Key to the City Game 2023 - NSIC Weekly - W5

[Matt Witwicki]

https://www.youtube.com/live/CTYF3fG...ESJ95iQVxaE5WO

Tom and I review the week that was..then dive into the best rivalry in the conference around the 17 min mark..and pick the game with about 15 mins to go.

We have Matt Zimmer as our guest..he's one of the top beat writers for the NSIC.

[zimmy21]

https://www.youtube.com/live/CTYF3fG...ESJ95iQVxaE5WO

Tom and I review the week that was..then dive into the best rivalry in the conference around the 17 min mark..and pick the game with about 15 mins to go.

We have Matt Zimmer as our guest..he's one of the top beat writers for the NSIC.

I'd argue the only real rivalry in the conference these days. Mankato lost St. Cloud, and hasn't picked up a real rival yet maybe Sioux Falls but that is so new and fairly one-sided.

[Matt Witwicki]

I'd argue the only real rivalry in the conference these days. Mankato lost St. Cloud, and hasn't picked up a real rival yet maybe Sioux Falls but that is so new and fairly one-sided.

I think the USF/Augie tilt is a full blown rivalry..and then we have some others that aren't as pronounced.

I'd say that Winona vs Mankato is the biggest one for the Mavs. UMD and MSU don't have a lot of love lost either. Minot vs Mary is very much a rivalry up in central ND. Northern with Augie has a fair amount of dislike on both sides as well. BSU vs Moorhead for the Axe..and Winona vs SW for the sledge..but the last one felt like something more between the friendly competition with Tom Sawyer at WSU and Cory Sauter at SW, who are very good buds.

[Tundra_Man]

I don't know if any other NSIC rivalry has their own t-shirts. Lots of "Augie Sucks" and "Screw The Coo" shirts among the fans attending.

[SW_Mustang]

KttC is a full-blown rivalry at this point. It lacks the tradition of longstanding rivalries, but I've had plenty of conversations about this matchup - even with some former players. It's definitely one to see.

I'd go as far as to say it's the marquee rivalry of the conference.

I never really took the SMSU/WSU rivalry seriously. I know the backstory and think the trophy is neat, but never really got the sense it was anything more than an agreement between a couple schools. This is just me, but I've always thought of Moorhead as a bigger rival for some reason. I also like it when we match up with USF, though that is not a rivalry at all.

MSU/UMD is a matchup I watch for and try to attend. Lots of factors - MnSCU vs. U of M, North v. South, one has titles and the other wants them, several other factors.

[zimmy21]

MSU/UMD is a matchup I watch for and try to attend. Lots of factors - MnSCU vs. U of M, North v. South, one has titles and the other wants them, several other factors.

The matchup has lost its luster, long gone are the days since the league wanted to beat Duluth every year.
The MN State vs UM is also not a factor at all lol

[SW_Mustang]

The matchup has lost its luster, long gone are the days since the league wanted to beat Duluth every year.
The MN State vs UM is also not a factor at all lol

Duluth isn't the national powerhouse it once was, but I think you'd be hard pressed to find any team that wouldn't still love to get a shot at beating them. It was pretty well attended my last two visits in Kato for that game. Granted that was 4 years ago, and homecoming - but still. I bet it draws a higher than average attendance.

MSU vs. the U of M system is a tale as old as time. Maybe it doesn't play into the on-field product too much, but I think most Mav people would love to take a little aggression out on the Maroon any chance they can get.

[zimmy21]

Duluth isn't the national powerhouse it once was, but I think you'd be hard pressed to find any team that wouldn't still love to get a shot at beating them. It was pretty well attended my last two visits in Kato for that game. Granted that was 4 years ago, and homecoming - but still. I bet it draws a higher than average attendance.

MSU vs. the U of M system is a tale as old as time. Maybe it doesn't play into the on-field product too much, but I think most Mav people would love to take a little aggression out on the Maroon any chance they can get.

In hockey sure, other sports not so much. Of course the U of M system can go to hell, but that's more so pointed at the Twin Cities.

You saw the homecoming boost, most students don't care about Duluth. Beating them in football 7 of the last 8 games hasn't helped the "Rivalry".

St. Cloud was the rival, and that is dead. Which is okay because they are a **** school.

[Otis Day]

I take a little offense from Zim of my senior year being the worst key game ever. But I'll take an ugly win over a pretty loss :) But thanks for the trip down memory lane men.

Also - appreciate the shoutout Witt for one of my favorite running backs to block for ever, Nephi Garcia. His name came up a couple weeks ago while watching a Wazzu game. Why's that? Wazzu HC and former Mankato and Augie DC Jake Dickert of course. Dickert's defense gave up 159 yards and 3 TDs to Nephi in that "ugly" 2013 game.

[Ironlinks]

8-2 doesn't exactly mean a statistical rivlary. However, I believe the fans think it is. That said Augie will get there largest margin of victory over USF in this years game, grab the Key and the record will be 8-3

Zimmer has always liked Augie USF had to prove themselves over the past 10 years. Augie is lucky they didn't play USF in 2008 or 2009, USF's two best teams would have waffle-stomped them.

[SW_Mustang]

In hockey sure, other sports not so much. Of course the U of M system can go to hell, but that's more so pointed at the Twin Cities.

You saw the homecoming boost, most students don't care about Duluth. Beating them in football 7 of the last 8 games hasn't helped the "Rivalry".

St. Cloud was the rival, and that is dead. Which is okay because they are a **** school.

I agree with the bolded, SCSU was the real rival when they existed in football. 2022 was a big showing too and was not HoCo - much bigger crowd than I've seen in other trips to MSU. I also thought College Town hosted a big festival during HoCo which usually resulted in fewer students attending? I'm not sure, I avoid that place like the plague. I think to say the matchup generates no additional interest is false.

As far as the boost, USF has dominated KttC and aside from the game not being held at KO, it's going to draw a lot of fans from both sides.

Ultimately, the U functions as one school with multiple branch campuses rather than a system of schools under one umbrella like MnSCU. They aren't shy about it either. I about burst out laughing when I was on campus last October and I saw the mothership was trying to claim Brian Kobilka as an alumni on their walk of fame, even though I doubt he ever set foot in Gooferville during his undergrad. Maybe it doesn't translate well to D2 athletics, but whenever you're dealing with one of the underlings, you are indirectly dealing with their boss as well. I mean, UMTC runs UMD's medical school afterall...

[zimmy21]

Inter-city matchups will always draw a crowd, that's comparing apples to oranges and you know it lol

Attendance for home Mankato/Duluth football games. Count all 4 of them in the last 13 seasons, including 1 playoff game. Duluth crowds in Mankato have had the benefit of being the first home game or homecoming. As most in this conference can tell you it's hard to draw a crowd to the games as the weather turns, so it's not quite fair to judge week 1,2, or 4 games against week 8,9,10 or 11.

2022 - 5963 (opening home game / outdrew Mary game by 176)
2019 - 6171 (Homecoming / outdrew opener by 343)
2015 - 6387 (opening home game / #1 MSU vs #3 UMD) Was a great game and comeback victory for the MAVS. Hot night
2014 - 3378 (playoffs round 2)

[zimmy21]

On the flip side .... Duluth home games vs Mankato

2021 - 6539 (opening home game)
2017 - 4557 (beat out by USF who was the opener)
2013 - 5723
2011 - 3458

Again most of the UMD games can be misconstrued with the fact that we only played at each other's places every 4 years and in the first 4 weeks for most of the last decade +

[vikingfaithful]

The little brother vs. big brother attitude is prevalent in the USF/Augustana rivalry as The Coo takes great pride in sticking it to the Vikings. The players see each other around town and the winner holds their head high. There are other sports they play other than football, but football elicits the most emotion.

There is another rivalry in D2 GAC. Between two schools across the road from each other in Quachita Baptist and Henderson St,

[SW_Mustang]

Inter-city matchups will always draw a crowd, that's comparing apples to oranges and you know it lol

Attendance for home Mankato/Duluth football games. Count all 4 of them in the last 13 seasons, including 1 playoff game. Duluth crowds in Mankato have had the benefit of being the first home game or homecoming. As most in this conference can tell you it's hard to draw a crowd to the games as the weather turns, so it's not quite fair to judge week 1,2, or 4 games against week 8,9,10 or 11.

2022 - 5963 (opening home game / outdrew Mary game by 176)
2019 - 6171 (Homecoming / outdrew opener by 343)
2015 - 6387 (opening home game / #1 MSU vs #3 UMD) Was a great game and comeback victory for the MAVS. Hot night
2014 - 3378 (playoffs round 2)

That's fair on the intercity comment, but even still - being ultra lopsided didn't really taper off any interest as far as I know. You'd expect some if it wasn't an actual rivalry.

I've always wondered where the Mavs got their attendance numbers as I've rarely (if ever) been counted, but I digress. Openers are always a strong draw in communities that care about athletics. I've always noticed it tapering off. People get their one for the year in while the weather is at it's best. I think it might be better to compare it to a random early-season home game, but that's just me.

Talking with fans at the 2019 game, I got a real sense of wanting to beat UMD, and not just as "another opponent" but that's obviously anecdotal.