The thrill of playing them is dealing with the fear of "what if we lose?"
If the intensity that this game brings doesn't rise to the level of a rivalry, then I'd like some of you wise scribes to tell me which of our foes are considered rivals?
The truth is, Nebraska doesn't have any actual rivals at this point. A rivalry isn't just created out of thin air. Texas has owned us. We don't play OU anymore. Colorado, Mizzou, and K St had their moments but never developed into any longterm mutual excitement, and they are gone now anyway. We've been in the Big Ten for 3 years and haven't properly developed any big rivalries with anyone yet. The potential is there down the road for a few schools, but all of the old Big Ten teams already have their longstanding rivalry. We just don't have one right now.