Ranking every Arizona Wildcats Football rivalry

This is the peak of rivalries in West Coast college football and is already among the premier rivalries in the Big 12 alongside Kansas and Kansas State. The way these two football fanbases absolutely despise each other is glorious, underscored by the creation of the Territorial Cup for the 1899 matchup, making it the oldest verified rivalry trophy in college football. Somebody just needed bragging rights.

10 games between the two schools were played prior to 1931, and Arizona won all but the first game. Similarly, Arizona won all but the first game in the first 10 games of the Border Conference days. The two teams officially began the streak that remains unbroken of annual games in 1946, at which point Arizona held an 18-2 record in the series. The Wildcats proceeded to go 11-23 over the next 34 years.

In the 16 years from 1982-98, Arizona hit a stride in the series and only allowed three losses — and the only tie in the series to date in 1987. However, ASU has held the upper hand lately and gone 16-9 in the last 25 years despite Arizona maintaining the overall series lead. Recent years have kept the fire hot, with 2020's infamous '70-7 game' still being ASU fans' go-to rebuttal when confronted with Noah Fifita setting a program record against them in the 2023 regular-season finale.

These two schools have always moved in tandem, undertaking all four moves to the Border Conference, WAC, Pac-12, and Big 12 together. It's only right that in a year where the Big 12 schedule-makers really seemed to bungle rivalry week, this was one of just two that were preserved. These fanbases love to hate each other, but nobody would have it any other way.

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