Who doesn't love the underdog? From David vs. Goliath, to the tortoise vs. the hare, it seems in the end some upsets were meant to be.
Would pro football be the same if the Jets were blown out by the Colts? Great sports upsets have changed lives, sports, and even countries.
What about all the great movies that have been made about these upsets? In fact, that's where we start our list...
10. Cinderella Man (Braddock vs. Baer)
In 1935, two men squared off in Madison Square Garden for the heavyweight championship belt. When 10-1 favorite Max Baer was left gasping for air after the fight, someone had stolen his heavyweight championship belt.
The thief's name was James J. Braddock, and he had spent his whole life fighting for everything he had in New York's Hell's Kitchen and New Jersey. It was an accomplishment so stunning, it was made into a movie exactly 70 years later.
9. NC State Wins 1983 NCAA Championship
Give me some love! Lorenzo Charles' put-back of Dereck Whittenburg's 30-foot desperation shot at the buzzer in the 1983 NCAA men's basketball final left North Carolina State coach Jim Valvano running around like a maniac, looking for someone, anyone...to love.
Even more surprising: That Houston Cougars team had future NBA stars Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler.
8. Appalachian State Defeats Michigan
Like college hoops, NCAA football has given us many upsets throughout the years, from Centre College’s win over Harvard in 1921 to Notre Dame knocking off Oklahoma and ending the Sooners’ 47-game winning streak in 1957 and beyond.
Yet, as impressive as many of these upsets are, the simple fact is that there is one that outshines them all, and that is Appalachian State’s 34-32 upset of the No. 5 Michigan Wolverines in 2007.
By blocking Michigan’s last-second field goal attempt, the Mountaineers became the first Division I-AA (FCS) team ever to beat a team ranked in the Associated Press Top 25.
Why is this rated so low? Well, the Mountaineers were pretty damn good despite being an FCS team. They dominated the FCS year in and year out, and this upset showed the world they were underrated.
7. Denver Nuggets Embarrass Seattle Supersonics in 1994 Playoffs
In the history of the NBA only one No. 8 seed has defeated a No. 1 seed in a playoff series.
That was the 1994 Denver Nuggets and, like eighth-seed teams before them, they were expected to be an easy mark. An upset was even more improbable when the Sonics crushed the Nuggets in the first two games.
Yet Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, Dikembe Mutombo, and Co. refused to give up. They won Game Three, 110-93, Game Four by a 94-85 margin, and Game Five, 98-94. It was a huge accomplishment and Seattle will always wonder what could have been.
6. The 1969 Miracle Mets
Since entering the National League in 1962, the New York Mets had never finished above .500. They had lost 100 games in five of their first seven seasons, and in 1969 they entered the season as a 100-to-1 long shot to win the World Series. True to form, they started off 18-23.
17 comments Last one added 6 months ago — Leave a Comment
Jeff D Gorman 7 months ago
"Man O' War is the unquestioned greatest racehorse ever."
--- Umm, I have Secretariat on Line 1...
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John Parker 7 months ago
their records would say otherwise
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Martin Bentley 7 months ago
How about some of the big upsets in the FA Cup in England, such as Wrexham, who were bottom of the Football League, beating the 1991 League Champions Arsenal in 1992? Or when non-league Hereford United defeated First Division Newcastle United in 1972? Or non-league Sutton United beating Coventry City in 1989, two years after Coventry won the Cup?
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Andrew Stephan 7 months ago
You know, I think that the Giants upset is gonna get lost if they win the Super Bowl this year. Because I think that if this years team was facing last year's Pats team, it wouldn't be that big an upset if they beat them. It's kind of like the Pats beating the Rams in 2002, it got lost as an upset because the Pats won a couple more rings. But at the time, it was a huge upset.
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Chendaddy 7 months ago
"In the history of the NBA, only one No. 8 seed has defeated a No. 1 seed in a playoff series.
That was the 1994 Denver Nuggets."
Uh, Golden State did it just a year and a half ago in 2007 against the 67-15 Dallas Mavericks. And they had to win a best-of-seven series, not just a best-of-five like the Nuggets did.
Miracle on ice is unquestionably #1.
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John Parker 7 months ago
sorry i made a mistake i don't follow basketball like i used to
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Danny 7 months ago
It also happened in 1999. The Heat, the #1, lost to the #8. I forgot who that team was, though.
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Chendaddy 7 months ago
oh yeah, that was the knicks during the lockout shortened season. another best-of-five upset.
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Brian Sausa 7 months ago
when i saw this i said to myself that the miracle on ice better be the number one for this to be right and it was. good work there. i might have flipped two and three but no complaints good list.
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Atreyu Whetu 7 months ago
I must also mention two soccer cases.
·The Wonder of Bern (1954): The almighty Hungary and their teams such as Kispest AC or Honved were the "soccer Harlem Globetrotters" from that time. They even played exhibition games throughout Europe with shocking and outstanding scores. After defeating Germany 7-3 in the group league, they met again in the final. With an early 2-0 ahead, the match ended up 2-3 surrounded by controversy.
·EuroCup 2004: aka The EuroCup that never were. Truth is a surprising and unknown Greece won the tournament. The Czech Republic was making the best football, and Portugal was the host as well as a good and full of stars and well-known players. Many people said that Greece was playing anti-soccer, with eleven players behind the ball, ultra defensive and quite boring. Nothing of that did matter in the final against the host. One goal was enough to freeze the stadium and conquer the continental throne.
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David Arreola 7 months ago
Atreyu, thank you for mentioning Greece.
Greece defeating Portugal in their home country. It was quite simply the greatest upset of all-time. It will never happen again.
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Danny 7 months ago
Statistically, Super Bowl III was a greater upset then XLII. The Jets were 16 point underdogs in III. The Giants were only 12 point underdogs. I think there were bigger upsets then both of those, anyway. Appalachian State should be higher on the list. I also think Stanford's win over USC was a bigger upset then the Super Bowls here; they were 40 point underdogs! Also, the greatest upset in college basketball should be here, when Chaminade, some school in Honolulu, beat #1 Virginia in 1982.
Otherwise, I agree about the Miracle on Ice being the greatest.
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David Arreola 7 months ago
You should probably change the title to:
"Top 10 Greatest Upsets in AMERICAN Sports History"
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John Parker 7 months ago
your absolutly right David sorry to offend every soccer(world football) fan out there
as for you Danny, but how does a college game compare to the super bowl?
and how can you say that super bowl 3 beats 42 the pats were a dynasty that went undefeated going up against the worst team in the playoffs(perdiction at beginning)
for college basketball the greatest upset happened in 1983 not 82 when NC state beat North Carolina it's even on my list a #9
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Danny 6 months ago
Most agree that Chaminade's win over Virginia in 1982 was the greatest in college basketball. Chaminade was some unknown school that was usually at the bottom of Division I that upset the #1 team. Imagine San Diego State or Washington beating Florida or Oklahoma in football today. It would be like that. I just don't think NC State's win was that big. STATISTICALLY, Super Bowl III was the bigger upset. The Jets were 16 point underdogs, when the Giants were only 12 point underdogs. Yes, the Giants beating the Patriots was a surprise due to the status of the teams at the time, but don't forget, everyone thought the AFC was significantly weaker than the NFC back when Super Bowl III was played and didn't give the Jets a shot. Also, the Super Bowl is, indeed, more important than a regular season college game, but that doesn't mean bigger upsets occur there. I would think teams would be more evenly matched in the Super Bowl, actually. On the other hand, Stanford was 40 point underdogs. Never in Super Bowl history has team been that big of an underdog. It was a bigger upset because the Jets and Giants had better chances of winning their games then Stanford did.
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Danny 6 months ago
The only reason someone would think Super Bowl XLII was bigger than III is because it was more recent and either don't remember III or was born after.
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John Parker 6 months ago
i don't see how people can say that
the pats were undefeated and were a dynasty team i don't think the colts can say either and the giants were the absolute worse team in the playoffs
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