Five college football rivalries that aren't worth saving

Colorado vs. Colorado State

In the Centennial State, the Rocky Mountain Showdown pitts Colorado against Colorado State in a matchup of schools separated by about an hour. Though the physical distance between these two programs is small, the distance between where each stands in the sport is growing rapidly and isn't likely to decrease anytime soon.

In a series that dates back to 1893, the Buffalos lead 68-22-2. What's more, Colorado has won nine of the last eleven games with CSU.

The problem for the Rams is the disparity that is developing between their athletic budget and Colorado's. While the Buffalos have for decades enjoyed being the more well-funded program, the gulf between the two schools was not so wide that it felt unfair to pit these two programs against one another.

Now, though, with Colorado finding a safe financial harbor in the Big 12 and CSU having to try to scratch out a living in the Mountain West Conference, Colorado's advantage is going to grow exponentially.

Also, the Deion Sanders factor is going to make this matchup even more lopsided for years to come. "Coach Prime" is going to annually recruit at a level that Colorado State could only dream of. Therefore the disparity between the talent on the field is going to be even greater than it has typically been.

Last fall, a Colorado team that ended the year with only four wins was able to squeak out a victory over a motivated and angry CSU team in Boulder. The 2023 version of the Buffalos will likely be Sanders' worst team and the Rams couldn't even take advantage of that. So why would anyone believe that this series is going to suddenly become more competitive in the future as Sanders builds the Buffs into a Big 12 contender while CSU languishes as a middling Mountain West program?