The Ohio State vs. Michigan rivalry is an untouchable rivalry in college football, one in a class of its own. However, it is not uncommon for the rivalry’s stock to take a hit from experts. In his case, former Florida Gators quarterback Tim Tebow rates it highly, but not above another in-state rivalry.

Tim Tebow appeared on the Dude Perfect YouTube channel, where he played the “start, bench, cut” game. The idea is always around a group of any three things or people, and the participant is required to start one, bench one, and cut one. For Tebow, he had a group of three college football rivalries to start, cut, and bench.

“This is so frustrating,” he admitted before going ahead to make his pick. “Dang! Ohio State vs. Michigan is rowdy. Auburn vs. Alabama is… How do you possibly… Listen, I’m going to show my bias. I’ll start Auburn vs Alabama, and I’ll bench Ohio State vs Michigan.”

Tebow’s emotional ties to Alabama remain strong, even now. Coming out of Nease High School in Florida, Tebow committed to the Florida Gators, who were under Urban Meyer’s leadership at the time. However, it was a tough decision between Florida and Alabama.

Even 30 minutes before his ESPN announcement, Tebow was torn between the two programs. Months earlier, he had attended an Alabama game where fans held up signs pleading for his commitment. He made his decision after a conversation with his father, where they both prioritized his connection with Meyer. However, the decision did not come without its emotional toll; he admitted to shedding tears when he called Alabama coach Mike Shula to inform him of his decision.

But Alabama broke his heart more than once. He also broke down in tears at the 2009 SEC Championship Game after losing to Alabama. Despite growing up in Florida and playing for the Florida Gators during his college days, Tebow claimed he had attended at least 10 Auburn vs. Alabama games. Such a connection with a program is not expected to come without its biases, which makes his choice understandable.

The Buckeyes vs. Wolverines rivalry is not just between two college programs that happened to be in the same location or developed a hatred for each other for some reason. It is between the team with the most wins in college football history (Michigan, at 1,022 wins) and the team with the second most wins (Ohio State, at 990), per RotoBaller. With such history, it is the best against the best — little wonder the annual matchup earned the name ‘The Game.’

It is so huge that Encyclopedia Britannica recognizes it as one of the top ten greatest sports rivalries in history. The rivalry got so extreme that legendary coach Woody Hayes, avoiding the name “Michigan,” began referring to the Wolverines as “TTUN,” standing for The Team Up North. This matchup often decides the Big Ten title and CFP seeding. Michigan leads in head-to-head wins with a 62-52-6 record.

Auburn and Alabama share an in-state rivalry, known as the Iron Bowl. One major factor that further fuels the rivalry is the lack of any professional sports team in Alabama. As a result, citizens of the state pour their whole heart into it and have made it one of the most intense in-state rivalries in American sports. A bit less competitive than the Buckeyes vs. Wolverines rivalry, Alabama leads in head-to-head wins with a 52-37-1 record. Tebow understood how eccentric his best choice was, but he tried defending it in the best way he could.

“I’ve been to it, and it’s awesome,” Tebow added. “I’ve also been to ten or more Auburn vs. Alabama games, and it’s just different. I mean, you have husband and wife that are like, ‘we’re not talking today.’ Just earlier today, [I] was with a couple that fights over it every week. When it shows up, they literally fight over it, and their kids went to opposite schools literally today. House in Texas. And I was like, ‘Wait a second. How did y’all deal with that as parents?”

In the end, Tebow conceded the point. Tebow ultimately took off his Alabama hat and confessed that “I could easily switch one and two, because Ohio State vs. Michigan is incredible.”

Texas Longhorns vs Texas A&M Aggies

The third of the trio was the Texas Longhorns vs. Texas A&M rivalry. Unfortunately, it was Tebow’s least favorite of the three. He wasted no time in cutting them off in the “start, bench, cut” game.

Known as the Lone Star Showdown, the rivalry is also a heated in-state college football matchup. It features the University of Texas, with its elite foundations, against the Aggies, with deep military roots and rural foundations. This rivalry is also the most lopsided of the trio, with the Longhorns leading head-to-head with a 78-37-5 record.

The rivalry got halted in 2011, when the Aggies left the Big 12 for the SEC. However, it was revived in 2024, when the Longhorns moved to the SEC. The break was one reason Tebow was unhesitant to drop them from his top two.

“Well, I’ll be honest, I love it. I’m so glad it’s back, but I’ll say Texas vs. Texas A&M is gonna get cut. They already cut it, like [they] just brought it back.”