More than just bragging rights will be on the line later this fall when ASU and UA renew one of the nation's most storied college football rivalries.
The Territorial Cup, the country's oldest intercollegiate rivalry trophy, will be awarded to the winner of the game to be played Nov. 23, at Sun Devil Stadium. The Cup's checkered history outdates any other rivalry trophy, including the Little Brown Jug, which has been given to the Michigan-Minnesota winner since 1909.
"The rivalry is probably a little more spicy than it needs to be, but it's a great spoil for the victor," ASU head football coach Dirk Koetter said.
The Cup was first awarded to ASU (then known as the Arizona Territorial Normal School) on Thanksgiving Day,1899, following an 11-2 victory over UA at Tucson's Carillo Gardens Field in front of an estimated 300 fans.
"It's a wonderful opportunity to re-enliven this tradition of sportsmanship and collegiality that really was the beginning of the rivalry," ASU head archivist Rob Spindler said. "This started out as a very respectful and collegial athletic event."
ASU President Lattie Coor met with the entire Sun Devil football team late last week to discuss the importance of the Territorial Cup. ASU senior left tackle Levi Jones said the prized possession will merely make the intrastate rivalry that much more intense.
"This Cup would give a little more incentive to want to win," he said. "That is the game. If we don't do anything else, we want to beat U of A."
The Cup is supposed to be replicated at a local foundry within the next few weeks. The replica will be presented to the winning team during a post-game ceremony. It will then be displayed in the president's office of the winning institution.
Meanwhile, the original trophy is to be transported via police escort to the winning school's Hall of Fame. The Arizona Department of Public Safety has agreed to parade the original Cup along Interstate Highway 10 in ceremonial fashion.
"You want to create something that you can keep a watch on," ASU athletic director Gene Smith said. "That's how traditions are born sometimes, kind of like stealing the mascot. We won't have it in an armored truck, but we will try to build it up so it has that high esteem."
The Cup was most recently on display at Hayden Library. It was previously part of a football showcase at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport in the mid-1990s.
The Cup was also located at the University Archives Building from the early 1980s until 1992. It was housed as early as 1970 at the ASU Alumni Association offices in Mariposa Hall.
But the Cup's whereabouts up until then still remains a mystery. Some think it was sitting in the basement of a Tempe church that was to be demolished. Others believe the Cup was at the home of the University's president.
The Territorial Cup is silver with a metallic base and weighs approximately five pounds. It was manufactured by Reed and Barton Co. of Taunton, Mass., before the turn of the 20th century. The three-handle cup was priced at $20 in a 1910 company catalog, but its present-day value cannot be determined until an appraiser examines the item.
The original Cup is the oldest of nearly 400 artifacts in ASU's collection. The school's sole record of the historic piece before 1970 is a photo showing the 1899 team huddled around it on the steps of Old Main. Spindler said he attempts to preserve the Cup's finish by wearing protective gloves whenever handling it.
"It has a very important symbolism attached to it that goes beyond the game," he said. "It has a larger-than-life symbolism that's important to remember in addition to the athletic tradition."
The replica will have a bronze base metal with a silver plate. All the Cup's physical features will be replicated, including the inscription - "Arizona Foot Ball League 1899 Normal" - that must be done by hand. It will be a tad bit smaller but will weigh roughly 10 pounds more. The replica cup is also to be filled with a chain that will have the yearly winner's name engraved on it.
Reach Brian Gomez at bsundevil@aol.com.
