Back to Home > Wednesday, Mar 29, 2006 Sports Posted on Wed, Mar. 29, 2006 email this print this<... Virginia is for lovers . .

During his team's remarkable run to the Final Four, George Mason coach Jim Larranaga didn't have any trouble coming up with a solution to beat three storied programs - Michigan State, North Carolina and Connecticut - that have won a combined eight national championships.

However, the man with all the answers in the NCAA Tournament couldn't come up with a solution to an unprecedented predicament on Monday afternoon.

Larranaga had about four dozen reporters waiting to speak with him and he couldn't figure out how in the world he was going to cram every media member inside his tiny office in the Patriot Center.

After pulling off an historic upset to become perhaps the most unlikely Final Four team ever, Larranaga and his players are suddenly in high demand. George Mason booked its first trip to the Final Four on Sunday with a stunning 86-84 overtime victory over NCAA Tournament favorite Connecticut.

The Patriots, who play in the Colonial Athletic Association, became the most unheralded school to reach college basketball's mecca since Indiana State and Penn made the Final Four in 1979. And Indiana State, which played for the national title, was ranked No. 1 for much of that season.

On Monday, sports reporters from numerous major newspapers descended upon George Mason's campus to find a school that has suddenly turned hoops crazy.

"When I showed up for one of my classes today, everyone in the room stood up and gave me a standing ovation," said guard Lamar Butler, who was the Washington Region's Most Outstanding Player. "I'm not even sure everyone knew we even had a basketball team until last week. But now, everyone on campus can name our starting five."

The Patriots (27-7) have introduced themselves to the nation with their surprising run and are on the front page of virtually every newspaper in America.

The school, which faces Florida in Saturday's national semifinals, is probably two wins away from seeing their season turned into a major Hollywood production.

"We believe we can win the national championship," guard Tony Skinn said. "We know we can do it. We're having a lot of fun, and this is going to make a great movie when we're finished."

After averaging only 4,500 fans this season for home games, the Patriots suddenly have an enormous fan base backing them and resting in sleeping bags outside the ticket office for Final Four tickets.

The statue of George Mason at the center of campus had a green shirt pulled over his wide shoulders with the words, "Go Kryptonite Kidz," scribbled on the front. Students were scaling the 10-foot statue and posing with the American Revolutionary figure for photos.

The Patriots have been the self-proclaimed "Kryptonite Kidz" since Larranaga told his team in the second round that North Carolina was like Superman and they were going to be kryptonite.

"Everyone is going crazy on campus," Danny Hernandez, a 22-year-old math major, said. "I was watching the game at my place with several friends and we still can't believe this happened."

Tim Randolph, the manager of George Mason's Campus Bookstore inside the Johnson Student Center, said students were lining up outside his store at 9 a.m. to purchase Final Four shirts. He didn't even receive his first shipment until 1 p.m., but no one left - even for class.

"Last week, we probably made about $150,000 on Sweet 16 shirts," Randolph said. "We'll make more than that this week. We have 10,000 shirts coming in and we'll sell them all."

In 2001, after George Mason lost an 83-80 heartbreaker in the first round to Maryland, Larranaga wondered how different things would have been if his team had won.

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