NCAA Tournament 2011: VCU Rams America's Final Four Team

Read More: Va. Commonwealth Rams

Anybody even remotely categorizable as an underdog come 2011 NCAA Tournament time was bound to earn casual-fan plaudits if they got as far as the Final Four—consider Gonzaga's continued stint as ostensible underdogs, even now—but the VCU Rams, starting as a First Four play-in team and moving within a game of the 2011 National Championship, have everything going for them. Like George Mason before them, they're officially America's Team. Which is a lot of pressure to shoulder, for a team with no pressure. 

The Post-Dispatch has a nice story on the subject; rather than play to that pressure-cooking public applause they get a bunch of name coaches, including SLU's Rick Majerus, to say that, hey, the Virginia Commonwealth Rams are a pretty good team, after all. 

All things considered I'd rather by an underdog than an overdog, such as it is—it's never fun to be rooted against at no fault of your own, aside from your own excellence—but at this moment it has to be at least a little difficult being a VCU basketball player.