Realistically, I think Erik is talking through his hat.  Cornell isn't hated, but they are feared.  Its a high powered program capable of taking anyone down and will likely wind up winning it all in the near(er) future.  By the time you get to the last 8 or so teams, any one can get a hot goalie and take it.  Last year's Badger/Big Red game had to be one of the best games I have seen (although I had to watch it on TV).  I honestly think that game was the National Title game because I believe Cornell would have come through had they taken the Badgers.  We were lucky to beat them, but by the same token, had they beaten us, they would have been lucky to do so.  Incredible game with extremely well matched players and coaching.
 
Rivalries abound in all sports and all geographic locations.  Trying to decided which one is the most heated is a relatively silly exercise, but its the kind of post I enjoy reading.  I'm not certain how Minnesotans feel about it, but for Wisconsin, in any sport, any loss by Minnesota is a good outcome.  We love to see them lose, hate to see them win - but having said that I think we use the word "hate" kind of loosely because we really don't hate the players, coaches or schools; we actually admire their prowess.  Its just fun to have an intense rivalry where we "hate" the opponent.
 
That's my two cents.
 
Tom Rowe
Stuck in Div III hell with a bad team

________________________________

From: - Hockey-L - The College Hockey Discussion List on behalf of Rita-Ann Monde
Sent: Sat 12/9/2006 12:31 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: St. Lawrence at Clarkson



Erik,  you  haven't answered my question.

>> What did we (Cornell) do  (from the WCHA perspective) to garner 
>> such hatred?
>> Did Cornell not bring a suitable "hostess" gift when they traveled to
>> WCHA-land?

I understand if the CC fans aren't too fond of Cornell given the 
outcome of the last year's NC$$ regional game.  I know in 2003 we 
played (and beat) the MSU Mavericks in the NC$$ regionals, however 
MSU went in as the #14 seed and realistically weren't expected to 
win. In the last decade or so, there haven't been many games between 
Cornell and WCHA teams outside of the NC$$ tournament.


Rita-Ann Monde
Let's Go Red!

Trinity College 1991
Cornell University 2000



On Dec 9, 2006, at 12:26 AM, Erik Biever wrote:

> Guess I touched a nerve.  :-)
>
> -- Erik
>
> On Fri, 8 Dec 2006, Rita-Ann Monde wrote:
>
>> Well, I have been trying to figure out why the WCHA hates Cornell so
>> much.
>>
>> In the spring of 2005 Cornell traveled all the way to MN where they
>> were invited to play on the Gopher's very own spacious home ice
>> surface. However, we lost a heartbreaking game to the Gophers in OT.
>>
>> In the spring of 2006, Cornell went to Green Bay, WI and helped the
>> Badgers turn Green Bay into Red Bay. There we lost a heart-wrenching
>> game in 3OT to the Badgers.
>>
>> What did we do  (from the WHCA perspective) to garner such hatred?
>> Did Cornell not bring a suitable "hostess" gift when they traveled to
>> WCHA-land?
>>
>> I thought the Eastern team that the Gopher fans would HATE would be
>> the Holy Cross Crusaders :).
>>
>> Rita-Ann Monde
>> Let's Go Red!
>>
>> Trinity College 1991
>> Cornell University 2000