We talk about number one rankings but I don’t believe that Carolina was ranked number one between 1958 and some time in the late 70’s and that might have been for a week or two. It was only starting in 1982 that Carolina being ranked number one became a fairly regular occurence. I remember when I was a kid in the mid-70’s thinking it would be pretty amazing if Carolina could just get into the top five.

South Carolina actually was ranked number one for a week or two back in 1970 but I don’t know whether they actually thought they could beat UCLA. Alcindor had graduated and UCLA was seen as weaker that year, but they still had Curtis Rowe and Sydney Wicks, two future top NBA’ers. What really decimated USC I believe was not finally winning the ACC championship that had been dominated for so many years by UNC, Duke, Wake and State, each of whom had won titles during the 70’s, in order to give the state of North Carolina some payback.

USC finally got its title the next year and left the ACC with a highly regarded program led by Frank McGuire and UNC-grad Donnie Walsh. You can’t do much better than that at the top, but leaving the ACC took away USC’s rivals and then Walsh was made to leave over recruiting improprieties (although not infractions apparently) and the USC program never recovered.

Carolina in 1972 with Bob McAdoo was seen as the first ACC team since 1957 to really have a chance to win it all but they played an atrocious first half and fell more than 20 points behind Florida State in the national semi’s (with no shotclock or three pointer, how do you get so far behind?)–does that sound familar?

Carolina got to within five at the end, 81-76 but it was left for NC State in 1974 to give the ACC its first NCAA title in 17 years. When John Wooden was asked at the press conference after the semi’s what he thought of FSU, he said, “I don’t know–all you reporters said we would be playing North Carolina.”

i personally would love to beat a #1 to regain the #1 spot. but something tells me unc will lose and dook will lose more until we meet up in february. but then again, so will pitt and wake and uconn. omg. put your seat belts on, it looks like it’ll be a one heck of an interesting ride until march madness.