… or as Jim Nantz might put it, a tradition unlike any other. While he’d be referring to the Masters, in Division III it’s the Hope/Calvin rivalry, the best rivalry in Division III.

(Note: Every time I say that, someone wants to challenge it, so I’ll respond now. Put 11,000 fans in the seats at your game, like this game did in the mid-’90s, and we’ll talk.)

I’ve seen Hope/Calvin once in person, once at one of the rivalry’s many satellite viewing parties and once on CSTV. In 1999 I saw the game at a sports bar in Arlington, Va., and wrote about it on the site. I saw it in person in February 2005 in the final Rivalry game played in the Holland Civic Center, Hope’s longtime home floor. And the CSTV broadcast was really just the local TV retransmitted, which was a shame, because the local broadcasters did nothing to educate the national audience about what this rivalry is about or why the game was even on. What a waste.

Hope won the last meeting, which is why we currently name it the Hope/Calvin rivalry. (When Calvin wins, we officially reverse the order.)

The teams meet tonight, and Josh Centor, who writes a blog for the NCAA, will be in the house and experiencing this for the first time. Follow his blog.