The term “worst to first” gets thrown around a lot. In 2008, the lovable Tampa Bay Rays were the team to accomplish the remarkable feat. From 66-96 in 2007 to 97-65 (and AL East winners) in 2008, the Rays were the story of the baseball season. Unfortunately, like most “worst to first” teams, the Rays failed to finish their season by winning the championship. So, it got us thinking. Who are the biggest recent surprise champions in their respective sports?
College Football-
1990 Georgia Tech- Georgia Tech was 2-9 in 1987, 3-8 in 1988, and 7-4 in 1989. Not exactly world beaters, but they were improving under coach Bobby Ross. The next logical step was to compete for the ACC title. Bobby Ross and Co. took it a step further. Beating Colorado by one vote in the Coaches’ Poll, the Yellow Jackets earned a split of the National Championship in 1990. If not for the Fifth Down, Georgia Tech would have had the National Championship all to themselves.
1997 Michigan- Coming off two consecutive four-loss seasons to begin his career, Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr was considered to be on the hot seat. Michigan had lost both their defensive (Jarrett Irons) and offensive (Rod Payne) leaders. They had a young offensive line and a walk-on QB. Brian Griese became a star, the offensive line produced five eventual NFL players, and Charles Woodson became the new leader on defense. Michigan went 12-0 and split the National Championship with Nebraska.
2002 Ohio State- Miami had gone 11-1 in 2000, won the National Championship in 2001, and were poised to do the same in 2002. Miami was riding a 34 game winning streak, Ohio State was coming off a 7-5 season. Led by freshman phenom Maurice Clarett, Ohio State stunned Miami, along with the entire college football world, winning the Fiesta Bowl in dramatic (and controversial) fashion.
College Basketball-
1983 North Carolina State- NC State had to win the ACC Tournament just to qualify for the NCAA tournament. That earned them a 6 seed, in a time when there were only 12 seeds in each region. It took Jim Valvano’s Wolfpack two overtimes to win their first round game against Pepperdine. They eventually made it to the Final, where they had to play the highly-touted Phi Slamma Jamma team from Houston. The rest, as they say, is history. Lorenzo Charles dunked-in the winning points with no time left, and Jim Valvano ran wild around the court. “Don’t give up, don’t ever give up.”
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1985 Villanova- Villanova entered the 1985 NCAA tournament as an 8 seed. By the end of the tournament, they became the worst seed ever to win the tournament, a feat that might never be matched. Villanova made their way through the tournament, only to have to face the widely-considered #1 team in Georgetown. In what most believe to be the biggest upset in NCAA basketball history, Villanova beat Georgetown 66-64 to win the 1985 National Championship.
1989 Michigan- Sure, Michigan was a 3 seed. Sure, they had some talent. But, they fired their coach on the eve of the 1989 tournament. Bo Schembechler, Michigan AD at the time, famously said, “A Michigan Man will coach Michigan!” That Michigan Man turned out to be Steve Fisher. While Fisher’s “Michigan man” qualities were later challenged, no one disagreed with Bo after he led them through the 1989 tournament. Glen Rice set a record for points in a tournament that still stands today, and Rumeal Robinson clinched the Title Game with two free throws with three seconds remaining against Seton Hall.
NFL-
1999 St. Louis Rams- The Rams had gone 4-12 the year before. In the preseason, QB Trent Green went down with a season-ending injury. Desperately, fantasy owners scrambled to find out the name of the St. Louis backup. The Rams’ offensive coaches were just as unsure as to who it was. Kurt Warner went on to lead the “Greatest Show on Turf” and played one of the best statistical seasons for a quarterback ever. The Rams went 13-3 in the regular season and squeaked through the playoffs, eventually winning on Mike Jones’ tackle of Kevin Dyson in the waning moments of the Super Bowl.
2001 New England Patriots- In 2000, the Patriots went just 5-11. Longtime QB Drew Bledsoe went down in the second game of the season. Sixth round pick and rookie Tom Brady had not even taken all of the snaps at quarterback in his senior season at Michigan, sharing time with Drew Henson. But, Brady led the Patriots to an 11-5 record in the regular season. Aided by the infamous Tuck Rule in the Divisional game against the Raiders, Brady and the Patriots went on to play the high-powered offense of the St. Louis Rams in the Super Bowl. Big underdogs going into the game, the Patriots became the first team to decide to forego pre-game introductions and be introduced “as a team.” They played as a team, beating the Rams on Adam Vinatieri’s last second field goal.
2007 New York Giants- The Giants were respectable in 2006, finishing 8-8. After finishing 10-6 in 2007, their playoff appearance wasn’t all that unexpected. They played well and won the NFC Championship… surprising, but it would have not landed them on this list. They just so happened to beat the 18-0 New England Patriots in the Super Bowl, though. The unbeatable team was beaten. The perfect quarterback… was beaten. And by who? Peyton’s little brother.
NBA-
2003-2004 Detroit Pistons- The Detroit Pistons had a first-year coach, granted it was Larry Brown. They had a respectable year, finishing second in their division behind the Indiana Pacers. Picking up Rasheed Wallace just before the trade deadline gave Pistons fans hope of beating-out the Pacers and Nets for the Eastern Conference title. But, no one was beating the Los Angeles Lakers and their incredible roster of Shaq, Kobe, Malone, and Payton. But, the Pistons did. They didn’t just sneak by them, either. Winning 4 games to 1, the Pistons were a decisive victor.
1994-1995 Houston Rockets- “Don’t ever underestimate the heart of a champion.” That was Rudy Tomjanovich’s cry during the 1994-1995 season. I know, it’s odd to see a repeat champion on this list. But, at the start of the 1994-1995 season, no one gave the Rockets a chance to repeat. Hell, some people thought they might miss the playoffs. After a lethargic start, Houston picked up Clyde Drexler from Portland to re-unite him with his Phi Slamma Jamma teammate Hakeem Olajuwon. Houston ended up with the 6 seed in the West, and made comebacks in all three of their Western Conference series before sweeping the Orlando Magic in the NBA Finals.
MLB-
2006 St. Louis Cardinals- The Cardinals started off great in 2006. But, injuries to Mark Mulder, Jim Edmonds, and David Eckstein, as well as general poor play from the rest of the team nearly caused the Cardinals to blow a huge divisional lead to the Astros. The Cardinals managed to win the division in the last days of the season, but were given virtually no chance to make a playoff run by even their own fans. They promptly beat the Padres, slipped by the Mets, and dominated the Tigers in the 2006 World Series to shock the baseball world. The 2006 Cardinals have the worst regular season record of any World Series champion.
1997 Florida Marlins- The 1996 Marlins finished only 80-82 in the regular season and missed the playoffs. In only their fifth year in existence, the Marlins went 92-70 to win the NL Wild Card. They won the NL pennant to set up a matchup with the Cleveland Indians in the World Series. Virtually no one gave the Marlins a chance. People obviously forgot they were playing a team from Cleveland. The Marlins, loaded with young talent like Luis Castillo, Edgar Renteria, Gary Sheffield, Moises Alou, Cliff Floyd, Livan Hernandez, Kevin Brown, and Josh Booty (yes, the LSU QB), beat the Indians in Game 7 to cap-off a miraculous season.
1987 Minnesota Twins- The 1986 Twins were awful, finishing sixth in a seven team division. In his first full year as Twins manager in 1987, Tom Kelly led the Twins to a 85-77 record, good enough to win that same division. The turnaround to win the division would have been plenty good enough for the Twins. But, the team decided otherwise. Led by slugger Kirby Puckett, the Twins shocked even their own fans by winning the 1987 World Series.
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