Dick Vitale told me this week on my highly rated radio show that West Virginia has a 40 % chance of beating Villanova. So you're telling me there's a chance?!
Every college basketball analyst in the country is seemingly telling West Virginia to not even bother showing up for their Sweet 16 clash with the Wildcats. Here's the thing...They'll be there at 7:27 on Friday night.
There's nothing better in sports than hope. Is WVU going to beat Villanova? It's not likely. But West Virginia fans all over the country have been day dreaming about it for the better part of a week now.
How good did you feel about the Penguins chances in game 7 against Washington last year? The Pens were coming off of two losses where they were outscored by a combined total of 9 to 4. The Capitals were thoroughly outplaying the team wearing black and gold. I didn't think the Penguins had a prayer. Then they dropped the puck.
The 2005/2006 Pittsburgh Steelers had fallen victim to the Indianapolis Colts in the regular season. Peyton Manning and company were at the top of their game. Even Jerome Bettis and some atrocious refereeing couldn't give Indy the win. All week long, young Adam Crowley had thought about how the game would play out. I didn't think they'd win, but I had HOPED they would.
The list goes on and on. For Pitt fan's, 13-9 must have felt impossible prior to the ball being kicked off.
The Penguins sans Hossa were down 3 games to 2 in the Stanley Cup Final in 2009. I thought it was over. But it didn't mean that little Crowley wasn't dreaming about Sid the Kid hoisting the cup every night as he went to sleep.
If the favorites won every game then sports wouldn't be fun. Imagine sports without the Miracle on Ice, Super Bowl III, and Buster Douglas knocking out Mike Tyson.
The ghosts of past upsets should give sports fans the hope that something magical can happen to their teams.
Even if WVU doesn't pull off the upset on Friday, at least I'll have had this week imagining that they would.
Photo courtesy of Getty Images