Pac-12 rivalry games show growth, disappointment of teams

Success in the Pac-12 is not easy to sustain, and this year’s rivalry games show why.

November 28th, 2014 was one of the biggest days in the history of the Duel in the Desert. Much more than just the Territorial Cup was at stake in the football game between Pac-12 South division rivals Arizona State and Arizona.

The winner of that game was headed to the Pac-12 championship game, facing national powerhouse Oregon. The Sun Devils came into the contest 9-2, with only a nauseating road defeat to woeful Oregon State keeping them out of the playoff conversation. The Wildcats were ranked 11th nationally, and had already beaten the Ducks in Eugene.

The hype over that game was immense, and around the state of Arizona people were talking up the rivalry. Jokes about both programs flew back on forth on twitter and the game actually pushed the NFL to the back page for a brief moment. This was what rivalry games were all about.

The final score is irrelevant (Arizona won 42-35 in one of the more bitter defeats for the Sun Devils in the series), just the stakes and the hype of the game showed how far both programs had come.

Meanwhile, several hundred miles to the northwest, another rivalry game was taking place. The 5-5 Stanford Cardinal were visiting Berkeley, California for the Big Game. The Cardinal were toward the end of one of the more disappointing seasons in recent history. On the other sideline, the Cal Bears were also 5-5 and just hoping to be bowl eligible and bring the program back to respectability.

Almost one year later, how the tables have turned. The Duel in the Desert will be featuring two lackluster and disappointing teams when the 6-5 Wildcats go to Tempe to take on the 5-5 Sun Devils. Both teams are struggling just to be bowl eligible, and neither one is thinking about the Pac-12 championship.

One sideline features a coach rumored to be leaving for greener pastures at the end of the year in Rich Rodriguez, who has been linked to the Virginia Tech job. The other features a coach who feuded with his offensive coordinator, fired his son right before the season started, and has been accused multiple times of unethical behavior in his team’s stealing of opponents’ signals.

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This is not exactly a game that will push the media to forget about the Super Bowl contending Arizona Cardinals taking on fellow contender Cincinnati Bengals in a nationally televised broadcast. No, instead the Territorial Cup match-up is largely forgotten by residents of the Grand Canyon state, just another game in forgettable seasons for the two major college teams residing in the state.

Stanford, however, is looking to clinch the Pac-12 North division with a win over their rival, Cal, and head to the championship game with an outside shot of getting into the College Football Playoff. The Cardinal are 9-2, with only a narrow loss to Oregon tarnishing their conference record.

The Golden Bears are 6-4 and looking to get to a bowl game for the first time since 2011. While they are not thinking playoffs or even the conference championship game, returning to a bowl game two years removed from their 2013 1-11 season is admirable for one of the Pac-12’s forgotten programs. Head coach Sonny Dykes has Cal on the right track and a big win over Stanford would push the Bears even farther forward.

The 2015 rivalry games are in stark contrast to 2014, and they show how chaotic and balanced the Pac-12 conference has become. Unlike other power five conferences that feature the same teams competing each year, the Pac-12 has shown that any program can have a shot at claiming the championship.

Next: 50 Greatest College Football Rivalries of All-Time

That sentiment gives hope to the Sun Devil and Wildcat fans out there who will be watching the Territorial Cup this Saturday. And fans checking out the Big Game should relish the stakes around the contest, knowing that success can be fleeting, and who know what next year will bring for the Bears and Cardinal.

Overall, it just shows why the Pac-12 conference is what college football should be about.