FSU and Clemson as our new annual, big-time, football-centric program opponents. Measuring sticks. Replaces what we lost when Miami and VaTech left the Big East 10 years ago.
BC and Pitt as our new formalized, northeastern rivals. I've always felt a BC series had solid rivalry potential: very similar institutions with the whole Boston/NY thing going. It's never going to be Alabama-Auburn, but there's nothing wrong with a solid geographic rivalry with occasional heat when the programs are good. SU/Pitt has been such a strange series -- we've played forever, so there's loads of history, but there's almost never been heat because neither program has been very good at the same time, for almost ever. Now that we're linked it'd be cool if we can both be good and have the games mean something. If not then it's just nice to maintain another traditional opponent.