Any sports fans out there?
How about NCAA college hoops fans?
Do you enjoy the spectacle that is NCAA bracketology?
Yesterday was ‘Selection Sunday,’ and I love that the bracket list of teams has grown even larger. (It’s now at 68 teams!)
Before we know it, March Madness will seriously take the entire months of March, April, and May to complete. Smiley face from this guy, if that happens!
And like every die-hard basketball fan, I printed my bracket this fine, Monday morning. Selection Sunday yields Bracket MONDAY!
Now what?
The picks of course.
If you’re reading this and thinking, Brian has gone off the deep end. You’re probably not alone in your thinking. But hear me out.
Imagine a month every year where maybe it’s your favorite movies of all-time are being re-played in a theater near you. Could you imagine getting to see Terminator 2 played in IMAX? What about watching T2 and then Weekend at Bernie’s back-to-back? Or, pretend you’re given backstage passes for all of Bonnaroo music festival and your favorite bands are requesting your presence.
Wouldn’t that make your 2015 more entertaining? More memorable like the 4th of July, vacation, and your birthday all rolled into one?
Except get this…the outcomes are unknown until the final buzzer!
This is what takes it to the next level. We don’t know if a #1 seed will get past an #8 or even a #16. UPSETS are sometimes a GOOD thing. (I know this is contrary to everyday thinking and really doesn’t work anywhere else.)
But, to contrast it again with a string of your favorite movies being replayed in theaters or given Bonnaroo passes. Imagine the movie theater owner telling you that you get to rewrite the endings of the classics (scary thought, huh?). Or, the Bonnaroo manager saying, “You play the tambourine? Great. Get on-stage and open for Cage the Elephant. Or, better yet, how about you just stay up there and play alongside them. See what happens.”
These might be SLIGHT exaggerations to my initial point. But let me just repeat this: MARCH is fun now.
[And not just mediocre fun like eating at a pizza buffet or walking a dog around your neighborhood.]
Think bigger.
Even if you don’t enjoy the game of basketball, I encourage you to fill out a bracket this year…today. Pick Teams. Even if you do it based on their names alone. This one sounds funny. This one doesn’t. What’s a Villanova? Is that an ice cream flavor? Where in the world is Hampton? All good questions. Use them in YOUR process.
It seems that the best way to describe this time of year is the word– user-friendly.
You get to pick the rounds, consider the spread, and watch 1 game (or, 8 games if you’re capable) at any given time.
Enjoy them from the comfort of your favorite chair or take a trip to one of the tournament regions, cheer on the team that’s name sounds like an ice cream flavor.
It’s your only chance before April (a time when many will go one to the professional level and the NBA [lowers voice a few octaves]).
The NBA is okay. The NCAA is what makes an otherwise dreary time of the year (at least for the mid-west, mid-south, mid-north, and northeast US) bearable and then some.
ENJOY!