Pennsylvania Sports War
Philadelphia and Pittsburgh Have Intense Team Rivalries
There is the New York Yankees-Boston Red Sox war in baseball, the Green Bay Packers-Chicago Bears go-around in professional football, the Montreal Canadians-Toronto Maple Leafs of ice hockey.
But there is arguably none more intriguing than the Philadelphia-Pittsburgh sports war in Pennsylvania.
The commonwealth is just coming off a year in which two of its teams won professional sports championships.
The Pittsburgh Steelers just recently won their sixth Super Bowl ring with a 28-23 win over the Arizona Cardinals on Feb. 1 in Tampa Bay, Fla.
In baseball, the Philadelphia Phillies won their second World Series title in 2008 defeating the Tampa Bay Devil Rays 4 games to 2.
Later, the Pittsburgh Penguins won their 3rd Stanley Cup in the National Hockey League after beating the defending champion Detriot Red Wings in the Finals in the spring of 2009.
One might think that Pennsylvania fans root for all of their state’s teams.
In some rare cases, that is true. But for the most part, there is a war between the two cities.
Pittsburgh Steelers and Pirates Win in the 1970
The rivalry effectively started in 1970 when the Pittsburgh Steelers benefited by the National Football League merger with the American Football League.
The Steelers moved into the American Football Conference and ended the decade by winning four Super Bowl titles behind the likes of players such as quarterback Terry Bradshaw, running backs Franco Harris and Rocky Blier, and wide receiver Lynn Swan.
The Steelers defense was known as the Steel Curtain.
The Pittsburgh Pirates baseball team also won two World Series in the decade in 1971 and 1979.
The Steel City became known as the City of Champions.
Philadelphia Teams Start Winning in the 1970s
It was during the 1970s that Philadelphia teams started winning as well.
The Philadelphia Flyers won two Stanley Cups in the National Hockey League in 1974 and 1975 and the Philadelphia 76ers played for and lost in the NBA finals in 1977.
The Philadelphia Phillies won three National League East titles in the row, before finally winning the World Series in 1980.
The 76ers lost in two more times in NBA finals in 1980 and 1981 to the Los Angeles Lakers before finally beating the Lakers in the 1983 NBA finals.
Penn State Wins Two National Titles in College Football
The only sports topic most Pennsylvania fans agree on is the Penn State Nittany Lions of major college football.
Head coach Joe Paterno finally got his team over the hump in the 1980s by winning two titles in 1982 and 1986.
State College, Pennsylvania, is the home of Penn State University. It is here where the Philadelphia-Pittsburgh rivalry spills over into endless arguments
Pittsburgh is known as the city of champions while Philadelphia is called the city of chokers. Philly has teams that get there but don’t win.
The Philadelphia Eagles football team has yet to win a Super Bowl, getting to the big game twice in 1981 and 2004.
Pittsburgh Wins in NHL
The Pittsburgh Penguins added to that city’s prestige by winning Stanley Cup championships in 1991. 1992, and 2009.
Philadelphia, meanwhile, went 25 years without winning a major championship, adding to its reputation as a city of teams that can’t win the big one.
While the Steelers won two Super Bowls in the 2000’s, the Phillies broke Philadelphia’s jinx by winning the 2008 World Series.
Pittsburgh fans can’t laugh at their cross-state rivals this year.
Plus, Philadelphia still leads in major professional championships 17-14.
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