The story behind college basketball's most iconic anthem began in 1986 at an East Lansing bar where musician David Barrett scribbled lyrics on a cocktail napkin after watching Larry Bird highlights. The 31-year-old songwriter had been performing in Michigan watering holes for years when inspiration struck during a quiet moment after his set.

Barrett's basketball-themed song almost became an NFL anthem first. CBS Sports creative director Doug Towey initially planned to use it for Super Bowl XXI in 1987, but broadcast overruns forced a change. The network instead debuted "One Shining Moment" during the 1987 NCAA championship, perfectly timed with Keith Smart's game-winning shot for Indiana. The montage has since become March Madness's emotional finale.

For nearly four decades, Barrett's composition has soundtracked championship celebrations across college basketball. The song has been performed by four different artists including Teddy Pendergrass and Luther Vandross, with Barrett himself handling the first seven editions. What began as a barroom poem about Bird's greatness has become the soundtrack of basketball dreams, played after every national championship since that first Indiana victory.