Fierce Rivalries: Very Little Compares to Intra-State Conference Competition

January 15th, 2025 - 10:53

Was it worth the outlandish outrage? Perhaps Kansas' sanctimonious athletic department shouldn't have been quite so "incensed" by the NCAA's original decision amid corruption probe to suspend scholarly center Silvio De Sousa for two full seasons several years ago. Jayhawks coach Bill "Just Got to Get a Couple of Real Guys" Self's previous bluster he would "fight for Silvio" and "Silvio is the type of student-athlete college athletics needs" rang a mite hollow after stool-wielding De Sousa's thuggish raising of a potential weapon significantly higher than taunting major's anemic scoring average (2.6 ppg) during brawl in disability-seating section at end of game against arch-rival Kansas State. Let's hope dearly-departed De Sousa elevated or fought to keep gpa above 2.6 after moving on following sickening showmanship.

Media personalities failing to comprehend the gravity of De Sousa's actions should be confined to a mentally-challenged section of press area where they blow ability of King James' son (Bronny of USC) way out of proportion. What's new? It takes a long time to read about Self-less' prominent players who've run afoul of the law since KU captured 2008 NCAA title in midst of an off-the-books sale of nearly $900,000 worth of basketball tickets to brokers over five-year span.

Well, the faces change on rosters and the Pac-12 Conference disbanded, but the intensity of power league intra-state match-ups and zeal for tickets remains when they come to blows in conference play. If in doubt about raw emotions, see video of conclusion of K-State's confrontation at KU. What was KU all worked up about since it has won a staggering 109 more games in their intra-state conference series, outdueling Illinois (100 more than Northwestern), Duke (99 more than Wake Forest) and North Carolina (96 more than than Wake Forest). Sans prayerful #NannyPathetic's juvenile pen collection and #Demonrat ceremonial impeachment parade testing jolly Jerry "The White Urkel" Nadler's athletic prowess, regional hoop fans other than probably Wake Forest eagerly anticipate the following intra-conference "bragging rights" games (series records are through 2023-24):

Leader/Opponent Series Record Season Started Series Highlights
Alabama/Auburn 101-69 1924 Auburn, which defeated Alabama three times in 1998-99 by an average of 29.3 points, won 26 of 30 assignments from 1958 through 1971 before the Crimson Tide won 18 of the next 19.
Arizona/Arizona State 161-86 1914 Arizona won 46 of first 55 meetings to 1937, 17 in a row from 1945 to 1952 and 24 of 25 from 1996 through 2007.
Baylor/Texas Christian 105-87 1909 TCU lost first seven meetings before winning nine in a row. Baylor won 14 straight from 1935 to 1942 and 11 consecutive contests from 2013 through 2017. TCU won 12 successive games from 1981 to 1987.
Bradley/Illinois State 73-65 1905 Ten consecutive contests were decided by fewer than seven points from 1996 through 2000. ISU won 16 of 18 games from 2009 to 2018.
California/Stanford 156-132 1912 Cal won 14 in a row from 1924-25 through 1929-30 and 24 of 25 to 1933-34. Stanford won 10 straight at the turn of the century, including a 51-point triumph in 2000.
Duke/North Carolina State 152-104 1912 Duke won 15 straight from 1941 to 1947 before losing 12 of 13 from 1947 to 1952. N.C. State also won nine consecutive confrontations in the mid-1970s. The Blue Devils won 13 in a row from 1998 through 2002.
Duke/Wake Forest 180-81 1906 Duke won 40 of 42 meetings from 1928 through 1948 with the two setbacks in that span coming by a total of seven points. Wake won eight straight from 1981 to 1984 and nine in a row from 1993 to 1997. The Blue Devils won 18 of 19 tilts between them prior to splitting games in 2019-20.
Florida State/Miami (Fla.) 56-37 1951 FSU won 11 of 12 games from 2006 to 2012.
Idaho/Idaho State 62-56 1933 Idaho won 14 games in a row from 1987-88 to 1993-94. Idaho State won 13 of 15 contests from 1971-72 to 1978-79.
Illinois/Northwestern 144-44 1908 Illini twice won 16 in a row (from 1946-47 through 1954-55 and 1983-84 through 1990-91). Northwestern's best extended stretch was winning eight of 14 contests from 1928 to 1939.
Kansas/Kansas State 205-96 1907 Kansas won 31 games in a row from 1993-94 through 2004-05 in fourth-most frequently played series in Division I. The Wildcats won 25 of 36 contests from 1967-68 through 1982-83.
Michigan/Michigan State 104-89 1909 Michigan won 12 straight from 1921 through 1927, 10 of 11 from 1935 through 1940 and 13 of 15 from 1970 to 1978. MSU defeated the Wolverines three times in 2019 and has won 34 of last 50 outings overall (14 of last 21).
Mississippi State/Mississippi 150-120 1914 Both schools have won more than 65% of their home assignments. MSU won the first nine games in the "Egg Bowl" series, 16 of the first 18 and 15 of 18 from 1955 through 1963. Ole Miss won eight straight in the early 1980s and eight of nine from 2013-14 to 2017-18.
Montana/Montana State 156-152 1903 Second-most frequently played series in Division I. Montana State, which prevailed in 19 of first 21 contests to 1917-18, had winning record in series until dropping 19 of 20 outings through period when both games were cancelled during COVID pandemic. UM also won 11 in a row from 1938-39 to 1941-42.
North Carolina/Duke 144-117 1920 UNC won 16 straight from 1921 through 1928 and 16 of 17 in the mid-1970s (three-point overtime loss in 1975). The Blue Devils won all three assignments in 1998-99 by an average margin of 18.3 points. The two teams would have split a stretch of 102 match-ups if Heels didn't lose at home in OT five seasons ago. When they met in 2020, it was first time in 60 years that neither school was nationally ranked.
North Carolina/North Carolina State 166-81 1913 Carolina won 16 of 17 contests from 1922 to 1930, 17 of 18 from 1934 to 1942 and 14 of 15 from 1967 to 1972. Roy Williams won 33 of his first 37 assignments against NCSU as coach of the Tar Heels.
North Carolina/Wake Forest 165-69 1911 UNC won 29 of 31 games from 1919 through 1936, 23 of 27 from 1966 through 1975, 23 of 24 from 1982 through 1992, and 14 of last 18 outings.
North Carolina State/Wake Forest 151-109 1911 The Wolfpack won 16 of 19 games from 1928 to 1937, 19 of 22 from 1942 through 1952, 16 of 18 from 1954 through 1959 and 10 of 11 from 1985 to 1990. Wake won nine of first 11 meetings, including a 41-point victory in 1912.
Purdue/Indiana 127-92 1901 Purdue won 50 of first 60 meetings with archrival. IU won 13 in a row from 1949 to 1955 and 25 of 42 from 1973 through 1993. The Boilermakers prevailed in 13 of 15 outings until dropping both assignments a couple of years ago before sweeping IU last season.
Tennessee/Vanderbilt 131-76 1922 The Volunteers, who are 72-20 at Knoxville, won 25 of 26 games overall from 1937 to 1950 and 25 of 30 from 1968 through 1982. Vandy's longest winning streak was six in the mid-1950s. The Vols have won 15 of last 17 outings.
Texas Tech/Baylor 83-63 1937 Tech won 10 straight from 1976 to 1980 and 1983 to 1987.
Texas Tech/Texas Christian 87-56 1932 Texas Tech won 12 of 13 from 1960 to 1966 and 19 straight from 1973 through 1981.
UCLA/Southern California 147-118 1928 UCLA's only two defeats in a 38-game stretch from 1964 through 1979 were back-to-back setbacks by a total of three points. USC won 42 in a row from 1932 to 1943, including nine consecutive seasons when the Trojans pulled off 4-0 sweeps.
Virginia/Virginia Tech 98-60 1915 Virginia won 10 of first 11, 15 of 17 from 1931 through 1941 and nine straight from 1978 to 1984. The Hokies twice won nine straight (from 1948 to 1952 and 1959 through 1965). UVA is 42-13 in Charlottesville.

GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN FOLLOWING CONFERENCE RESHUFFLING

Leader/Opponent Series Record Season Started Series Highlights
Oklahoma/Oklahoma State 143-106 1908 Oklahoma was victorious in first 11 meetings, 26 of first 28 and 44 of first 53. The Aggies/Cowboys prevailed in 14 of 16 outings from 1940 to 1947 and won all five outings the previous couple of years ago before joining SEC.
Oregon State/Oregon 192-172 1903 Most frequently played series in Division I by more than 50 games. The Beavers won 14 of 16 contests from 1954 to 1959, 16 of 17 from 1962 to 1966 and 15 straight from 1980 to 1986. The Ducks won 19 of 20 outings from 1994-95 through 2002-03.
Texas/Baylor 165-98 1906 UT won 16 of 17 games from 1914 to 1921, 14 of 15 from 1924 through 1930 and 24 in a row from 1999 to 2009.
Texas/Texas Christian 118-70 1915 Texas won the first 13 meetings, 10 straight from 1945 to 1950, eight in succession from 1977 through 1980, eight in a row from 1988 to 1991 before the SWC disbanded in 1996 and 11 consecutive from 1995 through 2015. TCU's longest winning streak was seven from 1982 through 1985.
Texas/Texas Tech 90-67 1940 Texas posted only one triumph over Texas Tech (75-74) in a 15-game stretch of their series from 1970 through 1976. The Longhorns won 11 straight from 1988 to 1993 and 13 in a row from 1998 to 2003.
Washington/Washington State 188-111 1910 UW won first seven meetings in the third-most frequently played series in Division I, all-time high 17 straight from 1923 to 1930, 14 of 16 from 1932 to 1936, 28 of 32 from 1952 through 1963, eight straight from 1971 to 1975 and eight straight from 1983 to 1987. WSU won 17 of 26 from 1945 to 1951 and seven in a row from 2006 through 2008.