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. |