Most Shocking Upsets of the Century
Though sports fans seem to unanimously respect greatness, nothing in athletics is more exciting than the unimaginable upset.
March’s NCAA Basketball tournament, for example, has made a living off of Cinderella runs, like George Mason's in 2006, and monumental upsets, such as the ones Kansas suffered in both 2005 and 2010.
Likewise, an entire nation reveled in jubilation in 2000 when American wrestler Rulon Gardner became the first man in 13 years to defeat Russian legend Alexander Karelin in an international competition.
And perhaps nothing in sports is more memorable than David Tyree’s catch in the 2008 Super Bowl or the incomprehensible upset to which it led.
With these shocking wins and losses in mind, we’ve compiled our very own comprehensive list, specifically spotlighting the Most Shocking Upsets of the Century.
Over the last 15 years, plenty of powerhouse teams and athletes have reached the Promised Land. Instead of revisiting them, though, it's time to a take a look at those who were given little to no shot but with unforgettable upset victories, proved nearly everyone wrong.
Greece Reigns over Europe
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Forget winning the UEFA European Championship; back in 2004, most were surprised to see Greece even qualify for the prestigious tournament.
Up until then, the men in blue and white had earned appearances in only two other major tournaments: the UEFA Euro 1980 and the 1994 FIFA World Cup.
And the Greeks failed to win a single game in either.
Of course, in a tournament that included world powers such as England, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain and the Netherlands, Greece was given little shot in '04, too.
Yet not to be deterred, the Greeks captivated and shocked the sports world in the end.
They beat host Portugal (2-1 in Game 1), managed to tie Spain (1-1 in Game 2) and then advanced from their group with a 2-1 win over Russia in Game 3.
In the quarters, the Greeks pulled off the most shocking result in the tournament, ousting France from contention, 1-0. Next, they utilized stingy defense all over again and eliminated the Czech Republic with another 1-0 result.
In the finals, they had the misfortune of having to face the home favorites from Portugal for yet a second time. Beating a quality team once is hard enough, beating one twice in a month is nearly impossible.
The Greeks, however, were men on a mission and again emerged victorious with a 1-0 final.
As it had all tournament long, Greece played impeccable defense, which ultimately put Angelos Charisteas in position to play savior and ignite a nation.
Warriors Whoop Mavs
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To those who watched the 2006-07 NBA season closely, Golden State’s playoff upset over Dallas wasn’t all that surprising. After all, the Warriors defeated the Mavs in all three meetings during the regular season, winning by an average of more than 16 points per contest.
But for everyone else, the first-round victory was one of the most unlikely in NBA playoff history.
Golden State entered the postseason as the eighth seed—finishing the season just two games above .500—while Dallas was an NBA-best 67-15 and a full six games better than any other team.
The Mavericks exposed opponents all year with a small lineup that emphasized speed and skill—Dallas started Dirk Nowitzki at center and Devean George at power forward. But their strategy played right into Golden State’s strengths, as the Warrior bigs—Al Harrington and Jason Richardson—were far too athletic for the favorite to handle.
More importantly, Baron Davis and Stephen Jackson had their way with the Dallas guards. Jackson hit 7 of 8 three pointers and scored 33 points in Game 6, while an injured Davis contributed an inspired 20 points, 10 rebounds and six assists in the series-clinching victory.
In the end, Golden State cruised passed Dallas in six hardly competitive games, ousting Dallas in embarrassing fashion with a 111-86 Game 6 rout!
Jayhawks Jilted…Twice
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Over the years, the NCAA college basketball tournament has become known for the memorable upsets its setting provides.
And unfortunately for Kansas Jayhawks fans, their team has fallen victim in two of this century’s most surprising defeats.
The first went down in 2005, when 14th-seeded Bucknell captured its first-ever NCAA tournament victory, defeating the third-seeded Jayhawks, 64-63, in the process. To be exact, Bucknell forward Chris McNaughton sank the Jayhawks, banking in the game’s winning shot over Wayne Simien with just 10.5 seconds left.
Five years later, Kansas felt heartbreak all over again. This time, the Round of 32 was the scene of the incident while little old Northern Iowa played the part of perpetrator.
Entering the game, Kansas was an impressive 33-3 and one of the tournament’s four No. 1 seeds. Yet after 40 minutes of competitive basketball, the Panthers and Ali Farokhmanesh proved to be simply too much for the Jayhawks to handle.
Kansas star Sherron Collins pulled the Jayhawks to within a single point with 43 seconds remaining on the clock, but Farokhmanesh drilled an in-your-eye three pointer just 10 seconds later, all but sealing Jayhawk fate.
Instead of pulling the ball out, playing it safe and running clock, the Panthers boldly played for the upset win, and landed just that.
Mountaineers Mystify Michigan
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Way back in 2007—before we expected Michigan to lay eggs on the football field—the Wolverines were absolutely stunned at home by upstart Appalachian State.
It was Week 1 of the season, and No. 5 Michigan entered the year with national title hopes and expectations. If Mike Hart, Chade Henne, Jake Long and the Wolverines were expected to lose at all that year, it certainly wasn’t supposed to come at home against an FCS opponent.
That, however, is exactly what went down.
Worse yet, luck or misfortune had no role in the debacle.
The Mountaineers led by double digits—28-17—at the half and, after falling behind 32-31 late in the fourth quarter, drove the ball 69 yards without a timeout in 1:11 to set up what would be the game-winning field goal.
Michigan got the ball back one last time and put itself in range to attempt a 37-yard game-winning field goal of its own, but then Corey Lynch did this!
With the 34-32 monumental win, App. State became the first Division I-AA team to beat an opponent ranked in the AP Top 25.
George Mason Tops UConn
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In March of 2006, George Mason basketball made a Cinderella run all the way to the NCAA Final Four.
Along the way—in the Elite Eight, to be exact—the Patriots stunned No. 1 seed UConn, winning by two, 86-84, in a thrilling overtime classic.
The 11th-seed from Washington overcame a 12-point first-half deficit and trailed by nine in the second half, but a barrage of threes late—including six made bombs in a row—helped GW claw its way back into contention and eventually become only the second double-digit seed to make the Final Four.
The game’s final minutes—both to end regulation and in overtime—were epic, with UConn first overcoming a four-point deficit with just 13 seconds remaining to send the contest into OT. In extra time, though, Folarin Campbell’s baseline fadeaway stole the show and sealed the deal.
Pats Ruin Rams
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In Week 3 of the 2001 NFL season, a second-year quarterback named Tom Brady replaced Drew Bledsoe as the starting quarterback of the New England Patriots. At the time, little was expected of the sixth-round draft pick.
Brady, however, was out to prove critics wrong and did just that, leading New England to 11 wins in their final 14 outings, including six in a row to end the regular season.
Still, even after getting by Oakland and Pittsburgh in postseason play, few gave Brady and the Patriots much of a shot heading into Super Bowl XXXVI.
Their opponent—the St. Louis Rams—were an NFL-best 14-2 in the regular season and earned the nickname “The Greatest Show on Turf” thanks to a historically prolific offense.
As a result, the high-powered Rams wer favored to win the game by two full touchdowns.
But Brady and company had other ideas.
Despite getting out-gained in total yards (427-267), New England capitalized on three St. Louis turnovers and took a 17-3 lead late in the third quarter.
The game was far from over, however.
League MVP Kurt Warner engineered a 12-play, 77-yard drive to cut New England’s lead to seven and then, with just over two minutes to play, drove the Rams 45 yards in 14 seconds for a game-tying score.
But Brady would have the last laugh.
Regaining possession with 1:30 to play, the emerging superstar completed five passes for 53 yards, putting Adam Vinatieri in position to make history.
With the kick, the Patriots put the finishing touches on one of the biggest upsets in Super Bowl history, and their young signal caller was named game MVP for all his efforts in the unexpected 20-17 victory.
YE Yang Tames Tiger
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Back in August of 2009, when Tiger Woods was still the most dominant golfer of all time, an unknown competitor by the name of Y.E. Yang somehow managed to tame the beast.
The site of the miracle was the P.G.A. Championship, and Woods entered the final day two shots ahead of the South Korean afterthought.
At the time, Yang was ranked No. 110 in the world and was trying to pull off the impossible by defeating Woods in a tournament in which he began the final round with a lead, which no golfer had ever done.
Yang, however, proved worthy in the end.
With a 75-foot pitch for eagle on the 14th, Yang took his first lead of the tournament.
And perhaps even more impressively, Yang held Tiger off the rest of the way. In fact, with all the pressure in the world sitting squarely on his shoulders, Yang used the 18th and final hole to actually widen his lead, boldly sinking a 10-foot birdie as if he wasn’t about to accomplish a golfing first.
“You never know in life, this might be my last win as a golfer,” Yang said following his landmark victory. “But this is a great day. It’s going to be a great foundation for me to continue playing on the PGA Tour. It means the world right now. It hasn’t sunken in, but I do know the significance of it.”
Rafa Falls in France
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Statistically speaking, no tennis player has ever dominated a single Grand Slam tournament quite the way Rafael Nadal has owned the French Open.
More specifically, the King of Clay stands as the only male in tennis history to win nine career titles at any one of the four major tournaments, emerging victorious from Roland Garros in 2005-08 and 2010-14.
For all the non-math majors out there, that’s an amazing nine titles in ten years.
But in between the dominant four- and five-year stretches, the impossible occurred: Nadal lost at the French.
On May 31, 2009, Robin Soderling of Sweden used power and speed to defeat Nadal in a four-set fourth-round match, becoming the first player ever to dethrone the King at Roland Garros. At the time, Nadal had won 31 consecutive French Open matches and 32 consecutive sets.
Prior to the remarkable upset, the Swede had never reached the fourth round of a Grand Slam tournament and was 0-3 against the Spanish Bull.
As previously mentioned, Nadal would quickly return to dominance in France, winning the next five at Open Championships.
Still, on one day in particular, Soderling get the best of the previously unbeatable Spaniard, recording an upset for the ages that won't soon be forgotten.
Gardner Stops the Unstoppable
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In the year 2000, Alexander Karelin was the baddest wrestler on earth. He had won three consecutive Olympic gold medals and seven consecutive world titles. And heading into that year’s Summer Olympics in Sydney, the Russian beast was in the midst of a 10-year run in which he hadn’t relinquished a single point.
At the very same time, American Rulon Gardner arrived in Sydney as nothing more than a wrestling afterthought, a farm boy who had never finished better than fifth in a single international competition.
But on Sept. 27, in the Greco-Roman super heavyweight gold metal match, the script for both dramatically changed.
Gardner first stunned the wrestling world just by making it out of the first round with Karelin, as neither recorded a point in the first three minutes of the battle. Then, in Round 2, the unthinkable happened: Gardner escaped the Russian’s clutches and notched the first point of the match, taking a 1-0 lead.
And for the next six minutes—a three-minute Round 2 and a three-minute overtime—Gardner successfully defended his small but all-important lead.
With five seconds remaining in the extra period, Karelin lifted himself from the mat, took a step back and actually conceded the match.
After accomplishing the unthinkable, the American hero put it all into perspective:
"To be realistic, I didn't think I could actually beat him," the 29-year-old Gardner told the media. "The gold medal was so far away from what I thought I could do in my life. You say, 'Yeah, I can beat him.' But so many people in so many hundreds of matches have thought that, then they go out and he basically crushes them."
But on Sept. 27, 2000, it was Gardner who did the crushing.
Giants End Patriot Perfection
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The 2007 New England Patriots were arguably the greatest football team of all time. They became the first NFL team ever to go a perfect 16-0 in regular-season play and cruised past Jacksonville and San Diego in the first two rounds of the playoffs, getting to 18-0 and Super Bowl XLII.
There, the Pats ran into the New York Giants, a team that finished the regular season with a mediocre 10-6 record and one they’d already defeated roughly one month earlier.
But on Feb. 3, 2008, the G-Men proved to be too much to handle, spoiling New England’s bid for perfection in downright miraculous fashion.
Even after playing their very best football for nearly four quarters of heated action, the 12-point underdogs from New York still needed a for-the-record-books final drive to upend the vaunted Patriots.
Trailing New England, 14-10, New York regained possession at its own 17-yard line, with just 2:39 to play. And less than a handful of plays later, the Giants offense had stalled, facing a third and five from their own 44.
But then this happened!
Three plays later, with just 39 seconds remaining, Eli Manning hit Plaxico Burress on a 13-yard fade in the corner of the end zone, officially shocking the football world with one of the biggest upsets in sports history.
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