The fact that some people pay more attention when they win doesn't detract from the fact that the teams each have a critical mass of fans, enough to support a program in good and bad times, who follow them regardless of the W-L record.
Whenever I read threads like this, the underlying sentiment seems to be "Why can't we be as successful as Wisconsin? We started at the same place!" I would argue that you didn't start at exactly the same place, since you didn't have that critical mass of fans who were/were ready to support a team that showed any sign of life. This isn't a slam at the team - there have been a number of threads on GH over the years that pointed out the lack of administrative/governmental support of athletics, all of which will make your climb up the ladder a lot harder than it was in Wisconsin. The rest of the minutiae is just finding a way to turn the envy/frustration into some way to feel superior - again, OK, since that is what rivalries are about, but - having lived in both states - anyone from Wisconsin or Minnesota claiming a vastly higher level of sophistication or cosmopolitanism always makes me chuckle.