River City Rivalry
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The River City Rivalry is the name given to the Cincinnati–Pittsburgh football rivalry. It was an annual game played between former
Big East The Big East Conference is a collegiate athletic conference that competes in NCAA Division I in ten men's sports and twelve women's sports. Headquartered in New York City, the eleven full-member schools are primarily located in Northeast and ...
rivals
University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the universit ...
and
University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44,00 ...
. The rivalry itself was relatively brief, played annually from 2005, during which season the rivalry trophy was introduced. Before the rivalry was titled, the two teams played each other in 1921, 1922, 1979, and 1981. The rivalry went on hiatus, like many others throughout the country, in the aftermath of the
2010–14 NCAA conference realignment 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...
, which left the programs in separate leagues. However, the two teams are scheduled to meet in a home-and-home series for the 2023 and 2024 seasons. It will be Cincinnati's debut season in the Big 12 resulting in a defacto ACC/Big 12 showdown.


Paddlewheel Trophy

The Paddlewheel Trophy is the rivalry trophy that was created in 2005 when the Bearcats joined the Big East Conference to which the
Pittsburgh Panthers The Pittsburgh Panthers, commonly also referred to as the Pitt Panthers, are the athletic teams representing the University of Pittsburgh, although the term is colloquially used to refer to other aspects of the university such as alumni, facu ...
already belonged. Prior to 2005, the teams had met previously on only four prior occasions, most recently in 1981. However, the teams decided to create a trophy that would help their new conference rivalry grow and reflect the sports rivalry that already existed between the cities' professional football and baseball teams. The trophy is designed and named in honor the historic link between the cities from the days in the 19th and early-20th centuries when
Paddle wheel A paddle wheel is a form of waterwheel or impeller in which a number of paddles are set around the periphery of the wheel. It has several uses, of which some are: * Very low-lift water pumping, such as flooding paddy fields at no more than about ...
-powered
boats A boat is a watercraft of a large range of types and sizes, but generally smaller than a ship, which is distinguished by its larger size, shape, cargo or passenger capacity, or its ability to carry boats. Small boats are typically found on inl ...
traveled between the two cities along the
Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...
. The trophy stands tall and weighs . Mounted on the base is an authentic brass, engine-room
telegraph Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas p ...
that is a working model that was set for use on a ship in Seattle, Washington. The face of the trophy's telegraph was redesigned with logos from both teams on either side that can light up. The lever can be pulled to the side of the school who has won which also causes the ringing of bells. The front includes a steel plate featuring a carved outline of Allegheny,
Monongahela River The Monongahela River ( , )—often referred to locally as the Mon ()—is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed August 15, 2011 river on the Allegheny Plateau in North Cen ...
s and Ohio River as it runs from
Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
to
Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
. The base is made out of
Ipê ''Handroanthus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Bignoniaceae.David J. Mabberley. 2008. ''Mabberley's Plant-Book'' third edition (2008). Cambridge University Press: UK. It consists of 30 species of trees, known in Latin America by ...
wood. The trophy was designed by the architectural firm of Robert Busch and Karl Wallick, the steel plate was manufactured by Vulkane of Cincinnati, and the remaining trophy was manufactured b
Trophy Awards Manufacturing
Over 175 man-hours of design and labor went into its construction.


History

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
and
Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
have been historic rivals in many facets, first as economic centers along the
Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...
as mass migration in the United States headed westward. Within the sports world, the
Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...
and
Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...
have maintained a heated rivalry at times, frequently facing off in the
MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
playoffs during the 1970s. In the NFL, the
Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...
and
Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...
have been division rivals and have had a fiery rivalry since their first game. When
Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
joined the
Big East The Big East Conference is a collegiate athletic conference that competes in NCAA Division I in ten men's sports and twelve women's sports. Headquartered in New York City, the eleven full-member schools are primarily located in Northeast and ...
in 2005 the theoretical rivalry with
Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
was pounced upon. Assisted in this was the comparative talent between the two programs during this time, which came to a peak in what was essentially the Big East Championship Game when the teams met in 2009.


Notable Games

October 20, 2007: The No. 23 Bearcats entered the matchup at 6–1 fresh off a tough loss to
Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...
. The Panthers' run game was tenacious with two players rushing for over 100 yards and Cincinnati QB
Ben Mauk Gary Benjamin Mauk (born January 4, 1985) is a former American football quarterback. He completed his college football career in 2007 Cincinnati Bearcats football team, 2007 for the University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati Cincinnati Bearcats, Bearcat ...
's 3 turnovers in the 4th quarter leading to a second straight loss and drop out of the rankings for the Bearcats. December 5, 2009: The 2009 matchup between Cincinnati and Pittsburgh was described by one national columnist as the most "fascinating game I've ever seen." The game functioned as a Big East championship game, with Cincinnati entering first in the conference, and Pittsburgh at second. Additionally, the Bearcats entered the game undefeated and trying to earn a spot in the
BCS National Championship Game The BCS National Championship Game, or BCS National Championship, was a postseason college football bowl game, used to determine a national champion of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), first played in the 1998 college fo ...
, while the 9–2 Panthers were trying to secure their first
BCS bowl The Bowl Championship Series (BCS) was a selection system that created four or five bowl game match-ups involving eight or ten of the top ranked teams in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of American college football, including ...
since the
2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
season. The Panthers had an early 31–10 lead, however, the ensuing kickoff was returned for a touchdown by
Mardy Gilyard Marshawn "Mardy" Gilyard (born December 2, 1986) is a current American football wide receiver who is a free agent and current defensive backs coach at Nichols College. He was drafted by the St. Louis Rams in the fourth round of the 2010 NFL D ...
to make it a 31–17 game at halftime. Cincinnati completed the comeback, tying the game at 38 late in the 4th quarter. Pittsburgh running back
Dion Lewis Dion John Lewis (born September 27, 1990) is a former American football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 10 seasons. He played college football at the University of Pittsburgh and was drafted by the Philadelphia ...
scored a touchdown with 1:36 left in the game, but a mishandled snap by Andrew Janocko prevented the Panthers from converting the extra point. The Bearcats then drove down the field and scored on a 29-yard touchdown pass from
Tony Pike Anthony Steven Pike (born March 10, 1986) is a former American football quarterback who played for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Cincinnati and was drafted by the Panthers in the sixth r ...
to
Armon Binns Armon Tyrae Binns (born September 8, 1989) is a former American football wide receiver and is currently the wide receivers coach for the Northwestern Wildcats. He played college football at Cincinnati. Binns was signed by the Jacksonville Jagua ...
with 33 seconds left. Bearcats kicker Jake Rodgers converted the extra point attempt, and Cincinnati held on to win 45–44. Following the game, Cincinnati rose to a #3 ranking in the final BCS standing while Pitt dropped to #17. The game has been described as "one of the most crushing losses in the history of Pitt football."


Game results

Source:


See also

*
List of NCAA college football rivalry games This is a list of rivalry games in college football in the United States. The list also shows any trophy awarded to the winner of the rivalry between the teams. NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision ...
*
Bengals–Steelers rivalry The Bengals–Steelers rivalry is a National Football League (NFL) rivalry between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Pittsburgh Steelers. The two teams have played each other twice a year since becoming division rivals in 1970. Originally placed in ...


References

{{Atlantic Coast Conference rivalry navbox College football rivalries in the United States Pittsburgh Panthers football Cincinnati Bearcats football Recurring sporting events established in 1921