Well, this is quite the take!
USA Today National Columnist Dan Wolken is a little sour about ESPN College GameDay coming to Chapel Hill for the second meeting of the season between the UNC basketball program and rival Duke.
Apparently, Wolken believes this rivalry is becoming a "increasingly irrelevant game."
ESPN needs an intervention and a 12 step program at this point to let go of its addiction to this increasingly irrelevant game https://t.co/i4WTb920C0
— Dan Wolken (@DanWolken) March 1, 2025
Sure, this game doesn't have the hype around it as it usually does (considering the position North Carolina is in this season). He could've even justified his take by simply saying there was at least one better game this season on Saturday's docket that College GameDay should have focused on.
However, he made a glaring take that is simply wrong.
The greatest rivalry in sports is still the one that everyone wants to see. Does Wolken forget that last year's rivalry series included not one, but two games in which both sides were ranked in the Top 25?
Just because North Carolina is currently in a "down year" doesn't take away from the rivalry one bit.
We've seen crazy things happen in this rivalry. No one expected the UNC basketball program to roll into Cameron and spoil Coach K's final home game just a few seasons ago. Whose to say that the Tar Heels, who desperately need a Quad 1 victory to bolster their NCAA Tournament resume, don't come out with a vengeance and pull off another major upset in this series?
The Tar Heels have quite a lot to play for and would love to earn some revenge after an embarrassing loss to the Blue Devils just a few weeks ago.
Sorry to break it to you, Dan, but this rivalry is far from irrelevant. Unfortunately, you're a part of the minority of people (you might actually be alone in this group) who think this game (and series) doesn't mean anything.
Regardless of how good or bad both teams are each season, these are ALWAYS two games that college basketball fans circle on their calendar.
Doesn't get much better than a good ole Duke vs. North Carolina rivalry game.