Penn State fans looked forward to those games in part because they were rivalries bred through familiarity and close proximity, but also because they felt pretty good that the Lions would come out on top.
Sure, Penn State had brief inter-sectional rivalries in the 1970s and 1980s with schools like Alabama, Miami, Nebraska, Notre Dame and Boston College; but the bragging rights earned from those contests didn't compare to the pride gained when whipping a team that you see every single year.
When the Lions moved to the Big Ten for football in 1993, they had to abandon all of those rivalries. A stacked conference schedule taking up 75% of your games each season meant that the non-conference scheduling had to be done more "delicately" and had to include a majority of home games.
Instead of the old rivalries, fans anticipated big games every year with the traditional Big Ten powers, and the school even did its part to manufacture rivalries with Minnesota and Michigan State by making each of those a trophy game. It took some getting used to, but eventually fans got accustomed to seeing Wildcats, Badgers, Wolverines and Boilermakers on the schedule instead of Orangemen, Terrapins, Mountaineers and (neutered) Panthers.
But was it the same? Was there a real rival that could boil the blood the way the old guard used to? Fifteen years later, the answer is yes.
Hello Buckeyes.
Think back to the last time Ohio State wasn't the toughest game on Penn State's schedule. You'd probably agree that it was seven years ago when the Lions opened the 2001 season at home against top-ranked Miami. Every year on the Lions' schedule, there's Ohio State, (thanks Big Ten) a giant roadblock in Penn State's path.
But what makes the Buckeyes different from Michigan State, Wisconsin or even Michigan? All of those teams have played Penn State at least 12 times since the Lions have joined the conference, yet none should make you as angry as Ohio State. Here's my theory.
To be a true rival, three truths must be present.
1. Familiarity
The Red Sox and Yankees play at least 18 times a year, the Cowboys and Redskins play at least twice, so does North Carolina and Duke. It's knowing that you have to deal with those fans and that team every year (and sometimes more than once) that makes it so important that you win. Penn State plays Ohio State and Michigan State every single year and have played Wisconsin all but four years and Michigan all but two years.
2. Proximity
What's the use in winning if nobody's there to hear you brag? This is the major reason why Wisconsin doesn't really count as the biggest Penn State rival. This rule has some exceptions, (USC and Notre Dame, Avalanche and Red Wings) but it can be superseded by either the above or below truth.
3. They Ruined Your Life
It was your year to win it all, but then _________ ripped your heart out. Just say Chad Henne to Mario Manningham with one second left and you'll know why Michigan is forever hated in Penn State. While Michigan owns this category for Penn State in the Big Ten era (Minnesota 1999 is an extremely close second, but who beat the Lions the very next week when they still could have gotten back in the national championship game?) The Buckeyes might not have one single game like this, but they have derailed Penn State seasons in September when the Lions were ranked #12, #4 and #7, so that's good enough. Wisconsin has never beaten a really good Penn State team, nor has Michigan State, so the Spartans bow out at this point.
Now comes the bitter decision of which team is the bigger rival to Penn State, Michigan or Ohio State. In times like this, when each team fulfills the criteria but only one can be chosen a fan must make a tough admission. It's one that he may never admit under any other circumstances, but one he must make now. And here it is...
Ohio State, since 1993, has been better than Penn State.
It sucks and it hurts, but it's true. Since the Lions joined the Big Ten, Ohio State has played in three National Championship games, winning one; captured two Heisman Trophies and been ranked number one in at least half a dozen seasons.
Ohio State has the fourth most wins in the country the last six years, a dozen more than Michigan, and the best record in the nation since 2005, the only Big Ten team with a better than Penn State during that time.
Like it or not, the Buckeyes have been the measuring stick for Penn State in just about each of the last 16 seasons and they are again this year. For those Lions' fans waiting for the Pitt series to resume, and embrace the series with Ohio State and channel your Panther hate to Buckeye hate - Penn State needs it against its newest and biggest rival.
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