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Black America Web
05-07-2025
- Sport
- Black America Web
Can The Indiana Pacers Join These Incredible Underdogs?
The Indiana Pacers are fully leaning into their role as underdogs as they take on the Oklahoma City Thunder in the 2025 NBA Finals. Facing a team led by MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and boasting one of the best records in NBA history, the Thunder are widely viewed as the heavy favorites. Underdog stories like this are what make sports so compelling. History is packed with legendary moments of teams and athletes overcoming enormous odds to achieve glory. RELATED: The 1978 Washington Bullets Among Most Unlikely NBA Champions RELATED: The 25 Most Notorious Sports Villains Of All Time Source: Takeo Tanuma / Getty Take the 1980 U.S. men's hockey team, whose 'Miracle on Ice' saw a group of amateurs defeat the mighty Soviet Union. Or Leicester City's fairy-tale Premier League win in 2016, defying 5,000-to-1 odds. These victories, like Buster Douglas knocking out Mike Tyson in 1990 or Villanova's shocking 1985 NCAA Championship victory, serve as powerful reminders that anything is possible. The Pacers now step into this storied tradition, eyeing their chance to seal their place in history. Will they join the ranks of the greatest underdog victors of all time? Their belief and resilience suggest they just might. Only time will reveal the ending to their Cinderella story. Can The Indiana Pacers Join These Incredible Underdogs? was originally published on 1. The Miracle on Ice (1980) The U.S. men's hockey team stunned the world at the 1980 Winter Olympics by defeating the heavily favored Soviet Union. Composed of amateur and collegiate players, the U.S. team faced a powerhouse Soviet squad that had dominated international hockey for years. Despite overwhelming odds, Team USA secured a 4-3 victory in a dramatic game often referred to as the 'Miracle on Ice.' Their win propelled them to the gold medal and remains one of the greatest achievements in sports, symbolizing hope and resilience during a tense period in Cold War history. 2. Leicester City Wins Premier League (2015-16) Leicester City entered the 2015-16 English Premier League season with 5,000-to-1 odds of winning the title, yet they pulled off a fairytale triumph. Managed by Claudio Ranieri, the Foxes relied on unheralded players like Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez, who delivered exceptional performances. Their disciplined teamwork and consistency shocked traditional powerhouses like Manchester United and Chelsea. By clinching the league with two matches to spare, Leicester's inspiring victory reminded sports fans that anything is possible, earning its place as one of the most improbable championships in history. 3. Buster Douglas Defeats Mike Tyson (1990) Buster Douglas pulled off one of boxing's most unbelievable upsets by knocking out the formidable Mike Tyson in Tokyo. Tyson, undefeated and considered invincible, was expected to steamroll through Douglas, a 42-1 underdog. However, Douglas dominated with determination and tactical brilliance. Despite being knocked down in the eighth round, he rallied back and delivered a crushing 10th-round knockout. The shocking result sent waves through the sports world and proved that no athlete, no matter how dominant, is unstoppable. 4. New York Giants Beat Patriots in Super Bowl XLII (2008) The New York Giants shocked the football world by beating the New England Patriots 17-14 in Super Bowl XLII. The Patriots entered as undefeated favorites, aiming to cap a perfect season. The underdog Giants stayed resilient, with their defense stifling the high-powered Patriots offense. The game's iconic moment featured quarterback Eli Manning escaping defenders to complete a miraculous pass to David Tyree, famously known as the 'Helmet Catch.' This pivotal play led to the game-winning touchdown, delivering the Giants one of the most memorable upsets in NFL history. 5. Rulon Gardner Beats Aleksandr Karelin (2000 Olympics) Rulon Gardner achieved a legendary Olympic upset by defeating Aleksandr Karelin in the Greco-Roman wrestling finals. Karelin was considered unbeatable, with three Olympic gold medals and a 13-year unbeaten streak. Gardner, a relative underdog from the U.S., managed to outlast the Russian powerhouse in a grueling match. Despite facing a legend, Gardner's incredible strength and endurance delivered him the victory, leaving the world in awe. This historic win showcased the triumph of perseverance against insurmountable odds. 6. Villanova Defeats Georgetown (1985 NCAA Championship) The 1985 NCAA basketball championship saw Villanova, an 8th-seed underdog, topple powerhouse Georgetown in a stunning 66-64 upset. Georgetown, led by star center Patrick Ewing, was expected to dominate. Villanova, however, played nearly perfect basketball, shooting an astounding 78.6% from the field. Their disciplined gameplay and clutch free throws secured the narrow victory. This David vs. Goliath moment remains one of college basketball's greatest upsets, showcasing the power of flawless execution under pressure. 7. NC State Beats Houston (1983 NCAA Championship) NC State's 'Cardiac Pack' delivered a fairy-tale ending to the 1983 NCAA basketball tournament by defeating the top-seeded Houston Cougars. Led by legendary coach Jim Valvano, NC State faced a Houston team boasting future NBA stars Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler. With seconds remaining, Lorenzo Charles completed a game-winning dunk off a missed shot, earning NC State a stunning 54-52 victory. The dramatic finish and Valvano's celebratory antics cemented this upset as one of the ultimate underdog stories. 8. Appalachian State Beats Michigan (2007) Appalachian State, a Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) team, pulled off a jaw-dropping upset by defeating No. 5-ranked Michigan at the Big House. With Michigan expected to cruise to an easy win, Appalachian State showcased extraordinary grit and skill. They stunned the Wolverines with a blocked field goal in the final seconds to secure a 34-32 victory. This groundbreaking win shook college football and brought attention to smaller programs' ability to compete with top-tier teams. 9. New York Jets Win Super Bowl III (1969) Joe Namath guaranteed an upset victory, and the New York Jets delivered by defeating the heavily favored Baltimore Colts 16-7 in Super Bowl III. The AFL champions were considered vastly inferior to their NFL counterparts, but Namath orchestrated an efficient offense that neutralized the Colts' staunch defense. The Jets' win not only gave the AFL its first Super Bowl title but also legitimized the league, paving the way for the NFL-AFL merger. 10. Holly Holm Knocks Out Ronda Rousey (2015) Holly Holm shocked the MMA world by knocking out Ronda Rousey in one of the sport's biggest upsets. Rousey, undefeated and dominant, entered the fight as a heavy favorite. However, Holm, a former boxing champion, delivered a masterclass in striking and defense. The decisive moment came in the second round when Holm landed a brutal head kick that ended the bout. This victory not only proved Holm's skill but also shattered Rousey's aura of invincibility.
The Guardian
19-03-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Carlton must face up to the need for speed to restore their shaken belief
The second week of March is not the time to be out on the footballing ledge. A tardy start can actually be beneficial in the long run. It means you're not being picked apart and copied. You want to be popping in early spring, not in the first fortnight of autumn. But that's probably scant consolation at Carlton right now. On the Richter scale of scenarios heading into round one, coughing up a 41-point lead to last year's wooden spooners was at Krakatoan levels. The encouraging practice match form meant little when senior players were dropping chest marks, when kicks were sliding off the boot at right angles, and when a thoroughbred midfielder who'd garnered 45 Brownlow Medal votes last year was rucking against a draft horse. It has been called one of footy's biggest upsets this century, a Buster Douglas toppling Mike Tyson-type shock. But there were distress signals at Carlton all summer. Throughout the Michael Voss-era, Carlton has been a stable and well-run club. Luke Sayers' compromised social media account might have been unforeseeable. But suddenly the new president, a JP Morgan executive who lives in Sydney, was being heckled at the AGM, accused of running a communist organisation. And suddenly the Age's football reporter Jake Niall was going back over the old Carlton. The Carlton that buried scandals. The Carlton with the messiah complex. The Carlton that tried to buy its way out of trouble. The Carlton that would have seriously considered sacking the coach after a loss like last week's to Richmond. Then there are the injuries. Every club gets them, and it's not as though Carlton's injury list could get any worse than last year. But Nic Newman was exactly the sort of player they needed on Thursday night – an excellent kick, a sure pair of hands, a loud voice and a cool head. Jacob Weitering aside, the Blues were a shambles in defence without Newman. The other was Jagga Smith. They gave up so much to land him. Most fans had never seen him play a full game but the clips were enough – his lateral movement, his ability to draw and fake, the way he snakes and skates out of congestion. Only the true diehards would turn up to watch a scratch match with a foul northerly blowing on a Saturday morning. But Blues fans gave him a generous round of applause for his first touch and were beside themselves with his blind pirouette. His injury seemed like blip – a bump on the knee and nothing to worry about. When the news of a torn ACL came through, it knocked the stuffing out of the club. There are other things that sat uneasily too. One was the trading out Matt Kennedy. A tough, reliable, 'deploy where required' player who was popular with supporters. He'd just become a new dad and dashed to the Gabba for the elimination final, where he was swiftly subbed off. He sat on the bench, murder in his eyes. Naturally, he was excellent in his first game for the Western Bulldogs. And then there's the coach. Voss, like so many footy people who travel to America and do leadership courses in the off-season, talks a lot about continuous improvement. 'Vossy's massive on something called Kaizen, which is just about incremental growth every single day and coming in with a mindset to get better,' Orazio Fantasia said earlier this year. 'If we're following that process and making sure we're getting better every day with how we want to play and how we want to defend, the outcome and the results will take care of themselves.' Indeed, Voss's comments on this team often come back to a central theme, to what is almost a belief system – if we keep fronting up, if we keep 'pounding the rock', then eventually we'll break through, and eventually our time will come. The way they play reflects this. It's all pretty simple – win the stoppages, work their backsides off, crash and bang and get it in as quickly and efficiently as possible. When they're in that mood, and when they have a clean bill of health, they're a magnificent team. When they're like that, it resembles how footy was played in Voss's day – when you smashed teams in the midfield, when you built from the spine out, when success was a matter of talent and will, not necessarily system and smarts. But increasingly, that's not how successful teams operate. Increasingly, football is about speed and precision off half-back, about high-quality, high-pressure hybrid forwards, about shifting opposition team defences with angle-changing kicks – areas where Voss's teams have never really excelled. 'Pound the rock,' Voss told his players at the John Nicholls Medal count last year. 'Keep swinging. One strike at a time.' That's the Voss way. That's how he played. That's how he apprehends alleged car thieves. And that's how he coaches. But it's a blunt approach, one assumes that the list is sound, that the gameplan holds up and that all that's needed is luck, patience and persistence. His challenge now is to demonstrate there is more to his coaching than that; that he can manipulate a game, that he can stem a tide, that he can make the opposition play wrong handed. If he can't, then 2025 will quickly become another swing and a miss. The Crows have not won at the iconic venue since losing the 2017 grand final there against the Tigers. Their dire away form is even worse at Geelong's GMHBA Stadium, where the Crows have lost their past 14 matches stretching back to 2004. Warwick Capper was never Mensa material, but he was an astonishing football talent and a star with Sydney. His tenure at Brisbane was a disaster though. 'Bastards never kicked it to me,' he later said. On a foul June day at Princes Park in 1989, he finally had an impact when he marked just prior to the final siren, digging his knee into Carlton's Wayne Johnston's kidneys. Johnston said he'd never felt pain like it. Capper, having barely kicked further than 35m for his entire career, nailed the match-winning set shot from just outside 50. Johnston was never the same player again. Capper did bugger all in his remaining time at the Bears but the next day Blues coach Robert Walls was sacked by president John Elliott, who was in Portugal at the time. Tasmania Devils celebrated their first birthday with the launch of their mascot as the new club edges closer to entry to the AFL in 2028. 'David King has been on the case for outlawing pushes in the back, especially when it has unintended consequences, like the incident that happened to Sam Lalor. I agree with King and yourself. The umpires should have been outlawing pushes in the back far more stringently over the last two years.' Sign up to From the Pocket: AFL Weekly Jonathan Horn brings expert analysis on the week's biggest AFL stories after newsletter promotion Reader Peter Thorneycroft makes the case for umpires to clamp down on hands being used for more than just marking the ball, after the Tigers' prized No 1 pick Lalor returned from a horror pre-season injury to star in his side's shock win over the Blues. Which player(s) polled the most votes in a single Brownlow Medal count in the 1980s? (Bonus point if you know how many votes) Answers in next week's newsletter, but if you think you know it, hit reply and let me know! Last week's answer: Which four players have won multiple Norm Smith Medals? Dustin Martin (3), Luke Hodge, Andrew McLeod, Gary Ayres (2 each). Congratulations to Kayne Conway, who was first to reply with the right answer. A 'cheeky' Tasmanian devil that poos out footballs and is covered in papier-mache-like recycled fur has been unveiled as the new club's mascot. Round one was filled with dazzling debuts from young talent that might just live up to the hype. Western Bulldogs will turn back the clock, Jack Snape reports, as they revert to their original Footscray moniker for a centenary celebration against Collingwood. The AFL has blocked South Australia from hosting the Sheffield Shield final at Adelaide Oval, and its boss, Andrew Dillon, says the league is eyeing opportunities in India and the US even while it focuses on growth in the women's competition. Reply to this email and drop me a line, or email fromthepocket@ Have a friend who might? Forward this to them, or tell them how to get it.
