Imagine you’re the one very best at doing something. Football, Ping Pong, Competitive Hot Dog Eating. No matter the contest, competition puts a team’s hard work and pride on the line. For any competitor, there is always someone just as good, someone you measure yourself against and pushes you to your very limits. And that itself, is the definition of rivalry. Rivalry is something that’s prevalent among all sports. From T-ball to Major League Baseball, teams have certain opponents and even players, that they try their absolute hardest to beat. However, while the feeling of rivalry may be universal, all coaches do not necessarily view it the same. Some don’t like to use the word at all, like head football coach Fred Petito. He feels it changes based on the time period and how good a team is. “In the 90s, it was Papillion and Millard North who were rocking out,” Petito said. Now of course rivalry is playing out with Millard North and Millard West, highlighted after the championship game last year. Others see it as motivation. Head volleyball coach Lindsey Peterson states that’s when her team works the hardest. “You see the girls working really hard all the way through,” Peterson said. “The kids get hyped up for it a lot more than a regular season game. They’re willing to work harder.” For others, rivalry sprouts naturally and helps to intensify the games. Good examples of that come from playing against people you know, coaches notice differences in playing when MN plays Millard West, Millard South, or Creighton Prep. “You know I think that happens because I lot of the girls know each other,” head softball coach John Swoboda said. “When that happens, you get a competition. Sports journalists pick up on teams competing fiercely and then go on to create comptetiton. They give those teams more coverage, they analyze the matchup of the games , they interview players from and the team to get personal opionions, all to drum up attention. Pretty soon, rivalries are born and go on to become as old as day and night. “[Rivalries though, are more for people in your business,”] Petito said, referring to the people who cover and analyze sports: journalists. All coaches agree on one thing though, rivalry adds something to the sports: non-sports fans’ attention. “You know when the Broncos play say the Patriots, a lot of people who don’t watch football tune in because of the Rivalry,” Peterson said. It’s true, rivalries do bring all sorts of people to watch the outcomes of all sorts of contests. Family and friends of avid sports fans come toghether and end up tuning in. Even coaches pay attention to rivalries when they aren’t on the field. “When Nebraska and Iowa play, everybody’s tuned in to cheer us [Nebraska] on, even if they aren’t a sports fan,” Swoboda said.