The Art of the Upset

Every week, in college football, there is at least one upset. Some unranked, or lower ranked team take out a quality team in some fashion, whether it a be blow out, ora close game. How does this happen?

We'll use USC/Oregon State as an example, because their polar differences make this easier to describe.

USC is a powerhouse. The name Pete Carroll is known to every high school football player, every D1 hopeful, whether they like USC or not. And if he or his contingents come knocking at your door, you know you're big time. USC recruits the best of the best of the best. Of the best. Talent wise, they have no match in all the nation.

Let's juxtapose this with Oregon State, a middle of the pac-10 (pun intended) team. They get quality, hard working players who had nothing handed to them. Their raw talent is not as high as those of USC, but they may know how to play the game, they may have talent, maybe not the right body. Jacquizz Rodgers, for example, is a 5'7 first string running back, who wouldn't even get blinked at by USC recruiters.

Big difference, right? Somehow, these Oregon State players got motivated to come together, make the big plays, and take out mighty USC. I've narrowed it down to 1 reason.

Motivation.

That sounds stupid at first, like 'what do you want to eat' 'uhh, food'. But even though it's a general term, it's the core of the upset.

It starts with the coaches, because no matter how talented or not your players are, the preparation you put them through plays a vital role in determining the outcome of the game. If the best team in the world has a coach who doesn't notice the other teamsNFL Blitz '99-like play that keeps getting touchdowns, then you're guaranteed that the other team will score that way in the game.

At the same time, if the coach looks at every facet of the game, has watched every play, every tendency of the opposing team, and has provided that information to his own team, then all that is left is execution. If executed well, victory will always be within grasp.

Coaches are important. At the end of the day, however, the players themselves are of utmost importance in making an upset a reality.

Every player, whether it be the scout team players who don't play to the to-be-outmatched safety, must believe not only that they can win, but that they will win. Every player, every coach, everyone on the team. The second that someone feels outmatched, or that they can't do their job, they instantly concede defeat. You lose the will to work harder, to push that extra bit, that will to dig in when you have nothing left, when you need a big play.

If you lose that fear, if you feel that regardless of who you are facing, you know that you have the capability of playing great, that you can trust in the countless hours of training, tons of video you watched, and your general talent, then you have the chance to do something great on the field. When every player on a team feels like this, the whole team comes together, and you can just feel the energy gushing out.

Upsets don't usually work. Usually the other team is prepared, too talented, whatever you want to call it. But every week, you'll find a team that had all those qualities listed above, and found success. That is the beauty of sports. That also leads me to my next question:

Why can't we do the same thing on our respective intramural teams? Let me make one thing clear first: I have never played on a team where people didn't try their hardest, regardless of whether we were up 20 or down 30, everyone hustled on defense and played to the last second. Trying hard, however, is not the same as believing you can win. I understand that no team trains for games, watches video footage, and puts everything into their games. Except maybe frat teams with nothing better to do. But getting on that page where you all feel that you can beat a team is more important than anything in an upset. Yeah, upsets don't always work. But every time you're an underdog, you fight for that one time where it does.

All this put into a clip on VM Sports