Jim Larranaga set precedence for mid-majors in the Final Four

The last true majors to advance to the Final Four before George Mason’s run were Indiana State and Penn in 1979. The Sycamores had Larry Bird entered the Final Four undefeated. Before the Patriots, the Quakers were the most unexpected run before Jim Larranaga and the Patriots did it.

George Mason earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament as an at-large team. Many questioned their bid to the tournament.

In a 2016 article in the Washington Post in honor of the ten-year anniversary, Jim Larranaga’s assistant at both George Mason and Miami spoke about those who doubted the Patriots presence in the NCAA Tournament, particularly CBS College Basketball’s main analyst Billy Packer.

The Post article did a great job detailing the thoughts of the Patriots getting in the Tournament and how they were feeling watching the selection show. It basically came down to Hofstra and George Mason on who would receive a bid. The Pride defeated the Patriots in both meetings that season.

"CAPUTO: “When we did get in, (CBS’s Billy) Packer and (Jim) Nantz literally went through our nonconference schedule and talked about how they’re surprised we would be in. It was sort of hurtful at the time. They made it a good minute or two of the show about how we shouldn’t have gotten in.”"