The loss of Michigan to Appalachian State was clearly an upset and sportswriters had a field day declaring it the greatest upset in College Football History because that is what they do to sell their pieces, but I'm not so sure they will be saying that even next year.
The fact that Appalachian State is a three-time (consecutive) champion means they have quality and Michigan never should have approached them as an easy victory, despite the division they play in.
Also, an upset indicates winning a game or series against a common opponent. If you want to say George Mason's win over Connecticut is your upset call I can live with that, but don't label their run in the tournament as an upset.
On a final note; the inclusion of two Olympic events indicates upsets on the world stage, but your article is still ultra American in nature. You could just have easily included American defeats among your candidates.
I don't want to belittle your research, but I think an older writer with a keen memory over the period since 1980 would make a more credible listing that covers all sports. It also bothers me that a google search brought me to this article http://espn.go.com/page2/s/list/topupsets/010525.html where your listing is basically a copy of the ESPN Page 2 selections with the last couple of years factored in.
On another note, the deal with App St. and GM...Yes App St. was a talented D-II team, but they were still D-II and Michigan was a top 5 D-I school. I mean they are Michigan for god's sake. If App St. had beaten Stanford or University of Idaho or something like that it would be different, but it was Michigan...HUGE upset. Especially in the Big House. And I agree, I shouldn't have labeled the entire George Mason run as an upset, but other than their win against Wichita St. I would consider all their wins in that tournament bigtime upsets. I should have put a note in there though, that's my fault. J.D. [ Parent ]
On the other hand, I guess I have to suck it up regarding the Michigan - App St. result. I'm still trying to convince myself it was a bad dream. [ Parent ]
And cernig! How about the call at the end of the game? I love the guy just screaming "OHHHHHH" as the App St. player is running down the field. Adds to the moment eh? J.D. [ Parent ]
To add a few more, I like Golden State beating Dallas last year in the playoffs, the Devils sweeping the Red Wings in the '95 Cup Finals gets overlooked because Jersey went on to great things (it was shocking at the time). Also, how about BC knocking off defending champ Carolina in the 2nd round in 1994 or Princeton doing it to UCLA in the first round a few years later?
Always great though J
Create an account