1) Pennsylvania, 1979 (#9 seed)

The National Final match-up between Michigan State and Indiana State dominated headlines in 1979 but that tournament also featured the original modern era Cinderella. In the first NCAA Tournament with seeding, Penn finished a dream season by reaching the Final Four as a #9 seed. Their longtime head coach Chuck Daly had just departed for the NBA but his top assistant Bob Weinhauer took over and ensured continuity. The Quakers stunned North Carolina in the second round in Greensboro (the Tar Heels’ first ever tournament loss in their home state and it didn’t happen again until 2018), Syracuse in the third round, and St. John’s in the Regional Final. Magic Johnson was waiting in the National Semifinals and his Spartans ran Penn off the floor, 101-67. But by then, Pennsylvania’s legacy as the original Cinderella was secure. They became only the fourth Ivy League school to reach the Final Four and unless the NCAA system changes radically they will be the last. Every team on this list owes a debt to the ’78-’79 Penn Quakers in some way.

2) LSU, 1986 (#11 seed)

No one considered LSU a threat in the 1986 NCAA Tournament and why would they? Coach Dale Brown’s team was missing their three best post players, lost to suspension (Tito Horford), academic ineligibility (Nikita Wilson), and injury (Zoran Jovanovich). Necessity became the mother of invention for Brown, who started playing an undersized lineup with the 6’7″ Ricky Blanton at center and instituted what he called the “freak” defense. Purportedly inspired by The Art of the War, the strategy hinged on shifting styles tailored to each opponent. The Tigers struggled to implement it during the regular season but it paid off in the NCAA Tournament, which they entered as a #11 seed. LSU upset #6 seed Purdue, #3 seed Memphis, #2 seed Georgia Tech, and #1 seed Kentucky in succession to win the Southeast Regional. They became the first double-digit seed to reach the Final Four, and the first, and still only, team to defeat all top three seeds in their region. LSU lost in the National Semifinal to Louisville and coach Brown failed to return to the Final Four in his final 11 seasons as coach, even when he had Shaquille O’Neal on the roster.

3) George Mason, 2006 (#11 seed)

It took two decades for another double-digit seed to join LSU’s ranks in the Final Four and George Mason was an even more improbable candidate. Cinderellas from mid-major conferences had made deep tournament runs before but always capped at the Regional Final round. George Mason seemed headed for a similar fate against top seeded Connecticut but instead shocked the world with an overtime victory. It was the culmination of an incredible tournament for the Patriots, who were a controversial at-large inclusion as a #11 seed. Not only did George Mason quiet critics by starting the tournament with two straight upsets, they did so against traditional powers Michigan State and North Carolina. Coach Jim Larranaga’s squad then played a near perfect game against UConn. They shot 9-of-18 on three-pointers, all five starters scoring in double digits, and they out-rebounded the Huskies. It also helped that it was a virtual home game for the Patriots, played in Washington, D.C., just 20 miles from their Virginia campus. Florida easily eliminated George Mason in the National Semifinals but by then, they had already secured immortality as the most improbable of Final Four teams.

4) North Carolina, 2000 (#8 seed)
5) Wisconsin, 2000 (#8 seed)

It was only two years removed from Dean Smith’s retirement, but his legendary run at North Carolina already seemed like a distant memory. Sure, the Tar Heels had reached the Final Four in their first year under Bill Guthridge but they then were upset in the first round of the 1999 NCAA Tournament, and stumbled into the 2000 edition as a #8 seed. But the veteran Tar Heels squad put it all together at just the right time, upsetting top seed Stanford in the second round, then defeating Tennessee and Tulsa to reach the Final Four. Joining them in Indianapolis was another unlikely #8 seed with a coach on the hot seat, Wisconsin and Dick Bennett. In contrast to UNC, which was just adding to an already vast program legacy, Wisconsin was making its first Final Four appearance of the modern era. The Badgers had upset top seed Arizona in the second round, then LSU and Purdue. It marked the first time that two teams seeded this low had both reached the Final Four. Both lost their National Semifinals matchup and both only slightly delayed their coach’s departure. Bennett stepped down in the subsequent ’00-’01 season due to exhaustion, and Guthridge retired soon after to hand over the reins to Matt Doherty.

6) Providence, 1987 (#6 seed)

As Providence first took the floor for the 1987 NCAA Tournament, coach Rick Pitino’s mind was likely elsewhere. Just a few days earlier, Pitino’s infant son Daniel had passed away from congenital heart failure. He opted to coach through the melancholy, joining his team for a first round matchup against UAB one day after Daniel’s funeral. Providence had finished fourth in the Big East that season and entered the tournament as a #6 seed. But they had a distinct advantage over all of their opponents. At Pitino’s behest, the Friars were taking full advantage of the newly instituted three-point line. Their starting back court of Billy Donovan and Delray Brooks were nicknamed “Rainbow Coalition” for their high-arcing shots and both shot over 40% on three-point attempts. After defeating UAB and Austin Peay in the first two rounds, Providence then stunned #2 seed Alabama and top seed Georgetown to win the Southeast Regional and advance to the Final Four. After a National Semifinals loss to Syracuse, Pitino left Providence that offseason to take a job with the Knicks, putting a bitter final stamp on an inspiring coaching run. He would eventually return to the college ranks, leading Kentucky and Louisville to national titles.

7) UCLA, 1980 (#8 seed)

After dominating college basketball in the ’60s and ’70s, the UCLA program seemed to be limping into the ’80s. Gone were the likes of John Wooden, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Bill Walton. In their stead was the cantankerous Larry Brown as head coach and a roster headlined by underachieving senior Kiki VandeWeghe. They last three NCAA Tournaments had ended with upset losses for the Bruins, and they finished an uninspiring 22-10 in ’79-’80, missing out of the Pac-10 title for the first time in 14 years. Something clicked in March though, as VandeWeghe led upsets of top seed DePaul, #4 seed Ohio State, and #6 seed Clemson to win the West Region. UCLA reached a Final Four with Wooden’s fingerprints all over it, played in his home state of Indiana and featuring his Bruins, his alma mater Purdue, and his longtime protege Denny Crum, who was now coaching Louisville. UCLA pulled off one last upset over Purdue in the National Semifinals before blowing a late lead against Louisville in the championship game. Brown was gone just one year later amidst a recruiting scandal that forced them to ultimately vacate this Final Four appearance. The Bruins did not return again until 1995, when they won an 11th national title.

8) Villanova, 1985 (#8 seed)

The 1985 NCAA Tournament was the first to be played with 64 teams and the last to be staged without a shot clock, and that confluence of oddly-paired paradigms played right into Villanova coach Rollie Massimino’s hands. He had built a team in his own image, a group of defensive bulldogs capable of slowing down even the most high powered opponents. Just look at the final scores of Villanova’s consecutive upsets over Michigan, Maryland, North Carolina, and Memphis: 59-55, 46-43, 56-44, 52-45. Not the most thrilling brand of basketball but an effective one for a #8 seed to reach the National Final. Massimino’s squad entered the championship game as massive underdogs against Big East rival Georgetown, who just as stout defensively if not more so. It was would a “perfect game” for Villanova to win and that’s exactly what happened. For the first time all tournament, the Wildcats adjusted by pushing the pace to catch the Hoyas off guard. They shot an incredible 78.6% from the field (22-of-28) and needed every bit of to hold on for a 66-64 win. It still stands as one of the most shocking upsets in tournament history in any round and to this day, Villanova are the lowest seeded team to ever win the title.

9) Loyola-Chicago, 2018 (#11 seed)

Though Loyola was making just its second NCAA Tournament appearance of the seeded era in 2018, it was once a powerhouse program that won the national championship in 1963. Coach Porter Moser returned the Ramblers to national prominence 55 years later, thanks to some incredible performances from his unheralded players, and possibly some divine influence. Loyola’s unofficial mascot for the tournament was a 98-year-old nun named Sister Jean who served as the team’s chaplain and attended every game. They soon exceeded even Sister Jean’s own expectations (she supposedly had them only reaching the Sweet 16 in her personal bracket) with a trio of hail mary’s in the first three rounds, defeating #6 seed Miami with a buzzer beater, #3 seed Tennessee with a late game-winning jumper, and #7 seed Nevada with a three-pointer in the waning moments. After holding off #9 seed Kansas State in the Regional Finals, Loyola opened up a 10-point second half lead against Michigan in the National Semifinal, before succumbing to a 23-6 Wolverines run that swung the game and put it away.

“As a small program that plays its home games at the legendary Hinkle Fieldhouse, Butler reaching the Final Four in Indianapolis seemed almost too much like a Hoosiers sequel to be real.”

10) Virginia, 1984 (#7 seed)

While their former superstar Ralph Sampson was busy earning Rookie of the Year for the Rockets, Virginia was struggling to compete without him. The Cavaliers lost more games in the ’83-’84 season (11) than they had in the prior three seasons combined (10) and just barely made the NCAA Tournament as a #7 seed. Things looked even more dire when they barely held off a feisty Iona team in the first round, but that seemed to provoke something in this Cavaliers squad. They upset #2 seed Arkansas in the second round in overtime, then #3 seed Syracuse and #4 seed Indiana to reach the Final Four. Waiting in the National Semifinals was one of the best offensive teams in the country in Houston, and Virginia took a lesson from one year prior. Sampson and the Cavaliers had been upset by NC State in the second round in 1983, then watched the Wolfpack shock Houston in the National Final with a plodding, meticulous approach. The strategy almost worked for Virginia and their triangle-and-two defense in 1984 but they came up just short, losing 49-47 to Houston in overtime. Returning this time as a top seed in 2019, Virginia is making its first Final Four appearance since this 1984 run.

11) Syracuse, 2016 (#10 seed)

Deploying Jim Boeheim’s patented 2-3 zone, Syracuse is traditionally a tough out come NCAA Tournament time as opposing teams scramble to decode a defense they’ve probably only seen before on tape. Never was that more on display than in 2010, when the Orange entered the tournament as an overlooked #10 seed and finished it playing powerhouse conference foe North Carolina in the Final Four. After a self-imposed postseason ban in 2015, the Orange had a middling ’15-’16 regular season, finishing ninth in the ACC, and many were surprised by their tournament at-large bid. Once in, Syracuse was nearly unstoppable, but also benefitted from some big upsets in their region. After blowing out #7 seed Dayton in the first round, the Orange got a second round win over #15 seed Middle Tennessee and then advanced past #11 seed Gonzaga in the Regional Semifinals. Awaiting in the Regional Final was ACC rival and top seed Virginia, but freshman Malachi Richardson scored a game-high 23 points as the Orange defeated the Cavaliers 68-62. Though they were blown out by North Carolina in the National Semifinals, it was the fifth Final Four appearance in Boeheim’s era at Syracuse, all of which happened as lower than a #1 seed.

12) Butler, 2010 (#5 seed)

Though they were no stranger to tournament success at that point, having previously reached the Sweet 16 as a #12 seed in 2003 and as a #5 seed in 2007, Butler was nobody’s idea of a Final Four contender in 2010. Despite finishing the ’09-’10 season with a 20-game win streak and a #11 ranking in the AP poll, Brad Stevens’ squad, then a member of the Horizon Conference, was saddled with a #5 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Led by star forward Gordon Hayward, the Bulldogs stunned top seed Syracuse in the Regional Semifinals, thanks to an 11-0 run to finish the game, then held off #2 seed Kansas State in the Regional Final. As a small program that plays its home games at the legendary Hinkle Fieldhouse, Butler reaching the Final Four in Indianapolis seemed almost too much like a Hoosiers sequel to be real. They added even further to the legend by grinding out a victory over Michigan State in the National Semifinal, then having their National Final game against Duke come down to the waning moments, when a Hayward buzzer beater sailed awry. 

13) Mississippi State, 1996 (#5 seed)

They were coming off a shocking upset of #1 Kentucky in the SEC Tournament Final but no one was paying Mississippi State mind when the 1996 NCAA Tournament brackets were released. In fact, they were such an unexpected winner of the Southeast Region that their celebratory hats accidentally read the name of their cross-state rivals Ole Miss. The slight was nothing new for the Bulldogs, who had been written off after an inconsistent ’95-’96 regular season only to stun Kentucky and win their first ever SEC Tournament title. Built around local high school legend Erick Dampier, Mississippi State took out top seed Connecticut and #2 seed Cincinnati in succession to reach the Final Four in New York. Their conference rivals Kentucky were there as well but Mississippi State’s National Semifinal opponent was another unlikely participant, #4 seed Syracuse. For the first time in a while, the Bulldogs actually entered a game as the favorites and maybe that was their downfall in a 77-69 loss to the Orange. Since this Cinderella run, Mississippi State has made only seven appearances in the last 23 years, and were eliminated in the second round or earlier each time.

14) Kentucky, 2014 (#8 seed)
15) Connecticut, 2014 (#7 seed)

John Calipari’s full embrace of the one-and-done era led a national title in 2012, but the high-risk, high-reward recruiting strategy seemed to have caught up to him just two years later. His all freshmen starting lineup was a massive disappointment, starting the season as the national title favorites and finishing it with a 24-10 record and a #8 seed in the NCAA Tournament. March was a different story, as Kentucky not only reached the National Final but did so by upsetting three Final Four teams from the 2013 tournament in Wichita State (which was previously undefeated), Louisville, and Michigan. Their opponent in the championship game was another traditional power masquerading as a Cinderella, #7 seed Connecticut. In their second season under coach Kevin Ollie, who replaced the legendary Jim Calhoun, the Huskies were an afterthought heading into the 2014 tournament but made their presence felt with consecutive upsets of #2 seed Villanova, #3 seed Iowa State, #4 seed Michigan State, and #1 seed Florida. Experience seemed to be a difference maker in the National Final, with senior Shabazz Napier leading Connecticut to the title and earning Most Outstanding Player honors.

16) NC State, 1983 (#6 seed)

In a prelude to their miraculous NCAA Tournament run, this seemingly overmatched NC State was shocking highly ranked opponents in the ACC Tournament. They took down both Michael Jordan’s UNC and Ralph Sampson’s Virginia to win an ACC title that they needed just to reach the NCAA Tournament. Both of those games came down to the wire, as did NC State’s thrilling March Madness wins over Pepperdine (in double overtime), UNLV (on a Thurl Bailey buzzer beater), and then Virginia again in the Regional Final (with a late comeback). Seemingly touched by fate, the “Cardiac Kids” Wolfpack entered the National Final against heavily favored Houston with nothing to lose and everything to gain. They not only won but did so, of course, in dramatic fashion. NC State opened an eight-point halftime lead, withstood a furious second half run by the Cougars, then came back themselves to tie it at 52-52 with one possession remaining. After running down the clock, the Wolfpack’s Derrick Whittenburg threw up a desperation shot that missed the rim entirely. But Lorenzo Charles was in the right place at the right time, grabbing the rebounding and putting it back in at the buzzer. The final tally for NC State: Nine consecutive wins in postseason games across the ACC and NCAA Tournaments, six of which came down to the final possession.

17) Butler, 2011 (#8 seed)
18) VCU, 2011 (#11 seed)
19) Wichita State, 2013 (#9 seed)

A few years after George Mason became the first non-power conference school to reach the Final Four, the previously improbable became almost commonplace. The floodgates were opened by Butler in 2010 (as described above) and 2011. Following their 2010 National Final appearance, the Bulldogs had low expectations in ’10-’11 with star Gordon Hayward now in the NBA. But they rallied around upperclassmen leaders Matt Howard and Shelvin Mack to make another miraculous Final Four journey, upsetting top seed Pittsburgh and #2 seed Florida. Their National Semifinal opponent was the equally unlikely VCU. Similar to George Mason in 2006, VCU got a controversial at-large bid into the 2011 tournament and had to start in the inaugural First Four games. With a frenetic defensive pressure, the Rams tore through their region like they were a title favorite, not a #11 seed. They didn’t just beat Georgetown, Purdue, and Kansas, but did so decisively to reach the Final Four. Butler defeated VCU in the National Semifinal, then lost to UConn in the championship, and most assumed this was a final fluke. But two years later, there was Wichita State, knocking out Gonzaga and Ohio State to reach the Final Four. In typical NCAA fashion, these electrifying tournament runs were soon after mitigated by many top mid-major programs joining bigger conferences, including VCU (Atlantic-10), Butler (Big East), and Wichita State (AAC).