Being thankful for rivalries

Thanksgiving is mere hours away, which means eating until you’re as stuffed as that turkey and watching football. While watching games on Thanksgiving is awesome, the best action starts the day after. College football rivalries heat up and the passion is unleashed. In honor of that most scared Turkey Day tradition, a touchdown and successful extra point, here’s a look at the FPS top 7 college football rivalries.

7. Pitt – West Virginia: Both teams share the same colors, the game has been going on for 100-years and the schools are only separated by 70-miles. “The Backyard Brawl” is intense.

6. Oregon – Oregon State: "The Civil War" is the best western rivalry. Dating back to 1894, it’s the seventh oldest rivalry game in the nation. These fans hate each other despite the friendly nature of the Pacific Northwest.

5. Florida – Florida State: The Gators and Noles meant everything in the 1990s, when both teams finished in the Top 5 every year and played for national championships. The luster has faded in recent years, but it's still fierce.

4. Oklahoma – Texas: “The Red River Shootout” always seems to shape the national championship picture. Either Oklahoma or Texas has played for the conference championship each of the past eight seasons. Plus the true neutral site nature of this game adds to its allure.

3. Army – Navy: The pageantry of the Army-Navy Game tops all. Sure, the game hasn’t meant anything since the 1960s, but that doesn’t take away from this event. Army-Navy is still an end of the year treat.

2. Ohio State – Michigan: This border battle serves as a bowl game in November and as the conference game of the year. Again this year the importance of Ohio State-Michigan held true. Both teams have won or tied for the Big Ten title 32 times in the past 39 seasons.

1. Alabama – Auburn: You don’t just watch the Alabama-Auburn game, you live it. “The Iron Bowl” is the nastiest college football rivalry both on and off the field. Living in the shadow of Bear Bryant, this game takes the cake and eats it too!

Honorable Mention…

BYU – Utah: The Cougs and Utes play for an authentic pioneer boot, cool huh? Don't let the religious overtones of "the Holy War" fool you; this rivalry isn't nice, it's pretty nasty and important in deciding conference champions.

Clemson – South Carolina: There are no pro sport distractions in South Carolina, so everyone has been focused on this game since 1896. Clemson holds a distinctive advantage in wins, but not punches, looking back at the 2004 fight.

Cal – Stanford: "The band is out on the field!" No rivalry game can ever match the craziness of "The Play" from The Big Game. To this day, Stanford still doesn't recognize the 25-20 outcome from that 1982 classic.

Texas – Texas A&M: This rivalry heats up the week before Thanksgiving and comes with a 40-foot bon fire. There's no love-loss between the Horns and the Aggies.

Rivalries Near & Dear to My Heart

Idaho – Boise State: The Broncos just took a two-game series advantage, smashing Idaho again. Boise State’s big win is just more payback for the Vandals dominating the rivalry for 12 consecutive years (1982-1993). The origins date back to 1971 and maybe in a few more years it will be fun again to watch. If you spend time in Moscow, Idaho this one just gets you.

Washington – Washington State: Living in the shadow of the “Apple Cup” for ten-plus-years, I both love it and hate it, almost as much as the Huskies hate the snow. Speaking of which, Cougar fans haven’t had much to cheer about, but Drew Bledsoe’s performance in the snow was one of the greats.

Lehigh – Lafayette: I don’t follow this game and don’t know much about either of these eastern Pennsylvania brain factories. However, Lehigh-Lafayette is the rivalry to start all others. Dating back to 1884, much respect is owed.