Wikipedia Article Speculates about USF Rivals...

[USFMikeB]

Football rivalries aren't built online at least not real world ones

Yup, they are built on playing games, more than 60 minutes worth of them.

[USFreak]

This board isn't a microcosm for the average fan, because the fans on here are not the average fan.  You cannot compare the population of fans by using a set of fans that choose to spend their time on an online fan based website.  That isn't a random sample, it is a sample of above average fans.

Sure you can.  You can compare an apple to a Mack Truck if you want to.

The fans here just know a little more, but they are fans and they seem to be split right down the middle on the ol' rivalry conversation.

Like I said, you could probably prove all this with a truly random sample of 1000 USF students.  Maybe even break it out and analyze based on students that a) go to the games and don't.  

I imagine a decent percentage would call UCF a rival.  

I think what most on this board are using as their definition of rival is something along the lines of UF/FSU or Alabama/Auburn.

No, it isn't that strong yet (or even close), but there is definately something there.   Rivalry or not....there are negative feelings.  Maybe all that flyswatting toward the UCFer is paying dividends in building this rivalry.

I know the Knight fans keep saying it, but everytime somebody posts on why it isn't a rivalry seems to make the point an even stronger one.  You'd think most would be indifferent.  There is a clear distaste for the UCFers and their program.

[puc86]

I took the liberty of highlighting all of the errors your impirical study would have and placing them in this convenient box below. You can thank me later

Sure you can.  You can compare an apple to a Mack Truck if you want to.

The fans here just know a little more, but they are fans and they seem to be split right down the middle on the ol' rivalry conversation.

Like I said, you could probably prove all this with a truly random sample of 1000 USF students.  Maybe even break it out and analyze based on students that a) go to the games and don't.  

I imagine a decent percentage would call UCF a rival.  

I think what most on this board are using as their definition of rival is something along the lines of UF/FSU or Alabama/Auburn.

No, it isn't that strong yet (or even close), but there is definately something there.   Rivalry or not....there are negative feelings.  Maybe all that flyswatting toward the UCFer is paying dividends in building this rivalry.

I know the Knight fans keep saying it, but everytime somebody posts on why it isn't a rivalry seems to make the point an even stronger one.  You'd think most would be indifferent.  There is a clear distaste for the UCFers and their program.

[puc86]

A sample consisting of this board would only give you the opinions of this board.

A sample of this thread would only give you the opinions of people willing/able to go to this website, open this thread and respond (people will be more willing to jump through all of those hoops if they care about something and so your study would skew that way).

Self selecting polls are considered to be the least reliable and cannot even be measured in negative/positive percentage points.

A study of the USF campus would not give you a measure of the opinion of the average USF fan but rather the average USF student at the Tampa campus.

You do not need a sample size that large for your Tampa campus study.

How do you define rival?

I can give you more if you like, but only because I like you and want to help your study.

[puc86]

As to the last part of your comments, stop trying to create a catch-22 that paints all actions as a movement towards a rivalry. This is a USF message board and any other fans that come onto this board in a hostile way are met with the same resistance. Does it appear that there are more threads about UCF on this board? Yes! Why? Because they post here on a regular basis begging for us to care about them, look for USF fans on the UCF board explaining this rivalry and you will see how truely one sided a rivalry "we" have. If I were to go to the Miami web site and explain that we were now rivals based upon the EXACT same arguements that UCF fans were making I could get several pages of responses telling me that I was an idiot or needed to be comitted but that would only strengthen the rivalry, correct? :

[USFMikeB]

As to the last part of your comments, stop trying to create a catch-22 that paints all actions as a movement towards a rivalry. This is a USF message board and any other fans that come onto this board in a hostile way are met with the same resistance. Does it appear that there are more threads about UCF on this board? Yes! Why? Because they post here on a regular basis begging for us to care about them, look for USF fans on the UCF board explaining this rivalry and you will see how truely one sided a rivalry "we" have. If I were to go to the Miami web site and explain that we were now rivals based upon the EXACT same arguements that UCF fans were making I could get several pages of responses telling me that I was an idiot or needed to be comitted but that would only strengthen the rivalry, correct? :

Bingo.

[USFreak]

A sample consisting of this board would only give you the opinions of this board.

A sample of this thread would only give you the opinions of people willing/able to go to this website, open this thread and respond (people will be more willing to jump through all of those hoops if they care about something and so your study would skew that way).

Self selecting polls are considered to be the least reliable and cannot even be measured in negative/positive percentage points.

A study of the USF campus would not give you a measure of the opinion of the average USF fan but rather the average USF student at the Tampa campus.

You do not need a sample size that large for your Tampa campus study.

How do you define rival?

I can give you more if you like, but only because I like you and want to help your study.

Oh I forgot.  You had all the hard data to prove why it isn't a rivalry.  ****, how silly of me.  :-/

Listen, a lot of goons on this board are arguing it is a rivalry, but just as many are arguing it is not.  None of them have any hard data to back it up.  Each side just thinks by yelling louder they are right.

Turns out until you prove it wrong it is probably the closest thing you, USF and UCF have to a rivalry (unless a wave of Pitt fans are out there burning USF effigies).  I've seen a lot more newspaper articles calling it one than I have newspaper articles saying it isn't.  Now that doesn't make it true, but I'd say those dailies in Orlando and Tampa will do more to form opinions than 10 or 20 USF message boarders saying 'this isn't a rivalry.'

And you know what....come September we'll see a lot more.  Get your "Letters to the Editor" ready.

[USFreak]

As to the last part of your comments, stop trying to create a catch-22 that paints all actions as a movement towards a rivalry. This is a USF message board and any other fans that come onto this board in a hostile way are met with the same resistance. Does it appear that there are more threads about UCF on this board? Yes! Why? Because they post here on a regular basis begging for us to care about them, look for USF fans on the UCF board explaining this rivalry and you will see how truely one sided a rivalry "we" have. If I were to go to the Miami web site and explain that we were now rivals based upon the EXACT same arguements that UCF fans were making I could get several pages of responses telling me that I was an idiot or needed to be comitted but that would only strengthen the rivalry, correct? :

Sure, by at any point did you notice it wasn't just UCF fans making posts about it being a rivalry?  Look back through this thread.

There are quite a few USF fans calling it one too.  Wouldn't that make the 'one-sided' argument a number larger than one?

How about 'mini-rivalry'?  Rivalry Jr.?  Poor man's Rivarly?  

Does that make it easier to stomach?  Take it with two Alka Seltzers....goes down a lot smoother.

[USFMikeB]

What you don't seem to understand is that it isn't a matter of liking or disliking a potential rivalry with UCF.  In fact, if attendance like the first game can be sustained, then it makes sense.  However, it is the matter in which people are trying to force its existence.  Reality is that rivalries take time to build, and can't be created by a group of online fans that want to see it happen.  Reality is that we've only played one game, and discussion of a rivalry as anything other than potential is rather premature.  Yes, there are fans on both sides that want it.  However, it has not reached the level where it is a real rivalry.  Budding, possibly; true rivalry, definitely not.

[USFreak]

For my Rivalry case I present the following:

St. Pete Times:

USF, UCF rivalry can't wait

http://www.sptimes.com/2005/09/12/Sports/USF__UCF_rivalry_can_.shtml

Rivalry marked more by fizzle than sizzle

http://www.sptimes.com/2005/09/18/Columns/Rivalry_marked_more_b.shtml

Central Florida Future

Despite bad game for UCF, rivalry with USF holds plenty of benefits for both

http://www.centralfloridafuture.com/home/index.cfm?event=displayArticle&ustory_id=8a3af1ba-ba47-49f0-987f-2f12cedd158b

Defining a New Rivalry

http://www.centralfloridafuture.com/user/index.cfm?event=displayRegistrationPrompt&thereferer=http%3A//www.centralfloridafuture.com/media/paper174/news/2003/10/09/Sports/Defining.A.New.Rivalry-523243.shtml%3Fnorewrite%26sourcedomain%3Dwww.centralfloridafuture.com

FansOnly

Golden Knights Looking to Start Rivalry with a Victory

http://ucfathletics.collegesports.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/091605aaa.html

Orlando Sentinel

UCF and USF to begin football rivalry in 2005

http://sports.orlandosentinel.com/default.asp?c=orlandosentinel&page=cfoot/news/AFN2572684.htm

CollegeFootballNews

Why to watch: Okay, so it isn’t exactly Florida State-Miami, but this first-time meeting between schools separated by just 100 miles has a chance to become a pretty interesting rivalry if they can agree to play it every year.

http://www.collegefootballnews.com/big_east/2005_Predictions/Sept17_2.htm

Yada, yada, yada....it goes on in Tampa Trib, Lakeland Ledger, Daytona Courier-Journal, and so on.  The word 'rivalry' appears in no less than like 150 search results when you type in USF, UCF and rivalry.

...and GASP...a quote directly from USF's Head Football Coach Jim Leavitt:

"On whether this is the program’s first real rivalry: "Well I think it’s natural. I don’t think that there is any question. We haven’t been playing football for that long, and we didn’t play them early because they have been playing football for quite a while longer. We were a I-AA team just trying to see if we could become a football team. With the proximity of it all I would certainly think so. Everybody’s already been writing about it, since the two schools are so close that it would be natural.â€Â

http://gobulls.usf.edu/Sports/News.asp?i=1757&s=Football

So let me get this straight.  The head coach says it is a natural, but nope....we'll ignore that and all the other ink.

It just seems like the words USF and UCF appear together with the word 'rivalry' just a few too many times to not say there is something to it.   Press created or UCF fan created.....it is what it is.

But go ahead....if there is hard evidence anywhere of why it is not a rivalry I'd love to see it.  I'm not sure generalities like "they've only played one game so it can't be a rivalry" will cut it.  Well, maybe if Mike Tranghese said it, but if it is only a some stoner in dorm room 202 in Theta that doesn't count.