There's not many universes, let alone sports, where a rag-tag group of players, newcomers and coaches can come together on any given day, series of days or even a season to become more than the sum of their parts and achieve something that very few thought possible. Sure, hope springs eternal in baseball, and 8-seeds do get to Stanley Cup Final and yes even an Appalachian State can beat a Michigan in college football, but unlike college football, in college basketball the most talented team doesn't always win - and every spring we are reminded of it.
As we entered college basketball last season and FAU won at the O'Connell Center to move to 2-1, it was a reminder that on any given night anyone could be beat, but what nobody expected is that it would be the beginning of a magical stretch where the Owls would go onto win 34 of their next 38 games and become the unlikeliest of Final Four teams, or so you would be led to believe. But the Final Four is littered with teams that got hot at the right time, had a wonderful mix of talent, moxie and coaching that let David slay Goliath, and the next Goliath and the next. In just the last 20 years, we've seen schools like Loyola-Chicago (2018), Wichita State (2013), VCU (2011), Butler (2010 & 2011) and George Mason (2006) all make the Final Four. And don't forget FAU became the 4th Florida school to make it to the Final Four in the last 55 years, joining Florida, Florida State and Jacksonville.
And then there is USF, who 12 years, 1 month and 26 days ago were 9-8 and headed for another second division finish in what is still considered to be the greatest basketball conference of all time. There were close losses to Old Dominion and Southern Miss, and then something that only college basketball can do happened - USF started winning, winning on the road, winning against ranked teams. And on Selection Sunday, despite not having a single player who averaged double digit scoring that season, we were headed to the NCAA Tournament where we won 2 games and were 2 minutes from a Sweet 16 match up against blue-blook North Carolina. Remember how that felt, and that whether we win or lose this week, at any point magic can happen in college basketball.
And if you've been paying attention we have seen magic these last 3 months from the Bulls. A program that had never had a winning record in the AAC, had gotten off to a dreadful 2-4 start and then something unexpected happen - the coach and players found "it". And what we have seen over these last 99 days has been magic. A win against "Big 3" Florida State, a comeback for the ages against Memphis that led to comeback after comeback, our first win against a Top 25 team since that 2011-12 season, our first sellout in 20+ years and our 1st Top 25 ranking. If that doesn't make you believe in magic then nothing in college basketball ever will.
So as we wait anxiously for next Sunday evening to find out if we are in the dance again, just remember that Appalachian State beating Michigan only happened once, but there are going to be many schools playing in 2 weeks that know that anything can happen at the dance, and for the first time in a long time we may be one of them.
Go Bulls!
As we entered college basketball last season and FAU won at the O'Connell Center to move to 2-1, it was a reminder that on any given night anyone could be beat, but what nobody expected is that it would be the beginning of a magical stretch where the Owls would go onto win 34 of their next 38 games and become the unlikeliest of Final Four teams, or so you would be led to believe. But the Final Four is littered with teams that got hot at the right time, had a wonderful mix of talent, moxie and coaching that let David slay Goliath, and the next Goliath and the next. In just the last 20 years, we've seen schools like Loyola-Chicago (2018), Wichita State (2013), VCU (2011), Butler (2010 & 2011) and George Mason (2006) all make the Final Four. And don't forget FAU became the 4th Florida school to make it to the Final Four in the last 55 years, joining Florida, Florida State and Jacksonville.
And then there is USF, who 12 years, 1 month and 26 days ago were 9-8 and headed for another second division finish in what is still considered to be the greatest basketball conference of all time. There were close losses to Old Dominion and Southern Miss, and then something that only college basketball can do happened - USF started winning, winning on the road, winning against ranked teams. And on Selection Sunday, despite not having a single player who averaged double digit scoring that season, we were headed to the NCAA Tournament where we won 2 games and were 2 minutes from a Sweet 16 match up against blue-blook North Carolina. Remember how that felt, and that whether we win or lose this week, at any point magic can happen in college basketball.
And if you've been paying attention we have seen magic these last 3 months from the Bulls. A program that had never had a winning record in the AAC, had gotten off to a dreadful 2-4 start and then something unexpected happen - the coach and players found "it". And what we have seen over these last 99 days has been magic. A win against "Big 3" Florida State, a comeback for the ages against Memphis that led to comeback after comeback, our first win against a Top 25 team since that 2011-12 season, our first sellout in 20+ years and our 1st Top 25 ranking. If that doesn't make you believe in magic then nothing in college basketball ever will.
So as we wait anxiously for next Sunday evening to find out if we are in the dance again, just remember that Appalachian State beating Michigan only happened once, but there are going to be many schools playing in 2 weeks that know that anything can happen at the dance, and for the first time in a long time we may be one of them.
Go Bulls!
