A Division I-AA team beat #5 Michigan at their 100,000 home stadium. I would say this is the biggest upset in recent college football history. While it’s true App State won the D-IAA championship, I cannot think of too many times a I-AA team beat a BCS conference team (Montana State over 2-9 Colorado last year). Except that Michigan was #5 and expected to compete for the national title.
I was looking online and found a voting list here . I would say Appalachian State is above all the ones since the 1926 or so. Of course, some of those “upsets” are ridiculous. For instance, the #2 Ohio State beating #1 Miami in 2003 hardly deserves to be in the same breath as a true underdog.
I’ll put my vote in as the biggest. It’s the 1st time a 1aa team has ever beaten a ranked team. As a fan of the Ohio State University, let me just say…
Bwahahahahahahahahaha
Ha! I hate it when colleges cherry-pick their schedules to play lots of I-A and I-AA cupcakes. (Actually, I have lots of issues with college sports, football in particular, but let’s not hijack the thread.) Even if it isn’t indeed the biggest upset ever, it is well-deserved just deserts for Michigan.
I was thinking the same thing. According to ESPN, this was the first time in history that a Div. I-AA team defeated a ranked I-A, and the fact that the ranking number in this case wasn’t a 20 or 15, but #5 overall, suggests that we’re not likely to see a greater college football upset in our lifetimes. And arguably, in a purely sporting context, this may even rival the 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team’s defeat of the U.S.S.R. – although otherwise it’s no comparison, given the much lower profile of the football upset and the lack of geopolitical rivalry.
Other things for football fans to mull over is, just how badly does the Big-10 suck this year (since Michigan had been the top-seeded Big 10 team)? And does Michigan deserve to fall out of the Top 20 altogether?
I’m hoping some channel will offer a delayed broadcast of this game for the benefit of us non-Michigan fans…
I wouldn’t be surprised if it eventually gets broadcast on ESPN Classic. Maybe the NFL Network will show it this week—there’s not much going on until Thursday and they do show other football besides just the NFL.
Having my sister, who goes to Appal State, at home watching the game was ridiculous. Loud and obnoxious football fans come from all over, even the sleepy town of Boone. When the field goal was blocked, Harris Teeter up in B town was supposedly chaos. People were running around and screaming everywhere. One of the best football games I’ve seen.
I don’t know about biggest ever, but it was amazing. I am definately NOT a Michigan fan, so this one had me cheering in front of my constantly refreshing computer screen.
Still, in terms of the most entertaining and meaningful upset in recent memory, put me down for Boise State over Oklahoma. Oregon State over USC last year is in the same league as today’s game, as far as I’m concerned.
Yeh, but that’s no surprise. Appalachian State always picks a roll over team for their first game of the season. That’s nothing new. I must admit that Michigan did give 'em a little bit of a scare there at the last.
Better luck next year, Michigan, when you can take on, er, Our Lady of Mercy Teacher’s College, or something.
Things aren’t looking very good for Notre Dame, either (although GTech is no 1-AA!). Sixteen minutes left to play and they need an unanswered… sixteen points. Not gonna happen.
I heard an announcement on the Big Ten network that they’re planning a re-broadcast Sunday night at 7:00.
I think it’s a fairly new network, and is carried by at least DirecTV, if not others. They were positively thrilled to have had such a cool game on in the beginning of their broadcast schedule.
I have two nieces who recently graduated from ASU and a nephew who is a sophomore there, so I was really happy for this David-vs-Goliath victory.
Note to sports broadcasters: It’s “Ap-uh-LATCH-un”, not “App-uh-LAY-chun” or “App State.”
