On the eve of College Basketball's biggest night, I had a thought pop into my head...If the Colts were a basketball team, who would they be? I started racking my brain, thinking of highly successful teams, with historical significance, that made a habit of playing late into the season each year. Then it became perfectly clear to me: Michigan State. Truth be told, I thought of them before their run to the Final Four this year, but I think they fit quite nicely with the Colts. Here's why:
- Sustained success over a 10+ year period, both with Future HOF coaches
- MSU has now made the Final Four 6 of the past 12 seasons, but only won 1 title (I'm sure most of us around here hope that stays at 1). The Colts have made the Playoffs 9 of past 10 seasons, but only have 1 championship.
- Have won a championship in the past (MSU in '79, Colts in Super Bowl V).
Pretty good parallels there, huh? I couldn't help myself though, so I decided to go through each NFL team, and match them up historically with a College Basketball program. You'll see I broke them up into 4 different categories, based on how close I think the comparison is. I'm open to all suggestions, so please don't hesitate to tell me how wrong you think I am.
Best of the Best:
| NFL Team | NCAA Team | Reasoning |
|---|---|---|
| Baltimore | UNLV | Won a single title in a blowout Many "questions" about the players on team A little success as of late, but nothing noteworthy |
| Buffalo | Houston | Made title game multiple years in a row without winning Had much more success 20+ years ago Never won a title despite multiple HOF players |
| Green Bay | UCLA | Two of most storied franchises in their league Won multiple championships 40+ years ago, as well as a recent title in the '90s Play in iconic venues |
| Houston | Northwestern | Only NFL team to never make the Playoffs Only major NCAA program to never make NCAA Tournament This was the easiest one to figure out |
| Indianapolis | Michigan St | Sustained Success over last 10+ years Multiple Final Fours, compared with multiple playoff runs Both Won Championship in 30+ years ago |
| Miami | Indiana | Last team in respective leagues to go Undefeated for a season Had most success from '70s - '90s Loyal fan bases waiting patiently for another title |
| NY Jets | NC State | One Championship each, both in huge upsets Been a long time since last title, without many close calls Overshadowed by other teams in their area |
| New England | Duke | Multiple Titles, including back-to-back Not much success before HOF coaches came along You either love them or hate them |
| Pittsburgh | North Carolina | Multiple Recent titles, as well as multiple historic titles Franchises both at top of respective leagues Seem to have "hiccup" years after winning titles |
| San Francisco | Kentucky | Multiple titles, most of them last generation Recently have fallen on tough times (UK '09-10 excluded) Two of most storied franchises in respective leagues |
Pretty Good:
| NFL Team | NCAA Team | Reasoning |
|---|---|---|
| Chicago | Marquette | Won a single title 25+ years ago Very loyal fan bases One year of recent success, but not much else |
| Denver | Syracuse | Lots of failures before finally winning a title Very few losing seasons Wearing of the Orange |
| Jacksonville | Purdue | High Expectations with few successful results Play 2nd fiddle in their state Always seem to play better with little expected of them |
| Kansas City | Notre Dame | Often overlooked historically, even though they are successful Playoff/Tournament appearances lately, but no success Fans anxiously waiting to breakthrough |
| Minnesota | Illinois | Most SB/Final 4 Appearances without winning title Have a great year, followed by multiple mediocre years |
| NY Giants | Arizona | Year after year success with few bad years Won a title recently unexpectedly, then lost when favored |
| Philadelphia | Villanova | Always in the hunt, can't win a title Play in historically tough division/conference In the same city |
| San Diego | Gonzaga | Came out of nowhere to become successful Talked about every year as their "breakthrough" year, then fall on their face |
| St. Louis | Arkansas | Not much success before mid-late '90s Got real good, real fast, winning a title, as well as losing a title game Fell right back to earth afterwards |
| Washington | Louisville | Multiple titles in the '80s Extremely large fan bases, who are very vocal |
Not Awful:
| NFL Team | NCAA Team | Reasoning |
|---|---|---|
| Arizona | Indiana St. | Not much success at all One magical year to title game before losing |
| Atlanta | Georgia | Single SB/Final Four Appearance without title Both overshadowed by Georgia Football |
| Cleveland | San Francisco | Most success came in the '50s Nothing to cheer about for 40+ years |
| Dallas | Kansas | Multiple Championships, although different eras Large fan bases across the country Storied franchises in their league |
| Detroit | LaSalle | Winning titles in '50s Being non-existent since then |
| Seattle | Seton Hall | Little success other than 1 title game appearance SHU's lone title appearance was in Seattle |
| Tennessee | Georgia Tech | Always hovering around playoffs/tournament One title game appearance Tough to breakthrough in conference/division due to dominating team |
Had No Idea:
| NFL Team | NCAA Team | Reasoning |
|---|---|---|
| Carolina | Memphis | Recent Title game appearance, although Carolina's wasn't stripped Home to really good BBQ |
| Cincinnati | St. John's | Most success in early '80s, but no title Rarely put in a good position to win consistently |
| New Orleans | Florida | No success until very recently Won a title after coming close a few years before |
| Oakland | Georgetown | Really good in the '80s Not well liked by opponents, especially in the '80s |
| Tampa Bay | Florida | No success until very recently Won a title in this decade Yes, I know I repeated Florida. Sue me. |
Poll
Who you got in the Championship game?
Butler vs. Duke (79 votes)
Butler vs. West Virginia (61 votes)
Michigan State vs. Duke (34 votes)
Michigan State vs. West Virginia (13 votes)
187 total votes
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