Gabe Shakour/Ithaca College
Alabama-Auburn. Michigan-Ohio State.
Ithaca College versus SUNY Cortland.
In the pantheon of college football rivalries, one of these things is ostensibly not like the others. But try telling that to fans of the Ithaca Bombers and the Cortland Red Dragons — or to hordes of devotees across the country enraptured by sports rivalries that are largely unknown beyond their region.
On Saturday, Ithaca and Cortland are scheduled to play the 61st Cortaca Jug game at MetLife Stadium, more than 200 miles from their campuses in central New York.
Despite that distance, the matchup is poised to become the most-attended football game in Division III history, with the expectation of breaking 50,000 on Saturday and about 46,500 tickets sold as of Thursday.