Borges: Is Providence College becoming heated rival for UConn men’s basketball team? Depends on who you ask

[CL82]

Nobody thinks this. The analogy isn't about program quality, it's about primacy of rivalries and not being symmetrical.

Syracuse - Gtown, Syracuse - UConn.
UConn - Syracuse, UConn - Providence
Providence - UConn, Providence - URI.

Thus Providence is to UConn (secondary rivalry) as UConn is to Syracuse (secondary rivalry).

Just because we're not Syracuse's primary rival doesn't mean they think we're the little brother. It's just that they have someone they hate more, just as we have someone we hate more than Providence. We happen to also think Providence is a little brother, but an analogy doesn't mean it's an exact copy of a relationship, just similar.

And yet if you go on syracusefan.com you will find a heck of a lot more UConn content than Georgetown content. I think that speaks to who they spend their time thinking about.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

Nobody thinks this. The analogy isn't about program quality, it's about primacy of rivalries and not being symmetrical.

Syracuse - Gtown, Syracuse - UConn.
UConn - Syracuse, UConn - Providence
Providence - UConn, Providence - URI.

Thus Providence is to UConn (secondary rivalry) as UConn is to Syracuse (secondary rivalry).

Just because we're not Syracuse's primary rival doesn't mean they think we're the little brother. It's just that they have someone they hate more, just as we have someone we hate more than Providence. We happen to also think Providence is a little brother, but an analogy doesn't mean it's an exact copy of a relationship, just similar.

The problem with your logic is that PC isn't anywhere near second on our list.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

I really look forward to playing Providence, St. John's and Seton Hall as regional rivals, but I don't see them developing into anything like the Syracuse or Pitt rivalries.

 

[kemba]

As of now providence the name does nothing for me, so I don’t consider them a rival. If they keep being in the top 1-3 of the big east I’ll be pumped for those games each year, but no more so than if Marquette was a top team in the big east. Over time if we’re year after year competing with big east championships with them and playing memorable BET games against them things could change, but that takes time.

 

[SubbaBub]

Is Providence College becoming heated rival for UConn men’s basketball team? Depends on who you ask

Are Providence College and UConn men’s basketball team Big East rivals? Coaches Dan...

www.nhregister.com

Did Ryan Gomes enter the chat. I think PC was a rival for about a half and then a JC presser.

Stop trying to make this happen. Our rival is whomever is good when we are good. We aren't good enough yet to have rivals. Nova is the closest based on history of being good when we were good 25 years ago.

When we are fighting PC for the top two spots for multiple years where the winner of the matchups wins the title, then we'll talk. A 1 win 1 NC, in PC's first title year doesn't cut it.

 

[8893]

Did Ryan Gomes enter the chat. I think PC was a rival for about a half and then a JC presser.

Stop trying to make this happen. Our rival is whomever is good when we are good. We aren't good enough yet to have rivals. Nova is the closest based on history of being good when we were good 25 years ago.

When we are fighting PC for the top two spots for multiple years where the winner of the matchups wins the title, then we'll talk. A 1 win 1 NC, in PC's first title year doesn't cut it.

Uh, I didn't write the article, bub.

I posted it because I thought it might be of interest to some here, seeing as this is a UConn basketball forum and it is an issue that has been the subject of much prior discussion here.

Ok boomer?

 

[SubbaBub]

Stop living in the past

Stop inventing a future that may never come.

 

[tcf15]

Historically, no. Going forward, yes.

 

[bigknight3]

Historically, no. Going forward, yes.

Maybe

 

[August_West]

The Pitt thing is confusing to me. Pitt isn’t a rival we should be talking about in 2022. Our “ rivalry” with Pitt lasted a grand total of 8 years in the 2000’s and has been fully over with for 12. Have we even played them in the last decade? Those 8 years had some wars and great games, but that’s long over.

The fact of the matter in 2022 is, sadly, we actually really don’t have a big time rival. I guess Nova kinda fits the bill in some ways, but not in the way Cuse did when we were all in BigEast. Nova was never our even 3rd or 4th rival in the old big East, but now we are in a league with them again and people keep trying to make fetch happen simply because they’ve been great for a while during our absence? It doesn’t work like that.

I’ve never in the past considered providence a rival, but I see ( them maintaining success and us achieving some being a prerequisite) the possibility of this turning into one going forward. It has all the pieces set to make it one, that’s for sure. We will see what happens.

 

[T-Squared]

In all seriousness, I can't remember a very important Providence / UConn game in years. I can think of huge games with Pitt, Syracuse, Villanova, Miami, St. Johns, Georgetown, Cincinnati... but there's not a "Providence - UConn" moment.

Eric Murdoch spitting on Tate George.

 

[M.S.G.]

I responded to Dave's tweet, for me it's the insipid PC fans that I know in real life who talk like they're a blue blood.. It just makes my blood boil.

It's not 1998 or 2007 anymore, Syracuse, Pittsburgh, and Georgetown are not our rivals. Villanova is the closest thing, but uh, we need to beat them a few more times to claim it.

PC is our rival, we have been beaten out for recruits by them, we've lost players off our roster to them, and we've lost games to them (and beaten them) in the past 2 years being back in the conference. They are our biggest rival currently.

 

[NYtoCT]

Being in the same league matters. Ask the players

The players feed off the energy and emotions of the fans. Playing syracuse is a big deal for the fan base, therefore, it’s a big deal to the players because they are well aware of how important it is to the fans to win that one. They are also well aware that syracuse fans will do some major trash talking if we lose. You don’t think that matters to the players?

 

[CL82]

The Pitt thing is confusing to me. Pitt isn’t a rival we should be talking about in 2022. Our “ rivalry” with Pitt lasted a grand total of 8 years in the 2000’s and has been fully over with for 12. Have we even played them in the last decade? Those 8 years had some wars and great games, but that’s long over.

The fact of the matter in 2022 is, sadly, we actually really don’t have a big time rival. I guess Nova kinda fits the bill in some ways, but not in the way Cuse did when we were all in BigEast. Nova was never our even 3rd or 4th rival in the old big East, but now we are in a league with them again and people keep trying to make fetch happen simply because they’ve been great for a while during our absence? It doesn’t work like that.

I’ve never in the past considered providence a rival, but I see ( them maintaining success and us achieving some being a prerequisite) the possibility of this turning into one going forward. It has all the pieces set to make it one, that’s for sure. We will see what happens.

PC jumping up and down saying they are our rival is trying to make fetch happen. It’s a very Rutgers vibe.

 

[McLovin]

The more time we spend thinking about and discussing them, the more we are willing this “rivalry” into existence.

I think the hallmark sign of a rival is how much head space they take up.

 

[CL82]

The more time we spend thinking about and discussing them, the more we are willing this “rivalry” into existence.

I think the hallmark sign of a rival is how much head space they take up.

In this case we’re responding to an article that asked the question and for the most part answering it with “ Providence? Meh.” There isn’t even a lot of passion about people saying that they’re not our rival, which is a pretty telling indicator. What these “who is our arrival?“ threads are really about is the fact that in our current circumstances we don’t have one. That may not always be the case, but it is now.

 

[mauconnfan]

What a terrible comparison lmao. The Sox/Yanks rivalry goes back to babe Ruth and the world wars

Maybe a terrible comparison but I do appreciate his point especially living in Western Mass these days.

 

[mauconnfan]

The most amazing thing about this thread is, unless I missed something, there isn't any of the Friar fans who visit on occasion throwing their 2 cents in. I find that hard to believe.

 

[Drytortugas]

We’re not willing them into being a rival, they already are one. We’re simply refusing to grace them with that title.

 

[Huskymagic]

I responded to Dave's tweet, for me it's the insipid PC fans that I know in real life who talk like they're a blue blood.. It just makes my blood boil.

It's not 1998 or 2007 anymore, Syracuse, Pittsburgh, and Georgetown are not our rivals. Villanova is the closest thing, but uh, we need to beat them a few more times to claim it.

PC is our rival, we have been beaten out for recruits by them, we've lost players off our roster to them, and we've lost games to them (and beaten them) in the past 2 years being back in the conference. They are our biggest rival currently.

We’re not willing them into being a rival, they already are one. We’re simply refusing to grace them with that title.

The more time we spend thinking about and discussing them, the more we are willing this “rivalry” into existence.

I think the hallmark sign of a rival is how much head space they take up.

The side effects of NIL and mercenary transfer portal are being felt among a minority of UCONN fans. Providence can never be a real rival. This narrative is being pushed by desperate Providence fans, and foolhardy UCONN fans who want us to deny our great history with our real rivals: Syracuse and Pitt , in order to accommodate ourselves in the present by creating imaginary rivalries like Providence or Seton Hall.

Providence has a rival called URI.

In order to be a rival there has to be 4 components: history, envied success, coach/program you hate, and respect. Providence does not have any of those components to qualify among the UCONN fanbase.

Who in their right mind gets excited about UCONN playing Providence. It's just another game for us. As fans, we used to get excited about playing against Syracuse and Pitt.

PS: Being in the same conference matters a lot for developing rivalries, but can be mitigated if you scheduled yearly if your rival(s) happen to play somewhere else.

 

[HooperScooper]

PC is our rival, we have been beaten out for recruits by them...

Which recruits have we lost out to them? Don't say Makai Ashton-Langford, which didn't work out for them anyway. Don't say Kris Dunn. Ollie specifically said he didn't recruit him because we had Shabazz and Boatright. And don't say Ryan Gomes. UConn didn't recruit him.

 

[CL82]

We’re not willing them into being a rival, they already are one. We’re simply refusing to grace them with that title.

LOL, a -23 reaction score?

 

[TJT]

MOST PLAYED OPPONENTS

Historically the top three most played opponents for both UConn and PC:

UConn
#1 URI | 145 games | UConn leads 77-68
#2 New Hampshire | 119 games | UConn leads 94-25
#3 UMass | 108 games | UConn leads 69-39

PC
#1 URI | 131 games | PC leads 75-56
#2 Brown | 124 games | PC leads 96-28
#3 St John's | 120 games | St John's leads 64-56

UConn and Providence have met in just 75 games with UConn leading 46-29. It seems the schools rarely played much before the creation of the Big East having only 12 meetings prior to 1980.

 

[Waquoit]

We’re not willing them into being a rival, they already are one. We’re simply refusing to grace them with that title.

That's what bothering me here. The UConn fans giving PC the same treatment Cuse fans have given us over the years. I'll be damned if I'm using Cuse fans as my role model.

 

[DirkDiggler]

I'm a PC alum from Connecticut that grew up a UConn fan when the program transitioned from a regional program to a national power. A "rivalry" can be established for a number of reasons. Certainly the pedigree of UConn's program is far superior to Providence's. But to ignore geographic proximity and conference alignment is ignorant in my opinion. I also find it fascinating- perhaps an indication of the age of some of these posters, that Pitt is an overwhelming choice as a "rival" because an intense, but short window. Syracuse makes sense- even though they're in the ACC now. Georgetown makes sense. Pitt does not to me. Perhaps its a bias, but people seem to ignore the massive success of the PC program in the 60s and 70s. It was by far the best program in New England back then and competed nationally and produced several top 3 overall NBA draft picks. Times change. Programs rise and fall. The collective on here can childishly dismiss PC as an irrelevant program or you could acknowledge that programs can become dumpster fires fairly quickly (see Syracuse, Georgetown, etc.) and heed that warning as you have a petulant child as your head coach. I respect the hell out of the UConn program. I was hoping your experience moving to the AAC and becoming insignificant would have brought more humility. As for PC, Cooley has them on the right track but the school will never finance the program enough to make it a national power. So if you are basing a rivalry strictly on national pedigree, PC will never be a rival to UConn. I for one, look forward to every UConn PC game because they're usually intense. As far as school rivals go, BC was by far the biggest rival across all sports when I was an undergraduate student there. Times change.