Hoyas vs. Syracuse, Duke vs. UNC, and the Best NCAA College Sports Rivalries

It's March Madness, NCAA tournament time. Here's a primer on the top five rivalries in college sports.

March Madness tends to takes a toll on the ladies, who for a month watch the male population slowly move into bridezilla behavior as the weeks progress. One small loss can ruin a man's bracket, leaving them with the same feeling as finding a giant zit on your face the day before prom. 

However, like the zit, losing during March Madness is a temporary thing a guy gets over anywhere in from a couple of hours to a few days. For ladies looking for real sports rivalries (Lindsay Lohan/Rachel MacAdams fighting in "Mean Girls" status), check these teams out as they battle each other all year round:

1. Ohio State vs. Michigan

A rivalry dating back to 1897, the Ohio State Buckeyes and Michigan Wolverines football teams play every year in what is known to fans of both sides as "The Game." The heat between the two reached movie status in 2007, when HBO created a documentary on what it describes as the "most hotly contested rivalry in college football, if not all American sport."  

2. Duke vs. UNC 

Only eight miles separate these two North Carolina schools in a rivalry known both as the Battle of Tobacco Road, or the Battle of the Blues. Since 1920, these two schools have put their bragging rights on the line on the basketball courts. Fans will miss out on the Blue Devils and the Tar Heels playing each other at the 2012 March Madness tournament, since Duke lost in the first round to Lehigh University. 

3. LSU vs. Alabama

Back on the gridiron, fans got a kick out of this Southern rivalry since both teams took the top two slots in the Bowl Championship Series standings this past year. The LSU Tigers made tiger bait out of the Crimson Tide in overtime November 2011, but two months later, the Tide came back to win the 2012 Allstate BCS National Championship Game. 

4. Notre Dame vs. everyone 

The "Regina George" of all sports, the iconic Fighting Irish are enemies of several schools around the country. In football, the Notre Dame-USC rivalry has produced the most Heisman trophies and players drafted in the NFL. On the courts, the Irish also have a basketball rivalry against Marquette, a team they've played more than any other opponent in the program's 103-year history. To a lesser degree, Notre Dame vs. Duke in lacrosse is a new rivalry in the making.

5. Syracuse vs. Georgetown 

A long-standing basketball rivalry, these two teams were original members of the Big East Conference. However, college basketball may lose this rivalry in the coming years, due to Syracuse's move to the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2014.

Ivy League extra: Harvard vs. Yale 

Considered the oldest rivalry in American sports due to the age of both universities, these Ivies like to consider their football meeting as "The Game." However, this match doesn't get the same amount of television network hype as Ohio State and Michigan. Aside from football, the two have an ongoing rivalry in crew and squash.

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