Logic-Defying Losing Streaks

On Monday, with a 4-2 loss to the Chicago Cubs, the Pittsburgh Pirates cemented themselves as the greatest losers in the history of North American sports with their record 17th consecutive losing season. If you're wondering how a team can go nearly two decades without a winning record, John Perrotto of Pirates Report has a nice rundown of who is responsible for such futility. Congratulations, gentlemen, for being absolutely terrible.

Needless to say, when a team aimlessly stumbles through 17 straight years of losing, other teams across the league are going to benefit from the incompetence. Last weekend, for example, the Pirates were swept in Milwaukee, where they have now lost 21 consecutive games dating back to the 2007 season. One-sided domination of this nature is a cause for celebration in my mind, so let's take a quick look back at some of our favorite losing streaks.

North Carolina vs. Clemson (College Basketball)
Perhaps the ultimate losing streak against a single team, the Clemson men's basketball team has not won a game in Chapel Hill against the Tar Heels in 84 years, a run that includes a 54-game losing streak for the Tigers. That's almost difficult to comprehend, but let's go ahead and give it a shot. What was happening in the world in 1926 when the streak began? Well, for starters, if you were interested in purchasing land on Broadway or Wall Street it was selling for a then-record price of $7 per square inch, and the following people were born: Hugh Hefner, Beatles Producer George Martin, former NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle, NFL player Norm Van Brocklin, comedian Jerry Lewis, musician Miles Davis, actress Marilyn Monroe, actor Andy Griffith, director Mel Brooks, singer Tony Bennett, Cuban dictator Fidel Castro, musician Chuck Berry, and, one more, just for kicks, Penn State football coach Joe Paterno. Impressive.


Notre Dame vs. Navy (College Football)
The 2007 season was one of the worst campaigns in the history of Notre Dame football -- the team won a grand total of three games (against UCLA and noted football superpowers Stanford and Duke). Among the many losses that season were back-to-back defeats at the hands of service academies Navy and Air Force (both at home). The Navy loss stands out the most because it ended Notre Dame's 44-game win streak against the Midshipmen, a streak that started in 1963. Navy's quarterback that year was Roger Staubach, NFL Hall of Fame class of 1985. Before Navy's thrilling triple-overtime win in '07, Notre Dame's winning streak against Navy was the longest active streak in college football.

Tennessee vs. Kentucky (College Football)
Since Navy's infamous streak against the Domers ended two years ago (bringing to an end four-and-a-half decades of misery) the longest active winning streak against another team in the college football ranks belongs to the Tennessee Volunteers who have ball-stomped SEC rival Kentucky 24 consecutive times. The Wildcats last win over the Vols on the gridiron? November 24, 1984. The No. 1 song in the country that week that was likely blasting at celebratory post-game frat parties on the Kentucky campus?



Rock on, Kentucky.

Nebraska vs. Missouri (College Football)
On October 5, 2008, the Missouri Tigers marched into Lincoln, Nebraska and pounded the Cornhuskers with an emphatic 52-17 win. Noteworthy because it was the first time the Tigers had won a football game in Lincoln in 30 years. It was one of the worst home losses in the history of the Nebraska program.

Steelers vs. Browns (NFL)
Before they moved to Three Rivers Stadium in 1970, the Pittsburgh Steelers were perennial losers in the NFL, and games against the Cleveland Browns were no exception. All that changed with the opening of Three Rivers, which coincided with the start of a dynasty that ultimately saw the franchise win four Super Bowls in six years. It also led to what was known as the "Three Rivers Curse" in Cleveland, as the Browns lost 16 consecutive games in the big concrete cereal bowl. They finally ended the streak on October 5, 1986, with a 27-24 win. Doing the scoring for the Browns in that game? Webster Slaughter, Gerald McNeil and a game-winning four-yard plunge from Earnest Byner in the fourth quarter. The Browns would go onto win the next three games they played in Three Rivers Stadium. They would only win there five times before the Steelers relocated to Heinz Field in 2001.

Flyers vs. Penguins (NHL)
Another Pittsburgh sports team was on the opposite end of such a streak (roughly around the same time). The Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers entered the league during the NHL's mass expansion in 1967 as the league doubled in size going from six team to 12 teams. They have been cross-state rivals ever since, though to be a true "rivalry" the games actually have to be competitive. Between January 20, 1974 and February 3, 1989, the Penguins went 43 consecutive games without a win in the Spectrum. (They did have three ties, so technically it's not a true "losing streak," but 43 games without a win is 43 games without a win.)

Spurs vs. Celtics (NBA)
With the No. 3 overall pick in the 1997 NBA draft, the Boston Celtics selected Chauncey Billups, two spots after the San Antonio Spurs selected Wake Forest forward Tim Duncan. The Celtics, like every other team in the NBA that year, coveted Duncan, so it had to be a little salt in the wound when not only did they not have the opportunity to draft him, but Duncan and the Spurs would go on to beat the Celtics the first 17 times they met (the streak actually started the year before Duncan was drafted). It began on March 14, 1997, when San Antonio knocked off Boston 103-92, and lasted a decade, ending nearly 10 years to the day (March 17, 2007) with a 91-85 Celtics win. San Antonio's average margin of victory: 14 points.