Do You Believe In Unlikelihoods?!

Since I was a kid, I have watched the NCAA tournament, thinking it to be one of, if not the, greatest sports tournament around. It allows 64 teams to enter the Dance with the dream of becoming champions. Every team brings with it a following that pro sports match just cannot match. "Lose and go home" brings an added edge to each and every game.

There have been so many great moments. For me, it all started with 1979, Michigan State versus Indiana State, Magic versus Bird. That was the first basketball I could remember watching. I remember that there was something historic about it but didn't appreciate the importance at the tender age of eight. Since then, I have seen so many other great NCAA tournament moments and personalities, like, Jimmy V, Keith Smart, Danny Manning, Bryce Drew and Serge Zwikker. Okay, Zwikker never had any great tournament moments, but I just love his name, for obvious reasons.

Today George Mason University gave us another great tournament memory by beating the vaunted University of Connecticut Huskies in overtime to reach the Final Four. The Patriots didn't win by default. They beat two of last year's Final Four teams and a number one seed. They won by outplaying and outhustling their opponents. In becoming the first non-major to make the Final Four since the tournament expanded to 64 teams, they provided inspiration to all the underdogs, the teams that aren't supposed to win and the athletes who don't always get the spotlight.

The underdog is part of what makes sports so fascinating. Granted, I would not complain if the Pistons or Red Wings won a few championships in a row. I would be even more ecstatic if the Tigers or Lions would win a few regular season games in a row. While the Red Wings and Pistons' dominance might make us Detroiters happy, it wouldn't be good for the sport. Fans want to see someone new win every so often. It's why some of the most popular sports movies of all time, like "Hoosiers" and "Rudy", are about the little guy who breaks into the big time.

I'm rooting for George Mason University for two other reasons. First, the school has the name of the "24" character who valiantly died taking down a plane carrying a nuclear bomb in the desert so nobody else would die.

Second, the United States Supreme Court just decided that it was constitutional for the federal government to withhold aid to schools that forbid military recruiters from campus. Professors from various law schools filed a brief arguing against the law. Only one school, George Mason University, home of the aptly named Patriots, filed a brief supporting the federal government.