TOWSON, Md. - For the 13th time in school history, the Towson University football team will be taking the Delaware Blue Hens on Saturday night.
Many of us look at Delaware and James Madison as rivals in football. But as much as I hate to admit it, I believe it to be a rivalry just on the Towson side. Towson is 4-8 all time against the Blue Hens, and only 5-17-1 against Madison. At one point, Towson was 4-4 against Delaware, but the last four games have all been losses for the Tigers. The beauty of being in a conference is the rivalries you can build. For Towson, however, that has been tough.
First off, Towson continued to move up in divisions early on in its history. You have to remember that the school did not even have a football team until 1969. The Tigers started and stayed at Division III for 10 years. Included during those 10 years was an undefeated season in 1974 and a loss in the 1976 national championship game against St John's of Minnesota.
During those 10 seasons, the Tigers played in-state rival Frostburg State every year. They also played Johns Hopkins from 1970-1975. But, during those 10 years, the Tigers were not in a conference. So, even though you played many of the same schools, it didn't have the same cache.
In 1979 the Tigers moved to Division II, giving out scholarships for the first time. Towson had great success in its eight seasons at the Division II level, going to the playoffs three times. You have to remember during that period, only eight schools made it into the playoffs.
However, many of the opponents changed every year. If you look at the 1979 schedule and compare it to 1986, the final year in Division II, only two teams were still on the schedule - Morgan State and James Madison. The Tigers have played the Dukes 23 times and the Bears 22 times, more than any other opponents.
The Tigers would traditionally play James Madison on the last game of the season, but that series would end in 1992. The Tigers quit playing Morgan on a regular basis after 1988.
In 1987, Towson made its final divisional move to I-AA, what is now called FCS.
But, the Tigers remained an independent. The schedule would start to become as good as any in the country until the end of the 1992 season. It was during this period that Towson had thoughts of dropping football all together. The decision was made to keep football but eliminate scholarships.
In 1995 and 1996, Towson would play schools that they had never played before and haven't played since. So, after 28 years of football, there was no team on the schedule you could look at and know the Tigers would play every year.
When the Tigers moved into the Patriot League in 1997, it marked the first time they had been in a conference. Towson stayed there until 2003, so every season the Tigers and their fans knew who would be on the schedule. Towson was just starting to begin nice rivalries with their Patriot League foes when in 2004, the Tigers moved to the Atlantic 10, which is now known as the CAA.
So, the Tigers have now been in the CAA longer than they were in the Patriot League. But, to build rivalries, you have to have both teams having success. Winning league games are much more significant from a rivalry standpoint than just a scheduled game.
To also build that rivalry, you have to have special games. Towson has had a couple on its side against Delaware. The win against the Blue Hens at Unitas Stadium in 2005 was special. So was the win up at "the Tub" back in 1993. But, until this season, the Tigers have not been near the top of the league.
Yes, there is a history between Towson and Delaware, but to Blue Hen fans, they have always looked at the Tigers as a pretty sure thing.
The Tigers can eliminate Delaware from playoff consideration with a win this Saturday. That would send a message to the Blue Hen fans. I also believe that the way Towson won against Old Dominion two weeks ago could be the beginning of a really good rivalry.
Again, it takes special games to make a rivalry great. For Towson fans, that win against the Monarchs will be remembered for a long, long time. For Monarch fans, it will be a game they remember for a long, long time also. Just not the same way we do☺
We could very well have a record crowd at "the U" this Saturday night. The atmosphere should be electric. A win against Delaware this week could go a very, very long way in guaranteeing the Tigers a shot at playing more than 11 games this season. (I was told by a football administrator recently not to use the playoff word. Oops.)
A victory this week will also set up next Saturday's game as a battle for first place in the conference against the University of Maine.
It is a GREAT time to be a Tiger. Hope to see you all at "the U" Saturday night.
Programming Note: Damon Lewis and I will be at Bill Bateman's in Towson Thursday night for another edition of Tiger Talk from 6-7 p.m. Coach Rob Ambrose will be there to talk about this week's matchup with Delaware. We will also be joined by Towson field hockey Coach Michelle Webber. If you can't come out to Bateman's, you can listen to Tiger Talk on WNST-AM 1570 or right here on TowsonTigers.com.
