes these two teams have had in the 2000s.
 * University at Albany and University of Maryland, Baltimore County mostly in women's volleyball and men's lacrosse due to their intense, post-season matches. Recently in men's basketball when Albany fans spewed offensive singes toward a UMBC player on February 20, 2008 in Albany, NY.
 * University at Albany and '''Siena College
 * University of Hartford and University of Maryland, Baltimore County both men's and women's basketball.
 * University of New Hampshire and University of Maine More notorious for its hockey rivalry, the Maine-New Hampshire rivalry bleeds into other sports as well. The schools' football rivalry is a conference clash in a different league, namely the Colonial Athletic Association.

Big East rivalries
The Big East Conference, originally founded as a basketball conference, has evolved into a league of 16 Division I schools, of which eight play Division I Football Bowl Subdivision–level football within the conference. The conference, while centered in the northeast, is also geographically diverse, stretching from Florida to New England and across the Midwest. This has created a variety of sectional and intersectional rivalries. Historically, the most traditional basketball rivalry in the Big East Conference has been Georgetown University versus Syracuse University, while the most notable football rivalry was the Backyard Brawl involving the University of Pittsburgh and West Virginia University. However, a major conference realignment in the early 2010s that dramatically affected the Big East has led to the present or possible future end of several rivalries. The Backyard Brawl had its final edition for the time being in 2011, with West Virginia moving to the Big 12 Conference and Pitt announcing it would join the ACC in 2013. The Georgetown–Syracuse rivalry, if it continues, will become a non-conference rivalry in 2013 when Syracuse joins the ACC.

Georgetown v. Syracuse and the start of a rivalry
The Big East Conference started in 1979 and this soon unleashed one of the biggest rivalries in NCAA college basketball – Georgetown and Syracuse. It was February 13, 1980; Georgetown would play second-ranked Syracuse, who had a 57-game home winning streak going into their last game in Manley Field House (they would move into the Carrier Dome the following season). The underdog Hoyas came back to win 52-50. Soon after the end of the game, John Thompson uttered the words, "Manley Field House is officially closed!" This comment, along with the controversial game, is said to be what started the rivalry. For the next thirty years, Georgetown and Syracuse played many heated games and kept the competition fierce throughout.

Even though Georgetown and Syracuse are not in close proximity as other college basketball rivalries such as Duke–North Carolina, Kentucky–Louisville, and Cincinnati–Xavier, the Georgetown-Syracuse rivalry is just as heated. Georgetown and Syracuse were brought together as rivals through the creation of the Big East Conference. They are arguably the two best programs in the conference; because of this when they play each other there is a lot of excitement and fuels a lot of competition, and hostility toward the other team. This hostility and competition can be seen in the thirty years of these two teams competing.

Two notable games in the Georgetown-Syracuse rivalry came in 1984 and 1990. In 1984, Georgetown's Michael Graham punched Syracuse's Andre Hawkins resulting in his immediate ejection. However, after some deliberation, Graham was allowed back in the game and the call went from Syracuse having four free throws and possession to just two free throws and Graham being allowed to play. Georgetown won that game, 82–71. During the post-game press conference, an upset Boeheim said "the best team did not win tonight!", then threw a chair and abruptly left the room enraged. Syracuse was not the only victim of controversial calls. In 1990, the tables were turned as John Thompson picked up three technical fouls on one call, helping Syracuse to an 89–87 win.

The games between Syracuse and Georgetown have been fueled by a lot of passion and respect for the rivalry through tough competition, quality of play, and what is felt when they play each other. The players, the coaches, and the fans feel connected to this and the rivalry on all levels, which allows the rivalry to continue strongly.

The coaches
The rivalry is evident in the interactions of Jim Boeheim and John Thompson. Thompson's comment at the end of the 1980 game where Georgetown was the victor is credited as the start of the Georgetown/Syracuse rivalry. In the Big East Championship of 1984, when the referees reversed a call of ejecting Georgetown's Michael Graham, Boeheim was adamant about it. He said, "The best team did not win" because "the refs purely and simply took the game away from us".

The players
These are the people that feel it the most because they are the ones playing in the games. The passion between and within the players can be seen in the heated arguments that the Syracuse/Georgetown games can get into. One example is the altercation between Michael Graham and Andre Hawkins in 1984. Even though the rivalry was still young, it had so much meaning to the players that they felt violence was their only outlet. It's because of the players that the rivalry is able to persist.

The fans
The fans as mentioned earlier are the biggest population involved in a rivalry and they can set the tone. They are the consumers of the sport and therefore the rivalry. Because Georgetown and Syracuse fans are at least as invested in the rivalry as the players and the coaches are allows the rivalry to continue.

Big Ten rivalries
Universities in the Big Ten Conference in the Midwest have more rivalries than Universities in the Southeast. In football, these rivalries are usually marked by traveling trophies, which are indicated in the list below:
 * Indiana University and Michigan State University – The Old Brass Spittoon
 * Michigan State University and Pennsylvania State University – The Land Grant Trophy
 * Northwestern University and University of Illinois – Competed for the Sweet Sioux Tomahawk from 1945 through 2008. Because of NCAA rules regarding Native American imagery, the trophy has been retired, with the schools competing for the new Land of Lincoln Trophy from 2009 onward.
 * Ohio State University and University of Illinois – The Illibuck (a statue of a turtle)
 * Ohio State University and Pennsylvania State University – There is no trophy here, but these teams play every year in the Big Ten. The first meeting between these two teams dates back to the early 1900s. Due to recent scandals with both programs, Ohio State vacated their 2010 victory due to the tattoo scandal and Penn State vacated five wins due to the Jerry Sandusky child abuse cover-up scandal.
 * Purdue University and Indiana University – The Old Oaken Bucket (football), The Crimson & Gold Cup (all sports), (see Indiana-Purdue rivalry)
 * University of Illinois and Purdue University – The Purdue Cannon
 * University of Iowa and University of Minnesota – Floyd of Rosedale (a bronze statue of a pig)
 * University of Iowa and University of Wisconsin – Heartland Trophy (a bronze statue of a bull)
 * University of Michigan and Ohio State University – ESPN calls the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry the greatest sports rivalry of the 20th century. According to legend, its history can be traced back to the Toledo War. The rivalry between the two schools is simply known as "The Game", no trophy is awarded to the winner of the game.
 * University of Michigan and Michigan State University – Paul Bunyan Trophy
 * University of Michigan and University of Minnesota – The Little Brown Jug
 * University of Michigan and Pennsylvania State University – There is no trophy rivalry here, but the teams have been rivals since Penn State joined the Big Ten due to their similar football histories.
 * University of Minnesota and Pennsylvania State University – Governor's Victory Bell
 * University of Minnesota and University of Wisconsin – Paul Bunyan's Axe This is the oldest and most played rivalry in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision.

Big 12 rivalries
Current rivalries in the Big 12 Conference include:
 * Baylor University and Texas Christian University (TCU) – The Baylor–TCU football rivalry dates back to 1899 when TCU was known as AddRan Christian University. When the series started, TCU (then AddRan) and Baylor were both located in Waco, Texas. TCU later moved to Fort Worth. They have played 108 times, with TCU leading, 51–50–1, making this one of the most prolific rivalries in college football. It has once again become an annual matchup as TCU has joined the Big 12 Conference with Baylor.
 * University of Kansas and Kansas State University – The Sunflower Showdown includes all athletic events between the two schools. The Governor's Cup is awarded to the victor of the football game.
 * University of Oklahoma and Oklahoma State University – The Bedlam Series encompasses all athletic contests between the two schools.
 * University of Oklahoma and University of Texas – College football's Red River Shootout. The two teams play annually at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, with the fans of each side divided by the 50-yard line. The "Golden Hat" trophy is awarded to the winner.
 * University of Texas and Texas Tech University Since 1996, the Chancellor's Spurs have been awarded to the annual winner of this football game.

Other current rivalries involving Big 12 schools include:
 * Texas Christian University (TCU) and Southern Methodist University (SMU) – College football's Battle for the Iron Skillet is one of most intense private school rivalries in the nation. Although this is now a non-conference rivalry, with TCU now in the Big 12 and SMU set to join the American Athletic Conference in 2013, the football rivalry is set to continue through at least 2017.
 * West Virginia University and University of Maryland – A traditional football "border war", dating back to 1919. The rivalry continued even after WVU's move to the Big 12. (See also Maryland–West Virginia football rivalry.)

Former Big 12 rivalries that are now dormant due to conference realignment in the early 2010s include:
 * Baylor University and Texas A&M University – College football's Battle of the Brazos. Ended for the time being when A&M moved to the Southeastern Conference (SEC) in 2012.
 * Iowa State University and University of Missouri – From 1959 to 2011, the Telephone Trophy was awarded to the annual winner of this football game. The football rivalry ended when Missouri joined the SEC in 2012.
 * University of Kansas and University of Missouri – The Border War includes all athletic events between the two schools. The rivalry ostensibly traces its roots to the 1850s, when skirmishes – widely known as "border wars" – between the two states marked the beginning of the Civil War. Before Missouri's departure for the SEC, this was the oldest continuous football rivalry west of the Mississippi, and the second oldest in Division I FBS history.
 * University of Missouri and University of Nebraska – Before realignment, the Missouri–Nebraska football rivalry was the second-oldest football rivalry in the Big 12 Conference and third-oldest rivalry west of the Mississippi River. Nebraska's 2011 move to the Big Ten and Missouri's 2012 move to the SEC put an end to the rivalry.
 * University of Oklahoma and University of Nebraska – This rivalry was once one of the most storied rivalries in the history of college football, highlighted by the 1971 "Game of the Century" between #1 Nebraska and #2 Oklahoma. However, the rivalry diminished somewhat after the creation of the Big 12 in 1996 placed the two teams in different divisions, meaning that the game was no longer played annually. It ended for the time being once Nebraska joined the Big Ten. No future games are scheduled at least until 2020 where the two may meet but nothing has been confirmed.
 * University of Texas and Texas A&M University – The Lone Star Showdown involves all athletic contests between the two schools. A&M's move to the SEC ended the football version of the rivalry.

Colonial Athletic Association rivalries
Rivalries in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) include:
 * VCU–Old Dominion basketball rivalry is said to be one of the best rivalries in basketball in the mid-majors It is now an inter-conference rivalry after VCU's 2012 move to the Atlantic 10 Conference (A10).
 * The College of William & Mary and University of Richmond. Football rivalry dates to 1898 and is named the Capital Cup.
 * University of Delaware and Villanova University. Football rivalry dates to 1895 and is named the Battle of the Blue.
 * George Mason University and James Madison University. Rivalry in Basketball. JMU has the all time lead but Mason has won 22 out of the last 25 games. This will also be an inter-conference rivalry after Mason's 2013 move to the A10.
 * Northeastern University and Hofstra University. Basketball team plays for the Frank Barone Trophy after an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond that had the winning football from an NU v HU game

Ivy League and service academy rivalries
Rivalries between and among the Ivy League schools and the service academies include:
 * United States Naval Academy and Princeton University, a traditional rivalry seen now most evidently in Lightweight Rowing, compete annually for the Murtaugh Cup and Waterpolo where both schools commonly play each for the League Championship. Navy defeated Princeton for the 2009 and 2008 Championship.
 * United States Military Academy and Yale University, the proximity of these two institutions and the success of their football programs earlier in the century led to a bitter rivalry.
 * Columbia University and Fordham University; New York City's Division I FCS football programs compete annually for the Liberty Cup
 * Cornell University and Colgate University, primarily in football and hockey. Colgate's sports teams were named the "Red Raiders" in response to Cornell's "Big Red". Colgate and Cornell have played 119 football games against one another and 127 hockey since 1958; Cornell leads both series.
 * Cornell University and Harvard University, primarily a men's ice hockey rivalry
 * Cornell University and Hobart College – one of the oldest rivalries in college lacrosse.
 * Cornell University and Princeton University – men's lacrosse rivalry dating to 1922; the two school have won at least a share of 42 Ivy League titles; Princeton holds a 35-30-2 advantage in the all-time series.
 * Cornell University and University of Pennsylvania – football rivalry dating to 1893; for a time played on Thanksgiving; since 2000, the winner has been awarded the Trustees Cup.
 * Harvard University and Yale University the season-ending football contest is simply called The Game, dating back to 1875.
 * Princeton University and University of Pennsylvania – (men's basketball, football). The 2008 season was the first since 1989 that neither Penn nor Princeton won the Ivy League men's basketball championship.
 * United States Merchant Marine Academy and United States Coast Guard Academy – (football) in the Secretaries Cup.
 * United States Military Academy (Army) and United States Naval Academy (Navy) – (football) in the Army–Navy Game (itself part of the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy competition with the United States Air Force Academy (Air Force))

Pac-12 rivalries
The Pacific-12 Conference (Pac-12) falls neatly into six regional pairings, leading to strong natural rivalries. Three of these pairs are cross-state rivals, one pair is within the same metropolitan region (San Francisco Bay Area), and one pair vies for bragging rights within the same city (Los Angeles).
 * Arizona: University of Arizona and Arizona State University – (All Sports). Plays in the "Duel in the Desert". The two teams compete for the oldest trophy in the nation, The Territorial Cup, given as a reward to the victor of the game.
 * Oregon: University of Oregon and Oregon State University – (All Sports) in the Civil War. This is the seventh-longest rivalry game in college football history. The alumni association of the winning school receives the Platypus Trophy, a wooden trophy that had been lost for more than 40 years before being rediscovered in 2005.
 * Washington: University of Washington and Washington State University – (All Sports). The winner of the annual football game between the two schools wins the Apple Cup.
 * San Francisco Bay Area: University of California, Berkeley (Cal) and Stanford University (all sports) – in the Big Game (football) for The Stanford Axe. The 1982 incarnation of this matchup involved the celebrated ending known simply as "The Play."
 * Los Angeles: University of Southern California (USC) and University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) (all sports) In (football): The Crosstown Showdown for the Victory Bell (See UCLA-USC rivalry)
 * Rocky Mountains: University of Colorado and University of Utah. The Rumble in the Rockies in football was one of the most prominent rivalries from the early to mid-20th century. It was discontinued after 1962, but was revived in 2011 when the two schools were reunited in the Pac-12.

Other Pac-12 rivalries:
 * University of California, Berkeley (Cal) and University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) (all sports) – The schools are the highest rated universities in the University of California system and compete in the biggest "intra-university" rivalry in the nation. Cal is also the "older brother" of UCLA as UCLA was the Southern Branch of the University of California. Because of UCLA's origins with Cal, many Berkeley elements influenced the UCLA campus. Some UCLA traditions can be traced to the early 1920s, when the campus was known as the Southern Branch of the University of California.
 * University of Oregon and University of Washington – (football) an unofficial rivalry that has grown up between the two of the four programs in the Pacific Northwest
 * University of Arizona and University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) (basketball) – In the mid-1990s, Arizona and UCLA, as the two strongest teams in the Pac-10, often clashed for dominance in the conference and for the conference championship.
 * Stanford University and University of Southern California (USC) - Two of the major private universities in California and the only two private schools in the Pac-12, these two schools are highly competitive in most sports. Recent football upsets of the long successful Trojans (24–23 Stanford in 2007, the biggest point-spread upset in NCAA football history and an end to USC's 6-year home winning streak and 55–21 in 2009, the most points ever scored against the Trojans in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum) have led to a rekindling of the long-standing rivalry.

Additional non-conference rivalries involving Pac-12 schools (the most famous of which is arguably Notre Dame-Southern California) can be found in other sections of this article.

Notre Dame rivalries
The University of Notre Dame has numerous football rivals, the most notable of which include:
 * Boston College – A game between the only two Catholic colleges that have Football Bowl Subdivision football programs. They compete for the Ireland Trophy. The rivalry has also been dubbed "The Holy War". This is one of several rivalries that will be revived on an intermittent basis when Notre Dame joins the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC); while Notre Dame will remain an independent in football, it has agreed to play five games per season against ACC schools, and to play all other ACC members at least once every three years.
 * Michigan State University – a series that includes one of several "Games of the Century", the 1966 matchup that ended in a 10-10 tie. The teams play for the Megaphone Trophy.
 * Northwestern University – a rivalry that had its heyday in the 1920s and 1930s and even featured a Shillelagh trophy much like the ones that go to the winner of the Notre Dame-USC and Notre Dame-Purdue games. This rivalry game has been played infrequently in recent years.
 * Purdue University – The Shillelagh Trophy
 * University of Miami – initially an easy win for the Irish, became a rivalry that was at its peak in the 80's and often held national title implications. This is another rivalry that will be revived when Notre Dame joins the ACC. See also: Catholics vs. Convicts.
 * University of Michigan – a game between two of the winningest college football programs of all time. This rivalry will go on hiatus after the 2014 season due to Notre Dame's future ACC commitments.
 * United States Military Academy (Army) – a rivalry that used to be held almost every year in the 1940s and 1950s, when the two were two of the top schools in the nation.
 * United States Naval Academy (Navy) – an rivalry which Notre Dame has dominated. Navy won this game in 2007 for the first time since 1963, and again in 2009 and 2010, somewhat reversing the lopsided nature of the rivalry the previous four decades. It is one of the longer-running series in college football and is always hard-fought on both sides. The two schools are the longest-standing independents in Division I FBS. Although Navy will become a football member of the American Athletic Conference in 2015, the rivalry is officially scheduled through the 2026 season, and is expected to continue beyond that time.
 * University of Pittsburgh – longtime rivals that share Big East conference affiliations (except in football), although Pitt has announced it will leave for the ACC in 2013. Many of Notre Dame's most famed talents such as Joe Montana, Lou Holtz and Johnny Lujack hail from the Pittsburgh area. The "public vs. private" aspect as well as always having opposing team members that have played with or against each other since grade school has given the contest a unique distinction of dividing neighborhoods or even families during a fall Saturday. This rivalry will also resume once Notre Dame joins Pitt in the ACC.
 * University of Southern California – Playing for the Jeweled Shillelagh, it is a game between two of the three teams with the most Heisman Trophies. See also: Notre Dame–USC football rivalry
 * Stanford University Nicknamed the Legends Trophy, this rivalry is a battle between legend-producing schools. Notre Dame created many legends while Stanford created legends like Jim Plunkett, John Elway, Toby Gerhart, and recently Andrew Luck.
 * Georgia Tech Played on and off since the early mid-20th Century as a North vs. South rivalry of sorts. Last played in 2006 & 2007 with one win each. This is still another rivalry that will resume when Notre Dame joins the ACC.

Additionally, Notre Dame men's basketball has traditional rivalries with DePaul University, Marquette University, and UCLA when each of the programs met regularly and were national contenders.

Midwest rivalries

 * See also: and  (above)

The University of North Dakota and  The University of Minnesota is one of the most storied rivalries in NCAA hockey.
 * Illinois
 * Bradley University and Illinois State University – College basketball's War on 74
 * Loyola University Chicago and University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) – A Chicago rivalry that played out in the Horizon League for nearly 20 years, but is soon to become a nonconference matchup with Loyola's impending departure for the Missouri Valley Conference.
 * Illinois and Missouri
 * University of Illinois and University of Missouri – College basketball's "Braggin' Rights" game, and football's Arch Rivalry.
 * Indiana
 * Wabash College and  DePauw University – College football's Monon Bell Classic
 * Indiana and Ohio
 * Wright State University and Butler University
 * Iowa
 * Iowa State University and University of Iowa – This bitter intrastate rivalry is played out in nearly every sport for the Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Series trophy, an annual athletic competition involving all head-to-head regular season competitions between the two archrivals from the Big 12 and Big Ten Conferences. In football, the Cyclones and Hawkeyes compete annually for the Cy-Hawk Trophy.
 * Iowa State University, University of Iowa, University of Northern Iowa, and Drake University play in the state's mythical Big Four Series.
 * Drake University and University of Northern Iowa play for the DUNI Trophy.
 * Iowa and Nebraska
 * Drake University and Creighton University – Missouri Valley Conference rivals play for the I-80 Trophy
 * Michigan
 *  Ferris State University  and  Grand Valley State University The most fierce rivalry of NCAA Division II sports in the Midwest; The Anchor-Bone Classic trophy is awarded to the winner of this historic battle.
 * Western Michigan University and Central Michigan University – Winner receives the CMU–WMU Rivalry Trophy; often cited as one of the greatest rivalries in American collegiate football among the mid-majors.
 * Eastern Michigan University, Central Michigan University, and Western Michigan University – Intrastate rivalry. Winner of head-to-head round-robin receives the Michigan MAC Trophy for football and men's basketball
 * Lake Superior State University and Northern Michigan University – (hockey) once two major hockey powerhouses, these two Upper Peninsula schools have no problem showing up at the other's home ice arena three hours away.
 * Calvin–Hope rivalry – Notable Division III basketball rivalry
 * Hope College and Kalamazoo College – The Wooden Shoe Rivalry
 * Minnesota
 *  The University of Minnesota  and  Saint Cloud State University (Hockey)
 *  The University of Minnesota  and  University of Minnesota Duluth (Hockey)
 *  The University of Minnesota  and  Minnesota State, Mankato (Hockey)
 *  The University of Minnesota  and  The University of North Dakota (Hockey)
 * Missouri
 * Northwest Missouri State University and Truman State University – The Old Hickory Stick, which dates back to 1930 and is the oldest rivalry in NCAA Division II football.
 * Nebraska
 * Creighton University and University of Nebraska-Lincoln – Battle between schools that were long the only two Division I schools in the state of Nebraska. This rivalry is exacerbated by the fact that one is a private and Catholic school and the other is the primary public university in the state. Also, Omaha and Lincoln represent the two largest cities in Nebraska, separated by only roughly 50 mi. Primarily a basketball rivalry, although baseball has become a heated sport of contention within the last ten years.
 * University of Nebraska-Kearney and  University of Nebraska-Omaha – Mostly a football and wrestling rivalry. Both schools were almost always in the top five in Division II wrestling. The football teams played for the Nebraska Bell, a trophy that was introduced to the Football rivalry in 2002. Omaha has the series 25–8 over Kearney. However, the football rivalry ended after the 2010 season when UNO dropped football, and the all-sports rivalry is likely to go dormant in 2012 when UNO moves to Division I in all sports.
 * The Dakotas
 * North Dakota State University and  South Dakota State University  – These two interstate rivals play for the Dakota Marker, markers were placed along the ND/SD border after they were split apart in 1889. The Dakota Marker rivalry was announced after both teams entered Division I sports in 2004, playing the first Dakota Marker Game. It is a conference rivalry in two different leagues – NDSU and SDSU are both members of The Summit League, a non-football conference, and the Missouri Valley Football Conference.
 * Ohio
 * Central State University and Wilberforce University – A crosstown rivalry between Division II (Central State) and NAIA (Wilberforce) schools in the small community of Wilberforce. Both schools are among the few historically black schools outside the South. Central State, now a public school, began as a department within Wilberforce, then as now a private institution.
 * Kent State University and University of Akron – Battle for the Wagon Wheel
 * Miami University and University of Cincinnati – Football rivalry for the Victory Bell; oldest west of the Allegheny Mountains, since 1888
 * Miami University and Ohio University – "Battle of the Bricks" all-sports rivalry
 * University of Cincinnati and Xavier University – Two schools located 3 mi apart from each other, one public, the other Catholic, makes for a vicious college basketball rivalry. The game has been historically known as the Crosstown Shootout. The 2011 game was marred by a bench-clearing brawl, which led to an official renaming of the rivalry game as the Crosstown Classic.
 * University of Dayton and Xavier University – Two Catholic schools in southwest Ohio, both members of the Atlantic 10, battle in basketball for the Blackburn/McCafferty Trophy.
 * University of Toledo and Bowling Green State University – Known as the "Battle of I-75"; winner gets the Peace Pipe
 * Wright State University and University of Dayton – Also a crosstown public–Catholic rivalry. Dayton is located in the city proper, and Wright State is in the suburb of Fairborn but has a Dayton mailing address.
 * South Dakota
 * Black Hills State University and South Dakota School of Mines and Technology – Two schools located in the Black Hills region, one liberal arts, one engineering science, less than 50 mi apart, are fierce rivals in all sports, but the football game is called the Black Hills Brawl; winner gets the Homestake Trophy.
 * Wisconsin
 * University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee (Milwaukee) and Marquette University – This rivalry is fought in most sports, but most intense is men's soccer, where they battle for the Milwaukee Cup.

Northeastern rivalries

 * See also: (above)


 * New Jersey
 * Rutgers University and Seton Hall University, a rivalry played out solely between the two institutions' men's basketball teams.
 * Princeton University and Rutgers University, Despite their long-standing football rivalry dating back to the first intercollegiate football game in 1869, these two schools have not met on the gridiron since 1980. They continue to compete in every other sport. The two universities also continue this rivalry off the field in one of the longer running intercollegiate prank wars, the Rutgers–Princeton Cannon War.
 * New York
 * Buffalo Big 4 Basketball – University at Buffalo, Canisius College, Niagara University, St. Bonaventure University
 * The New School university's art and design college, Parsons School of Design, and Fashion Institute of Technology; academic rivalry in the area of fashion, one that is contested annually in the Fushion Fashion Show.
 * Long Island University (Brooklyn campus) and St. Francis College, primarily a basketball rivalry between two schools in Brooklyn less than a mile apart. The rivalry is also known as the Battle of Brooklyn. The two teams first played in 1928 and formalized their rivalry in 1975, holding an annual game. Both are currently members of the Northeast Conference, and now play two regular-season games each season in basketball, although only one of the two games is officially designated as a "Battle of Brooklyn" matchup.
 * Manhattan College and Fordham University; Primarily a basketball rivalry, between these two Catholic schools in The Bronx. Also known as the Battle of the Bronx. Its 100th basketball game was played on November 28, 2007.
 * Marist College and Siena College; Many fans and sportswriters dubbed this match-up as "The Battle of I-87" because of the two-hour proximity of each school on Interstate 87 highway (Coincidentally, the approximate distance between the two is 87.4 miles). It is said that no other two colleges in the Mid-Hudson Region have a hatred and distaste for one another than the Marist Red Foxes and Siena Saints. Although this rivalry exist in all sports, it is most heated during the basketball season. Whether it's held at McCann Field House or the Times Union Center, both school's visiting fans come in droves, so eventfully conflicts are bound to happen on the court or in the stands. In 2009, the two school's club-level ice hockey teams established the 87 Challenge Cup, an annual three game round-robin challenge for a replica I-87 road sign; both of the team's logos and winning years are engraved on the back. Siena leads that series, 2–1.
 * Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute ("RPI") and Union College – (football) for the Dutchman's Shoes – the oldest college football rivalry in New York state
 * Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Clarkson University (ice hockey)
 * University of Rochester and Washington University in St. Louis two of the top D3 Basketball Programs – UAA
 * St. Lawrence University and Clarkson University (ice hockey)
 * University at Albany (Albany) and Binghamton University (most sports, especially basketball)
 * University at Albany (Albany) and Siena College (men's basketball) for the Albany Cup
 * University at Albany (Albany) and Stony Brook University – Like Albany–Binghamton, a New York public-school rivalry that mostly plays out in the America East Conference. The two schools' football teams, which had played in separate conferences throughout their histories in that sport, will become conference rivals in the Colonial Athletic Association in 2013.
 * SUNY Cortland and Ithaca College (football) for the Cortaca Jug
 * SUNY New Paltz and Marist College (woman's rugby). The two schools, separated by only the Mid-Hudson Bridge, face off each year in the Metropolitan New York Rugby Union rugby finals.
 * St. John Fisher College and Nazareth College East Avenue rivals in Pittsford, New York
 * Syracuse University and Cornell University, primarily in lacrosse. The two schools are separated by an hour and faced off in the classic 2009 NCAA lacrosse championship game.
 * Rochester Institute of Technology and Canisius College (violent ice hockey history)
 * Pennsylvania
 * Philadelphia Big 5 – annual basketball series involving Philadelphia area teams: La Salle University, University of Pennsylvania, Saint Joseph's University, Temple University, Villanova University
 * Two of the three Catholic schools in the Big Five, Saint Joseph's and Villanova, have their own rivalry known as The Holy War.
 * University of Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania State University – A traditional football rivalry for both schools, the teams have not played each other since 2000 and are not currently scheduled to play each other in the future. The rivalry continues to exist in other sports and between alumni and fans.
 * University of Pittsburgh and Duquesne University play the annual City Game in college basketball.
 * University of Pittsburgh and Villanova University is an intraconference basketball rivalry that has existed since both schools were members of the Eastern Eight.
 * Lehigh University and Lafayette College most played and longest uninterrupted rivalry in college football:, 148 matchups, and played at least once every year since 1897. See The Rivalry.
 * Indiana University of Pennsylvania and Slippery Rock University
 * Cheyney University and Lincoln University – The two oldest black colleges or HBCU in America. The schools compete in everything athletic or academic. Two teams compete annually in the heated thanksgiving weekend Basketball game. The reinstatement of Lincoln's football program will add more fire to the rivalry.
 * Bloomsburg University and East Stroudsburg University – Division 2 football
 * Haverford College and Swarthmore College winner of the most games against each other receives Hood Trophy.
 * Ursinus College and Franklin & Marshall College
 * Franklin & Marshall College and Dickinson College "Conestoga Wagon Cup" – winner historically received a Conestoga Wagon that was passed between the two schools; however, in 2000 when Franklin & Marshall won the game, the Wagon was retired to the Franklin & Marshall College Alumni Sports and Fitness Center, but the game is still played each year close to Homecoming.
 * New England
 * The Beanpot – a college ice hockey tournament involving four Boston-area schools and held at the city's main arena, TD Garden: Boston College, Boston University, Harvard University, Northeastern University
 * Ivy League schools – see (above)
 * Amherst College and Williams College – known as "The Biggest Little Game in America"
 * Colby College, Bates College and Bowdoin College or Colby-Bates-Bowdoin – one of New England's oldest rivalries, dating to 1889, these three rivals originated after being baptized as "Little Ivies" situated in rural Maine.
 * Harvard and Yale – Older than The Game by 23 years, the Harvard-Yale Regatta was the original source of the athletic rivalry between the two schools.
 * University of New Hampshire and University of Maine the New Hampshire–Maine hockey rivalry is one of the most intense NCAA ice hockey rivalries and there is also a season ending football rivalry game between the two schools for the Brice-Cowell Musket.
 * Interstate
 * Ivy League schools – see (above)
 * United States Military Academy (Army) and United States Naval Academy (Navy) – (football) in the Army–Navy Game (itself part of the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy competition with the United States Air Force Academy (Air Force)
 * University of Pittsburgh and West Virginia University – known as the Backyard Brawl. The football version of the rivalry ended for the time being after the 2011 season, with WVU moving to the Big 12 and Pitt announcing its future departure for the ACC.
 * Syracuse University and Georgetown University traditional basketball rivals, dating to pre-Big East. Another rivalry with an uncertain future, as Syracuse has also announced its future departure for the ACC, and Georgetown is one of the so-called "Catholic 7" schools that will break from the original Big East in 2013 to form a "new" Big East.
 * University of Pittsburgh vs Syracuse University is a longstanding annual eastern and intraconference rivalry in both football, played continuously since 1955, and basketball. This will remain a conference rivalry in the ACC.
 * Penn State University and Syracuse University and Penn State University and West Virginia University; two northeastern football rivalries that are now played infrequently since Penn State joined the Big Ten Conference.
 * Rutgers University and University of Connecticut, a growing rivalry in football and a heated rivalry in women's basketball between the two Big East/American Athletic Conference schools. However, Rutgers' upcoming move to the Big Ten may bring this rivalry to an end in 2014.
 * University of Pittsburgh and University of Cincinnati – One of the newest rivalries in the Big East and known as the River City Rivalry, the winner is awarded the Paddlewheel Trophy. The latest game (in 2009) had Cincinnati and Pittsburgh, both ranked in the Top 25, playing for, essentially, the Big East championship and a BCS bowl berth. Another rivalry whose future is in doubt with Pitt's impending departure for the ACC.
 * Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and California Institute of Technology (Caltech), in pranks and academics
 * Princeton University and Syracuse University – the two teams have clinched 14 NCAA men's lacrosse div. I champions in last two decades; two powerhouses ties NCAA div. I championship series, 2–2.
 * Syracuse University and Johns Hopkins University, a major NCAA men's lacrosse rivalry. The two schools combine for 20 national titles and have a heated rivalry against each other.

Southeastern rivalries

 * See also: and  (above)

Universities in the Southeastern U.S., including those in the Atlantic Coast Conference, Conference USA, Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, Southwestern Athletic Conference, Southeastern Conference, Southern Conference, Southland Conference, and Sun Belt Conference, have perhaps the most complex jumble of rivalries, many associated with annual football games, and often with colorful nicknames:
 * University of Alabama and University of Tennessee – The "Third Saturday in October" game. An already heated rivalry hit fever pitch after Alabama went on NCAA probation in the early 2000s for recruiting violations reported by Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer.
 * Alabama State University and Alabama A&M University – "The Magic City Classic", played annually in Birmingham. ASU also has a long-running rivalry with nearby Tuskegee University, "The Turkey Day Classic" played each Thanksgiving Day.
 * Appalachian State University and Western Carolina University – the annual football game known as The Battle for the Old Mountain Jug
 * University of Arkansas and Louisiana State University – "The Battle for the Golden Boot" game. This game is played on the Friday after Thanksgiving.
 * University of Arkansas and University of Mississippi ("Ole Miss") – rivalry that is sometimes referred to as the Nutt Bowl (after Houston Nutt, who left the head coaching job at Arkansas after the 2007 season to take the same position at Ole Miss). See Arkansas–Ole Miss football rivalry.
 * University of Arkansas and Texas A&M University – the "Arkansas–Texas A&M football rivalry" started when both were members of the Southwestern Conference together. It once again became a conference rivalry in 2012 when the two schools were reunited in the SEC.
 * University of Arkansas and University of Texas – The rivalry with Texas is one of the biggest for Arkansas.
 * Auburn University and University of Alabama – the "Iron Bowl", formerly played in Birmingham, Alabama, but now played alternately in Auburn and Tuscaloosa. The schools have a lower-profile, but still intense, men's basketball rivalry.
 * Auburn University and University of Georgia – The "Deep South's Oldest Rivalry"
 * Auburn University and Louisiana State University (LSU) – budding SEC Western Division rivalry
 * Auburn University and University of Florida – historically one of the Southeastern Conference's longest rivalries, these SEC opponents were removed from annual competition during the 2002 scheduling decision to reduce permanent division opponents to one team. Auburn continued to play Georgia, while Florida kept LSU, much to the chagrin of older fans.
 * Belmont University and Lipscomb University – two colleges in Nashville, Tennessee separated by 3 miles (5 km) of the same road; their basketball rivalry is known as the Battle of the Boulevard
 * Belmont University and Tennessee State University – a Nashville rivalry created by conference realignment, following Belmont's 2012 move to the Ohio Valley Conference, joining Tennessee State.
 * Bethune-Cookman University and Florida A&M University – the two MEAC schools compete annually in football in the Florida Classic.
 * University of North Carolina at Charlotte (Charlotte) and Davidson College, the only two Division I schools in North Carolina's most populous county, Mecklenburg County, compete each year in basketball for the Hornet's Nest Trophy.
 * The Citadel and Virginia Military Institute – (football)The Military Classic of the South "The battle for the Silver Shako."
 * Clemson University and University of South Carolina – this in-state rivalry has political and cultural origins and is one of the oldest rivalries in the South. See Carolina-Clemson rivalry and Clemson–South Carolina football brawl.
 * Clemson University and Florida State University – The annual football matchup between the two schools was known in the early 2000s as the Bowden Bowl because Tommy Bowden, who coached Clemson from 1999 to 2008, is the son of Bobby Bowden, who was head coach at Florida State throughout that period.
 * Clemson University and University of Georgia – A rivalry between nearby schools that had national title implications in the early 1980s, but has been played less often since the SEC went to an eight-game conference schedule.
 * Clemson University and Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) –  Long running rivalry (now permanent ACC cross-division rivals); legendary coach John Heisman coached at both schools.
 * Clemson University and North Carolina State University – The Textile Bowl.
 * Duke University and University of North Carolina – The two schools are only 9 mi apart; the football teams play for the Victory Bell, which the winning team paints in their school's shade of blue. The basketball rivalry is one of the most high-profile in all of U.S. sports (see Carolina–Duke rivalry).
 * East Carolina University and North Carolina State University – Two of the largest universities in the state of North Carolina. "The Battle for the Barrel" is a trophy which ECU currently holds being the victor of the most recent game in 2010.
 * Elon University and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro – A long-standing Southern Conference rivalry that was recently dubbed "The Faceoff on 40: The Fight and Fire Classic" due to the schools' proximity and situation along Interstate 40.
 * University of Florida and University of Miami – Formerly played for The Seminole War Canoe Trophy. With their win over the Hurricanes in 2008, the Gators are the current holders of the Florida Cup (See also: Florida–Miami football rivalry).
 * University of Florida and University of Tennessee – A rivalry that saw its heyday in the 1990s, when the Southeastern Conference realigned and pitted these schools against each other every year.
 * Florida Atlantic University (FAU) and Florida International University (FIU) – A Miami-area rivalry that plays itself out annually in football's Shula Bowl and conference basketball games.
 * Florida State University and University of Florida – Has lost some of its luster since Steve Spurrier exited the rivalry for other coaching ventures. In the mid-1990s, this game almost always had national championship implications.
 * Florida State University and University of Miami – From the 1980s to the early 2000s, the match-up often held national championship implications. See Wide Right I and Wide Right II.
 * Furman University and Wofford College – The oldest football rivalry in South Carolina.
 * University of Georgia and University of Florida – The Florida vs. Georgia Football Classic, unofficially called "The World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party", at the (nominally) neutral site of Jacksonville, Florida.
 * University of Georgia and Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) – "Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate".
 * Grambling State University and Southern University – The Bayou Classic in football is the most famous HBCU rivalry, and the only such matchup televised annually by one of the country's four major over-the-air television networks.
 * Jackson State University and Alcorn State University - Known as the Capital City Classic.
 * Jackson State University and Southern University – The Boombox Classic is the annual match-up between JSU and SU. The name is a reference to the two school's marching bands – JSU's being the "Sonic Boom of the South" and SU's being "The Human Jukebox".
 * Jackson State University and Tennessee State University – Known as the Southern Heritage Classic.
 * Johns Hopkins University and University of Maryland. The oldest rivalry in college lacrosse.
 * University of Kentucky and University of Louisville – the "Governor's Cup (Battle for the Bluegrass)" game in football, but even more significant as a basketball rivalry known as the Battle for the Bluegrass. See Kentucky–Louisville rivalry.
 * University of Kentucky and Indiana University, locally significant in football and nationally important in basketball sometimes referred to in football as the Bourbon Barrel Trophy. See Indiana–Kentucky rivalry. The basketball rivalry ended for the time being in 2012 when the two schools could not agree on the location for the games.
 * University of Kentucky and University of Tennessee – A border war, UT has dominated UK over the last quarter century in football and UK in men's basketball. In addition to the important ball games, blood banks in the home cities of each university (Lexington, Kentucky and Knoxville, Tennessee) compete to see who can raise the most units of blood. This is known informally as the Blue-Orange Crush. The football game is traditionally known as "The Battle for the Beer Barrel," named for the orange and blue barrel that the winning team once received.
 * University of Louisiana at Lafayette and Troy University - Men's tennis, "War at the Wasp Nest"
 *  University of Louisiana at Monroe and University of Louisiana at Lafayette – the "Battle on the Bayou"
 * University of Louisville and University of Cincinnati – long-running rivalry known as the battle for The Keg of Nails
 * University of Louisville and University of Memphis – Longtime rivals in the Missouri Valley Conference, Metro Conference, and Conference USA. The rivalry went largely dormant when U of L left for the Big East in 2005. While Memphis will rejoin Louisville in the American Athletic Conference in 2013, U of L will leave for the ACC a year later.
 * Louisiana State University (LSU) and University of Mississippi ("Ole Miss") – Magnolia Bowl.
 * Louisiana State University (LSU) and Tulane University – the "Battle for the Rag"
 * Louisiana Tech University and University of Southern Mississippi – Rivalry in Dixie.
 * Loyola (MD) and Johns Hopkins University Lacrosse rivalry, also known as the Charles Street Rivalry
 * Marshall University and Ohio University – (football) the Battle for the Bell
 * Marshall University and West Virginia University – Also known as the Friends of Coal Bowl; due to the vast mining industry in the state of West Virginia.
 * University of Maryland and Duke University – This is a recent rivalry, sparked because of Maryland's increased competitiveness in NCAA basketball. However the two teams are competitive in basketball and Maryland is known for its visceral hatred of Duke. However, this is one os several rivalries that may go dormant in 2014 when Maryland leaves the ACC for the Big Ten.
 * University of Maryland and United States Naval Academy (Navy) – A once heated in-state football rivalry that lapsed for 40 years after a controversial game in 1964 was finally revived in 2005 (See also: Crab Bowl Classic).
 * University of Maryland and North Carolina State University – Hostility has increased in the football rivalry during recent years. Also, has a tradition of competitive basketball, including what has been called the greatest college basketball game ever played, the 1974 ACC Championship game. Another rivalry whose future is in doubt due to Maryland's upcoming Big Ten move.
 * University of Maryland and University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) – Historically dominated by Maryland, this budding lacrosse rivalry was intensified in the 2007 NCAA Men's Lacrosse Tournament when the Retrievers upset the Terrapins in College park. It heated the following year when tournament committee chairman and Terrapins head coach Dave Cottle set up UMBC to travel far from their fanbase to avoid playing them in the tournament, sparking accusations in the lacrosse world of using politics to avoid a matchup.
 * University of Maryland and West Virginia University – A long tradition of football rivalry, dating back to 1919 (See also: Maryland–West Virginia football rivalry).
 * University of Memphis and University of Southern Mississippi – The Black and Blue Bowl. May end after the 2012 season when Memphis joins the Big East.
 * University of Memphis and University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) – the "Battle for the Bones"
 * University of Mississippi ("Ole Miss") and Mississippi State University – the "Egg Bowl"
 * Nicholls State University and Northwestern State University – The NSU Challenge football game is a Louisiana and Southland Conference rivalry, with the winner receiving the NSU Trophy.
 * Nicholls State University and Southeastern Louisiana University – The River Bell Classic football game is a Louisiana and Southland Conference rivalry, with the winner receiving the River Bell Trophy.
 * University of North Carolina and University of Virginia – "The South's Oldest Rivalry"
 * University of North Carolina and Wake Forest University
 * North Carolina A&T State University and North Carolina Central University – the North Carolina A&T–North Carolina Central rivalry was an annual, interdivisional HBCU rivalry until 2005.
 * North Carolina A&T State University and Winston-Salem State University – the rivalry between the two Piedmont Triad HBCUs has escalated with WSSU's transition to Division I athletics and the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference of which NC A&T is a member.
 * North Carolina State University and University of North Carolina Known as the Carolina–State rivalry.
 * North Carolina State University and Wake Forest University – The oldest ACC Basketball rivalry with over 225 played games.
 * Northwestern State University and Stephen F. Austin State University – a heated Southland Conference rivalry, with the winner receiving the largest trophy in all of college football, Chief Caddo.
 * University of Richmond and The College of William & Mary – known as the "Oldest Rivalry in the South", this is the fourth oldest rivalry in college football, with the Tribe first battling the Spiders in 1890. The Tribe is up all-time, 59–52–5
 * University of Richmond and Virginia Commonwealth University – A crosstown rivalry in Virginia's state capital that spans all sports except football, which Richmond plays and VCU does not. The basketball version is known locally as the Black & Blue Classic. With VCU joining Richmond in the Atlantic 10 Conference in 2012, this is now a conference rivalry.
 * Sewanee: The University of the South and Rhodes College – The longest-running (continuously played) college football rivalry in the South, starting in 1899. Since 1954 the winner of this game has been awarded the Orgill Trophy.
 * University of Tennessee and University of Connecticut (UConn) – a nationally important rivalry in women's basketball (see UConn–Tennessee rivalry)
 * University of Tennessee and Vanderbilt University – General Robert Neyland, the coach who brought a winning tradition to the University of Tennessee, was originally brought in to "beat Vandy", as Vanderbilt dominated the series in the early part of last century. In 2005, Vanderbilt beat the University of Tennessee for the first time in over two decades - one of the then-longest streaks in the NCAA.
 * University of Virginia and Virginia Tech (see Virginia–Virginia Tech rivalry) – they play for the Commonwealth Cup in football
 * Virginia Tech and West Virginia University – College football game played annually for the Black Diamond Trophy. Due to Virginia Tech's move to the ACC, and WVU's later move to the Big 12, this rivalry is now dormant.
 * Virginia Tech and Radford University – The rivalry is heated for every sport in which the two New River Valley schools compete, but in soccer one of the largest trophies in the nation is contested when they play annually for "The New River Rock".
 * Washington College and Salisbury University – a storied Division III men's lacrosse rivalry, highlighted by the annual War on the Shore for the Charles B. Clark Cup, played alternately in Chestertown, MD, (home of Washington College) and Salisbury, MD. The 2006 War on the Shore was held at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. The rivalry is also present to a lesser extent in all sports, as the two schools are the only Division III institutions on Maryland's Eastern Shore.

Old Southeastern rivalries seldom played due to conference obligations, divisional changes etc.:
 * Georgia Tech and Auburn
 * Georgia Tech and Alabama
 * Georgia Tech and Tennessee

Texas rivalries

 * See also (above)

These rivalries involve Texas schools that are not currently members of the Big 12 Conference. In two of these rivalries, both sides involved were members of the old Southwest Conference, four of whose schools were founding members of the Big 12. Another rivalry involves an old SWC team against an Oklahoma rival.
 * Rice University and University of Houston – Compete for the Bayou Bucket in both football and basketball, and in the Silver Glove series in baseball, as part of the Houston–Rice rivalry. The future of the rivalry is uncertain after the 2012–13 school year, as Houston will move to the American Athletic Conference (The American) in 2013.
 * Rice University and University of Tulsa – Compete for the Williams Trophy.
 * Sam Houston State University and Stephen F. Austin State University – Compete in the Battle of the Piney Woods.
 * Southern Methodist University (SMU) and Rice University – College football's Battle for the Mayor's Cup. As with the Houston–Rice rivalry, this game is in doubt beyond 2012, as SMU will also move to The American.
 * Southern Methodist University (SMU) and Texas Christian University (TCU) – Play in the Battle for the Iron Skillet. Although TCU moved to the Big 12 in 2012, and SMU will join The American in 2013, the football rivalry is set to continue through at least 2017.
 * Stephen F. Austin State University and Northwestern State University – Play for the largest trophy in college athletics; Chief Caddo, a large, 7.5 ft tall 320 lb wooden Indian statue.
 * University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) and Texas State University – Compete in the I-35 rivalry. This is a conference rivalry in the 2012–13 school year, with both teams in the WAC, but the two schools will separate after that season, with Texas State heading to the Sun Belt Conference and UTSA departing for Conference USA.

Western rivalries

 * See also: (above)


 * Boise State University and California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) – Primarily a football rivalry, with the teams playing for the Milk Can.
 * Boise State University and University of Idaho – An all-sports rivalry that briefly lost some of its edge when Boise State left the WAC for the Mountain West Conference (MW) in 2011.
 * California State University, Fullerton and California State University, Long Beach (Long Beach State); a baseball rivalry stemming from both program continual success.
 * The College of Idaho and Northwest Nazarene University – A long-standing basketball rivalry, as well as an extensive history of student pranks.
 * Cal Poly Pomona and UC San Diego – The two most successful programs in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA). They have a fierce rivalry in all sports.
 * Colorado State University and United States Air Force Academy for the Ram-Falcon Trophy
 * Gonzaga University and Eastern Washington University – A longtime men's basketball rivalry, but much less competitive since the rise of Gonzaga's program to national prominence in the early 2000s. Gonzaga is in the city of Spokane, and EWU is in nearby Cheney.
 * Gonzaga University and University of Washington – an emerging, though intermittent, men's basketball rivalry. The winning school could claim bragging rights as best in the state. Has been on hold as neither program is willing to agree to restart the rivalry after Gonzaga's rise to prominence.
 * Gonzaga University and Washington State University – also an emerging men's basketball rivalry. The two schools are about an hour apart by car.
 * San Jose State University and California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) – very even rivalry in both football and basketball for over 70 years. For most of the rivalry's history, it has been a conference matchup, with the two schools playing in four different leagues – the CCAA, West Coast Conference (briefly), PCAA/Big West, and WAC. The rivalry will continue in a fifth different conference in 2013 when San Jose State joins the MW.
 * San Jose State University and Stanford University – close proximity in the Silicon Valley lead to a natural rivalry
 * Santa Clara University and Saint Mary's College of California – formerly a football rivalry, now a basketball rivalry. Both schools are charter members of what is now the West Coast Conference (WCC), share a Catholic affiliation, and are in different portions of the Bay Area (Santa Clara in Silicon Valley, and Saint Mary's in the East Bay).
 * Saint Mary's College of California and Gonzaga University – Men's basketball rivalry that has become quite heated as Saint Mary's became the only consistent challenger to Gonzaga's WCC conference title streak in the late 2000s.
 * Santa Clara University and San Jose State University – working man's university versus the local rich school; primarily a basketball rivalry.
 * University of Alaska Anchorage and University of Alaska Fairbanks – (ice hockey) for the Governor's Cup.
 * University of Colorado and Colorado State University – College football's Rocky Mountain Showdown
 * UC Davis and Cal Poly SLO – in the Battle for the Golden Horseshoe (football) for the Golden Horseshoe Trophy
 * UC Davis and Sacramento State – The two programs compete in all sports for the annual Causeway Cup, and specifically in the Causeway Classic (football) for the Causeway Carriage and Causeway Trophy.
 * UC Irvine and California State University, Long Beach (Long Beach State) – Black and Blue Rivalry Series: The two Southern California schools compete in various sports such as baseball, basketball and volleyball to accumulate points for every victory. The school with the most points at the end of the year wins a surfboard.
 * UC Santa Barbara and Cal Poly SLO – Blue–Green Rivalry: Battle for the Central Coast with an emphasis on sustainability. The most intense has become the competition in Men's soccer, where the matchup has featured 5 of the top 15 attended regular season soccer matches in NCAA history, all of which have happened since 2007. Women's volleyball, Men's and Women's basketball, and baseball also are heated matchups.
 * University of Denver and Colorado College – (ice hockey) Battle of the Gold Pan Played between the superpowers of college hockey in the State of Colorado. Played since 1949. Widely considered to be the most heated rivalry in College Hockey. It is the most played college ice hockey rivalry in the United States.
 * University of Hawaiʻi and California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) – All sports. Both were members of the WAC from 1992 to 2012, but have now separated, with Hawaiʻi leaving for the Big West and Fresno State to the MW. In football, however, it is still a conference rivalry, as Hawaiʻi football joined the MW alongside Fresno State. After further conference realignment brought two more schools into the MW and led to it splitting into divisions, Fresno State and Hawaiʻi were placed in the same division, ensuring annual football matchups for the immediate future.
 * University of Hawaii and Brigham Young University – (football and volleyball)
 * University of Idaho and The University of Montana for the Little Brown Stein
 * University of Idaho and Washington State University – Known as the Battle of the Palouse. The two schools are located just 7 miles apart.
 * University of Montana and Eastern Washington University – (all sports)
 * University of Montana and Montana State University – Brawl of the Wild
 * University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and University of Nevada – in the Battle for Nevada (football) for the Fremont Cannon. This became a conference rivalry in 2012 when Nevada joined UNLV in the MW.
 * University of New Mexico and New Mexico State University – (all sports) Rio Grande Rivalry
 * University of San Francisco and Santa Clara University – San Francisco Bay Area Jesuit universities; primarily a basketball rivalry
 * University of Texas at El Paso and New Mexico State University – The Battle of I-10
 * University of Utah and Utah State University – (basketball and football, the Battle of the Brothers)
 * University of Utah and Brigham Young University – (all sports: see Utah–BYU rivalry). The "Holy War" for the Beehive Boot.
 * University of Wyoming and Colorado State University – (football) the Border War for the Bronze Boot
 * Western Washington University and Central Washington University – (football) Known as the Battle in Seattle – played at CenturyLink Field in Seattle for the Cascade Cup.
 * San Diego State University and University of San Diego – (basketball, baseball, and soccer) Cross-City rivals

HBCU rivalries
Coppin State University and Morgan State University Separated by 5 Miles this traditional East vs. West Baltimore basketball is a traditional powerhouse HBCU And MEAC Rivalry Tabbed the Battle of Baltimore. Xavier University of Louisiana and Dillard University- Crosstown Rivalry by two NAIA schools located in New Orleans. The women's and men's basketball team typically play this Crosstown Classic game twice a year.
 * Cheyney University and Lincoln University – The two oldest black colleges, or HBCUs, in America, both located in Pennsylvania and also two of the few such schools outside the South. The schools compete in everything athletic or academic. Men's and women's teams compete annually in the heated thanksgiving weekend basketball games. The reinstatement of Lincoln's football program will add more fire to the rivalry.
 * Central State University and Wilberforce University – Like Cheyney and Lincoln, these are also rare examples of HBCUs outside the South. This is also a crosstown rivalry, with both schools located in the small community of Wilberforce, Ohio. In addition, Central State began as a department within Wilberforce University before becoming a separate institution and a public school.
 * North Carolina A&T State University and North Carolina Central University – the "Aggie-Eagle Classic" was an annual, interdivisional HBCU football until 2005.
 * North Carolina A&T State University and Winston-Salem State University – the rivalry between the two Piedmont Triad HBCUs has escalated with WSSU's transition to Division I athletics and the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference of which NC A&T is a member.
 * Grambling State University and Southern University – The Bayou Classic in football is the most famous HBCU rivalry, and the only such matchup televised annually by one of the country's four major over-the-air television networks.
 * Bethune-Cookman University and Florida A&M University – the two MEAC schools compete annually in football in the Florida Classic.
 * Norfolk State University and Hampton University – Essentially a crosstown rivalry; both MEAC schools are located in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area on opposite sides of the eponymous harbor.
 * Virginia Union University and Virginia State University – Another virtual crosstown rivalry, this one involving Division II schools in the CIAA. Virginia Union is a private university in the state capital of Richmond, while Virginia State is a public school in nearby Petersburg.
 * Saint Augustine's College and Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina are HBCU rivalries in all sports.
 * Florida A&M University and Southern University – the oldest interconference rivalry and questionably the oldest in HBCU history. Dates back to 1941 and was played consecutively for 55 yrs, which ended in 2001 because of a heated confrontation between Pete Richardson of Southern and Billy "Joe" Taylor of Florida A&M.

Religious schools rivalries

 * Messiah College and Wheaton College (Illinois) – These Christian Schools compete frequently for the top Christian as well as Division 3 Soccer Team.
 * Indiana Wesleyan University and Taylor University – The schools are separated by less than 15 minutes in rural NE Indiana, and have an intense rivalry in NAIA athletic events.
 * Tabor College (Kansas) and Bethel College (Kansas) – These two Mennonite Schools which are only a few miles apart find a friendly rivalry that stems from a denominational split in the 1860s. Their soccer teams compete in the Menno-Cup and Football teams compete in the Menno-Bowl every year.