BlackFalkin wrote:LDopaPDX wrote:
While WSU people think UW is their biggest adversary, UW probably hates Oregon worse. In fact, you could make a very valid argument that everyone in the Pac-12 hates Oregon as much as any team. Nobody likes a corporate shill, especially at a far-left liberal university like Oregon where they constantly (and hypocritically) denounce corporate shills.
Well, I agree to an extent. Wash state and Washington will always be rivals as long as they're in the same conference. Now you could argue that UW and UO have a secondary rivalry but would Oregon fans agree? I don't think so. Most ppl want a rivalry with a team historically better than them. Which is why Portland state always gets hyped to play EWU and UM fans always minimize and refuse to acknowledge their rivalry with EWU. A lot of UM fans always say " oh Idaho is our secondary rivalry" yea bc Idaho was very good in the sky and was the "Montana before Montana" and is currently in FBS. If EWU expands the east side or gets the stadium capacity over 15,000 permanent seats, and continues its dominance over the conference, you will see UM, & we've already seen PSU, take -much greater- pride in their rivalry with EWU.
Actually, I think Eastern is trying harder to make Portland State a rival than Portland State is trying to make a rival of Eastern.
I went to the Eastern / Portland State game last year at JELD-WEN Field and, no joke, there were at best 1,000 PSU fans there. It was really embarrassing. Eastern brought about 2,500 or so fans and vastly outnumbered the PSU fans in attendance. I've been to pretty much every Eastern game in Portland for the last 15 or so years, and Eastern always outdraws Portland State, but last year seemed like record low interest for Portland State.
Plus, the local media doesn't embrace Portland State at all. They don't even acknowledge the existence of a rivalry --- or even a potential rivalry with Eastern. PSU probably played their best game of the year last week in Cheney and damn near beat the Eagles. Wanna know what it earned them in Portland? A 12th page (honest to God, TWELTH page!!!) article that was picked up from wire reports. In the lower right hand corner, no less.
Any rivalry with Portland State is one-sided, even a "manufactured" rivalry with Eastern. Until they can find some fans that give a rip about their program, it's hard to consider them a participant in a rivalry.