Future of the Crosstown Shootout

When every Cincinnati and Xavier see the college basketball schedule, one of the games they instantly circle is the Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout. There is no doubt that these teams dislike each other due to their history and proximity. However, for a rivalry to succeed both sides and their rampant fan bases need to remain actively engaged in the game.

With its move to the Big East and the whole Huggins/Zimpher debacle, the Bearcats athletic department has begun to take a more all-around approach to athletics. For years, UC was primarily a basketball school with a very rich tradition. However, with the move to the Big East, other teams have begun to strengthen from the women's volleyball team making it to the second round of the NCAA tournament to the baseball team's success in making it to the Big East finals last year. Most notably, the football team has won the Big East and is heading to FedEx Orange Bowl in Miami. For the time in UC history, the football team is getting far more coverage than the basketball team. More UC fans will travel to Miami on New Year's Day than will pack Fifth/Third Arena tonight vs. Xavier. Crosstown Shootout tickets used to be the hardest tickets in Cincinnati to get, and now I can still go online to gobearcats.com to get a ticket. People used to camp out for these tickets, but now its no big deal. Can you ever imagine being able to buy even the worst seat in the house for a Duke/UNC on game day? I think not.

Xavier on the other hand is one of the best mid-major programs in the nation along with Gonzaga, Creighton, Southern Illinois, and a few others. While scheduling marquee matchups has gotten much easier for the Muskies in the past few years, they clearly still have more to gain by beating the Bearcats. If the Bearcats lose today, they will have lost to a superior team. However, if X loses, it will be their third straight loss at 5/3 Arena, even though the past few years have been much stronger for the Muskies than the Bearcats. The reverse was true throughout the 90s, when X would regularly upset the Bearcats. Then, the Bearcats were #1 in the country and the game was of national focus. While X has climbed back into the Top 10, I would make a safe bet that a much larger audience will be watching the presentation of the Heisman Trophy on ESPN than the Shootout on ESPN2 at the same time.

In addition, without Bob Huggins' arrogance, the rivalry takes a hit. This is a man who refused to shake Pete Gillen's hand after an X victory in the previous decade. Now, Coach Cronin and Coach Miller get along and its not that much different of a game. Even in Cincy, the attention is down. On cincinnati.com's sports section, the #1 story is about Redfest, #2 about the Shootout, and #3 the five-day old Bearcats football going to the Orange Bowl. Honestly, X is probably more excited for their matchup vs Duke the following Saturday in the Meadowlands than tonight's game. I guess we will just have to see who shows up in front of a crowd that will likely not be a sellout for the first time in recent memory.

Who knows what lies ahead for the rivalry? It should continue since it gets both teams excited for a key non-conference matchup. With 18 Big East games for the Bearcats, nothing should be considered a lock with non-conference scheduling. Also, if the Bearcats continue to struggle, the Muskies may drop the Cats from the schedule in order to improve their strength of schedule while playing in a weak A-10. Hopefully, the rivalry will continue, but it needs to regain some flair to recapture the attention of the city like in the 1990s, which is truly beneficial for both teams.