Fans Debate Texas “Cinderella” Label After Longhorns Advance To Sweet 16

Is it possible for a team with the fourth-largest operating budget in the sport to be a “Cinderella”?

Cinderella isn’t dead yet. Little known school Texas beats Gonzaga

— jamfan40 (@jamfan40) March 22, 2026

As an 11-seed who barely snuck into the field, Texas has defeated both No. 6 BYU and No. 3 Gonzaga to reach the Sweet 16 – but as one of the top spenders in college basketball, is this really an underdog story to root for?

The top 10 men’s basketball teams who spent the most in 2025:

1️⃣ Indiana, $32M
2️⃣ Tennessee, $23.1M
3️⃣ Arizona, $22.6M
4️⃣ Texas, $22.4M
5️⃣ UConn, $21.5M
6️⃣ Arkansas, $21.2M
7️⃣ Michigan State, $21M
8️⃣ Kentucky, $20.7M
9️⃣ Auburn, $20.5M
🔟 Louisville, $19.8M

(via @MattBrownEP) pic.twitter.com/3SyhZgYYT9

— Front Office Sports (@FOS) March 16, 2026

Texas has spent more than three of the four No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament and is home to the largest public university endowment in the United States.

The “Cinderella” in this year’s tournament is the massive SEC brand with the 4th-largest operating budget in the sport.

The NIL era is a joke 💀

— CBB Kings (@CBBKings) March 22, 2026

I’m glad there’s an 11-seed in the Sweet 16, but I’m sorry – an SEC team coached by Sean Miller with the largest athletics department budget in the country CANNOT be a Cinderella

— Brian Rauf (@brauf33) March 22, 2026