The Territorial Cup: Valley 101 podcast explores a rivalry like no other

Thanksgiving weekend brings a great Arizona tradition. The two largest universities in the state battle it out on the football field for the right to hoist a trophy that is older than the state itself: the Territorial Cup.

Whether you're cheering for the Sun Devils or the Wildcats, everyone who participates in the rivalry agrees it's a very big deal. For two football programs suffering through losing seasons, it's the biggest game of the year.

But why do we like rivalries, and does the Duel in the Desert matter to anyone outside of Arizona? In this week's episode of Valley 101, a podcast by The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, we dissect the competition that is awarded the oldest trophy in college football and why our brains hold onto these feuds for so long.

Listen to the episode:

Listen to Valley 101 on your favorite podcast app or stream the full episode below.

Click here to submit questions you have about metro Phoenix for a chance to be chosen for the podcast.

Note: Valley 101 is intended to be heard. But we also offer a transcript of the episode script. There may be slight deviations from the podcast audio.

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Reach the reporter at aluberto@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @amandaluberto.