Best school to never be ranked No. 1?
Posted: Monday, January 05, 2009 1:37 PM
Filed Under:
Polls
It’s amazing how time gets away from you. Vacation, other duties at work piling up, no Internet at home, etc. – and just like that, it’s been nearly two weeks since my last post.
(Actually, that’s not a bad thing for most teams. My friends and family have decided I’m worse than the SI cover jinx lately. They’re only half kidding. Since blogging on Gonzaga on Dec. 11., the Bulldogs have lost four of their last five games, including a home loss to Portland State. Ouch. On Dec. 22, I said Oklahoma and UNC would be the last two teams to lose. Oops.)
So I’ll open the new year with a first: Pitt reaching No. 1 in the AP poll for the first time.
The Panthers (14-0) ran away from Georgetown and took advantage of the Heels’ loss to B.C. to snag all but two of the votes this week. Pitt had been No. 2 nine times since 1987-88 (most recently three times in the 2006-07 season; Ben Howland’s Bruins were No. 1, oddly enough), but finally broke through.
“I think it means a lot to our fans and our city and it means a lot to our university, much more so than to me and our players,” Panthers coach Jamie Dixon said. “But it is part of the reason why we play and work so hard so I am glad for them.”
Pitt’s first big test at No. 1 comes Jan. 17 against Louisville, which means it’ll likely be No. 1 for two consecutive weeks. (Home games against St. John’s and South Florida aren’t likely to derail Pitt, but the jinx could kick in…and two other No. 1 newbies lost after reaching the top spot the last two seasons – Wisconsin and Tennessee. Those two did lose to ranked teams, but hey, you never know.)
Being No. 1 in January doesn’t bring home a title, but it is a nice achievement for Dixon’s squad, and a little surprising the Panthers had never been there before.
They’re the 54th team to reach the top spot since the rankings began in 1948 and the 9th team to have one week under their belt. (Georgia Tech, Iowa, Oklahoma State, St. Joe’s, South Carolina, Tennessee, Wichita State and Wisconsin are the others.)
Looking at the AP poll through the years, it’s strange to see some of the teams that have been No. 1 (‘Bama, 2003; Seton Hall, 1953) and some of the programs that reached the top but haven’t been back for a while (Georgetown hasn’t been No. 1 since 1985 and N.C. State since 1975).
But it’s also odd to think of some of the best schools that haven’t ever reached No. 1 during the regular season. To name a few champs:
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Louisville (No. 2 for nine weeks in 1966-67 and at least once in ’72, ’75, ’80, ’83, ’86)
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Maryland (No. 2 for eight weeks in 1975-76, five weeks in 2001-02 and for at least one week in ’72, ’73, ’75, ‘98)
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Utah (No. 2 in ’54, ’97, No. 3 in ’55 and ‘98
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Villanova (No. 2 in ’95 and ’06).
The question is, what is the best school to never be ranked No. 1?
