The Minnesota Golden Gophers will take on the Wisconsin Badgers on Saturday in what will be the 133rd match-up of one of the biggest rivalries in college football.

The University of Minnesota first played the University of Wisconsin in football on Nov. 15, 1890, in Minneapolis. Minnesota beat Wisconsin 63-0, a defeat that is still the largest margin of victory in rivalry history, according to Madison Magazine.

The game returned to Minneapolis the following year, and every year since it has alternated between Minneapolis and Madison except 1906, when then-President Theodore Roosevelt urged teams to halt play over concerns of violence.

A physical trophy was added to the mix in 1930, when Minnesota and Wisconsin competed for the Slab of Bacon trophy, a symbol of “bringing home the bacon.” In 1943, it disappeared in Wisconsin’s possession following a Minnesota victory.

To replace the lost slab, Paul Bunyan’s Axe was introduced as the new trophy in 1948. Inspired by the lumberjack folk hero, the six-foot-tall axe has the scores of each game inscribed on the handle and is possessed by the winning team each year.

After over 132 years of competition, Wisconsin holds the record with 62 wins against Minnesota’s 62, with eight ties.

The series’ 133rd game will be played at Huntington Bank Stadium with students from both universities gearing up.

Kiera Sweeney, a Minnesota fourth-year student who grew up 15 minutes away from the Wisconsin campus, said though she never went to many games growing up, there was always an excited energy in Madison around game day.

“If you weren’t at the game, you were watching the game,” Sweeney said.

Since the Axe game is typically the biggest game of the season for both teams, Sweeney said the environment in Minneapolis or Madison is always cheerful like a “big block party.”

Sweeney added there is always playful banter between her and her hometown friends this time of year.

In the time leading up to the game, Sweeney has texted back and forth with hometown friends, exchanging remarks that, though playful, exhibit the competitiveness coming out this time of year between Minnesotans and Wisconsinites.

Sweeney playfully joked with her friends, saying she hoped they would not waste too much time driving four hours from Madison to Minneapolis just to see Wisconsin lose.

Greta Betzer, a Minnesota second-year student, said the Axe game provides an opportunity for some friendly competition between her and her family. Betzer’s family has attended the game every year since Betzer’s sister, a third-year student at Wisconsin, started college.

Betzer said her family celebrates the game each year with a tradition of their own: placing small bets on the game’s victor.

For last year’s game in Madison, Betzer’s parents and younger brother dressed in solidarity with Betzer’s sister, donning Madison apparel. Given last year’s outcome and this year’s game being in Minneapolis, it remains to be seen which team they will support.

Charlie Pietz, a Wisconsin fourth-year student, said he noticed less hype in Madison surrounding this year’s game, given it is not in Madison and neither team is as competitive as they have been in previous years.

However, Pietz said the Axe game is always an exciting one for students, even in off years. Since Minnesota has held the Axe for the last two years, Pietz said Wisconsin fans are eager to retake the winner’s podium.

“Wisconsin fans kind of have a sour taste from how our team’s performed over the last three years and how we’ve performed against Minnesota.” Pietz said. “So, you could say it means more this year.”

The game will be this Saturday, Nov. 25, at 2:30 p.m. at Huntington Bank Stadium.

This article has been updated.