The Chicken Runs at Midnight

I never thought I'd use that phrase as a Blogger title, nor did I ever think this phrase could be so uplifting. But, as the wonderful world of sports seems to do on a daily basis, I've learned something new and inspiring.

In 1992, Rich Donnelly, then-third base coach for the Pittsburgh Pirates, lost his daughter to a brain tumor. Earlier that year, she asked her dad what Donnelly would always yell to the runners on second base. "Dad, what do you yell to the runner, 'The chicken runs at midnight?'" As it states in the article linked in my title, the Pirates began using this phrase frequently.

Four years later, the Florida Marlins beat the Cleveland Indians in the World Series, winning in the 11th inning in Game 7 (Donnelly was the 3rd base coach). Craig Counsell, aptly named "The Chicken" in the Donnelly household because of the way he flaps his arm in the batter's box, scored the winning run. At midnight.

As Tim Kurkjian says, "The chicken indeed runs at midnight."

"There is baseball in the story, but it's not a baseball story," said Counsell. This is simply another of the endless reasons why I love sports; sports can be so much bigger than the outsider generally portrays it to be. Sports can make a phrase like "The chicken runs at midnight" touch millions around the Nation, which is evident in the midnight 3k run in Haddonfield, New Jersey.

Sports can also save a city, as it did during the economic hell swarming Detroit. When Michigan State danced all the way to the Final Four in 2009, it lit a fire under the Motor City, a fire that seemed all but extinguished a month prior.

Sports saved our Nation in 2001. In the wake of 9/11, America felt lost, hopelessy looking for answers to why such a terrible tragedy could happen. When baseball returned 10 days later, it gave us something to get our minds off of the pain. Seeing Mike Piazza's memorable home run that night forever changed my outlook on baseball. It's just a game, but it's a game that can unite an entire country in its darkest times.

Sports have stopped wars. In 2006, the Ivory Coast was in the midst of a Civil War, dating back to 2002. When the World Cup began on June 9, the ongoing north-south battle ceased, and for one month, the Cote d'Ivoire came together as one to cheer on their beloved Elephants. "Thanks to soccer, the country is going to reconcile its differences." - Kata Kaba.





Thanks to the late Ernie Harwell, I'm beginning my own version of Ode to Baseball. And it begins with:

Baseball is a bright kid sprinting the length of Centerfield at Yankee Stadium after robbing a home run. Baseball is that same bright young man - with his cap backwards - flashing that contagious smile at the city that adores him, being carried off the field in the city that he adores.

Baseball is a young boy watching this young man play the game with ease, inspiring the boy to wear his cap backwards, smile his big smile, and play the game for the simple joy of playing the game. That's baseball.

Baseball is a chicken running home at midnight, capturing the heart of fans from New Jersey all the way to San Diego, including the boy from Colorado, with his backwards cap and foolish grin.

Ode to Baseball

In the past month, the baseball world lost two incredibly inspiring figures in longtime Detroit Tigers announcer and Hall-of-Famer Ernie Harwell and Rockies President Keli McGregor. While both were very different in what they did for the game, the end result was the same: reminding the Nation why baseball is still deserving of the National Pastime status.

I don't intend to ramble on at how wonderful these two men were, but make no mistake, these two staples in the game of baseball were just that: wonderful men. I know, without a doubt, that the Rockies would have never made the Postseason in '07 and '09, much less the World Series in '07, if Keli was never hired back in the early days of the Rockies franchise. When he became President in 1999 (or 2001, I can't remember), he made the decision to rebuild the franchise with homegrown players.


A decade later, his dream fulfilled, the Rockies opened the 2009 season with all eight position players coming from the Colorado farm system. Not many teams can say they've accomplished that feat.



Here are some excellent articles around the nation regarding Keli's impact on the game:


Bodley remembers McGregor.

Heavy-hearted win for Rockies.

Rockies try to pick up pieces.

McGregor remembered as kind, driven.

McGregor remembered (ESPN).

McGregor's values directed Rox ascent. This is probably my favorite article, mainly because Dave Kriger, a man so critical of the Rockies over the years, salutes McGregor's incredible work he did for Colorado.


I don't know nearly as much about Ernie Harwell, but it's easy to see the impact he's had on the game, especially in Detroit and with the Tigers franchise. Harwell lived 92 long years of living and loving the game of baseball. From the days of Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle to the Tigers winning the World Series in 1984, Ernie has seen it all. While watching the MLB Network the other day, Bob Costas and John Smoltz started to reminisce about Harwell, which led to the video of Costas's interview with Harwell during the '09 World Series. I watched the interview with awe in this wise old man. Here was this 91 year-old man, knowing that cancer will inevitably take his life, and soon, but showed no sign of defeat, or despair. In fact, when Costas graciously asked him if he could recite a portion of his famous Hall-of-Fame speech, Harwell whipped out the entire poem off the top of his head! The poem was so beautiful, and his composure was so awe-inspiring, it brought tears to my eyes. I know that sounds gushy, but it was truly touching. So touching, in fact, that I want to share the poem with you folks. I hope your still reading, because it puts baseball in a different perspective and, for me, life in a different perspective. Anyway, I did what I said I wouldn't, and started to ramble, so here is Ernie Harwell's Ode to Baseball:

Baseball is the President tossing out the first pitch of the season and a scrubby schoolboy playing catch with his dad on a Mississippi farm.A tall, thin old man waving a scorecard from the corner of his dugout. That's baseball. And so is the big, fat guy with a bulbous nose running home one of his 714 home runs.

There's a man in Mobile who remembers that Honus Wagner hit a triple in Pittsburgh forty-six years ago. That's baseball. And so is the scout reporting that a sixteen year old in Cheyenne is a coming Walter Johnson. Baseball is a spirited race of man against man, reflex against reflex. A game of inches. Every skill is measured. Every heroic, every failing is seen and cheered, or booed. And then becomes a statistic.

In baseball demoncracy shines its clearest. The only race that matters is the race to the bag. The creed is the rulebook. And color merely something to distinguish one team's uniform from another.

Baseball is a rookie. His experience no bigger than the lump in his throat as he begins fulfillment of his dream. And it's a veteran, too, a tired old man of thirty-five hoping that those aching muscles can pull him through another sweltering August and September. Nicknames are baseball, names like Zeke and Pie and Kiki and Home Run and Cracker and Dizzy and Dazzy.

Baseball is the clear, cool eyes of Rogers Hornsby. The flashing spikes of Ty Cobb, an over aged pixie named Rabbit Maranville.

Baseball, just a game as simple as a ball and a bat. Yet, as complex as the American spirit it symbolizes. It's a sport, a business and sometimes almost even a religion.

Why the fairytale of Willie Mays making a brilliant World Series catch and then dashing off to play stickball in the streets with his teenage pals. That's baseball. So is the husky voice of a doomed Lou Gehrig saying, "I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of this earth."

Baseball is cigar smoke, hot roasted peanuts. The Sporting News, ladies day, "down in front," 7th inning stretch, Take Me Out to the Ballgame, and the Star Spangled Banner.

Baseball is a man named Campanella telling the Nation's business leaders, "You have to be a man to be a big leaguer, but you have to have a lot of little boy in you too."

Baseball is a tongue-tied kid from Georgia growing up to be an announcer and praising the Lord for showing him the way to Cooperstown. This is a game for America, baseball. This is a game for boys and for men.

I found the video of that interview, but unfortunately I can't embed it onto Blogger. So if you want to hear it from Ernie, watch it here.

This speech reminded me of the simple joys baseball can bring. For me, baseball is going to Coors Field and watching the Rockies struggle through the early 00's, only to revive their franchise, a franchise built by Keli McGregor, and find their way to the World Series in 2007. That's baseball, and it is the game that holds the most special place in my heart.

The Boys of Summer

Ok, so this is a little late - a whole month late, actually - but I've been a little wary of putting this post on my blog. Why? Every time I wrote about the Rockies last year, they would flounder into a potentially devastating losing streak. When I stopped around the time September began, they promptly got it together and held off the Giants for the WIld Card spot.

So I'm sure you can see why I'm hesitant to write about the very team that inspired me to create this blog. Still, I have to find a way to write about baseball, otherwise this will be a deserted blog for the next 5-6 months. So, with that being the case, I've found a way to talk baseball without exactly talking about the boys at Blake Street.

At the start of every college basketball season, I do what I call Preseason Bracketology. And at the start of every baseball season, I tend to forget to go through a thorough prediction process, mainly because that's around the time I'm neck-deep in real brackets for March Madness.

Not this year, though. Since I finished my Preseason Bracketology so early, I was able to dedicate my time in February to predicting every game for the entire MLB season. How crazy is this? It might not be up to the insanity standards of College Basketball, but figure this: there are 30 MLB teams and each team plays 162 regular season games. 162 * 30 = 4860. That's the number of I games I predicted. And, with my luck, I'm guessing I will be correct in less than 5% of those games.

Anyway, after going through the whole spreadsheet process, this is what I came up with. Enjoy!

AL EAST:
Tampa Bay Rays (94-68)
New York Yankees (92-70)*
Boston Red Sox (90-72)
Baltimore Orioles (82-80)
Toronto Blue Jays (69-93)

AL CENTRAL:
Minnesota Twins (91-71)
Cleveland Indians (85-77)
Chicago White Sox (84-78)
Detroit Tigers (79-83)
Kansas City Royals (56-106)

AL WEST:
Seattle Mariners (92-70)
Los Angeles Angels (90-72)
Texas Rangers (83-79)
Oakland Athletics (71-91)

NL EAST:
Atlanta Braves (92-70)
Philadelphia Phillies (90-72)*
Florida Marlins (89-73)
New York Mets (84-78)
Washington Nationals (59-103)

NL CENTRAL:
St Louis Cardinals (91-71)
Cincinnati Reds (84-78)
Chicago Cubs (76-86)
Houston Astros (76-86)
Milwaukee Brewers (74-88)
Pittsburgh Pirates (52-110)

NL WEST:
COLORADO ROCKIES (94-68)
Los Angeles Dodgers (88-74)
San Fransisco Giants (87-75)
Arizona Diamondbacks (81-81)
San Diego Padres (55-107)

AL DIVISION SERIES:

Tampa Bay Rays (94-68) v Minnesota Twins (91-71)
Game 1: Rays over Twins, 6-4
Game 2: Twins over Rays, 8-3
Game 3: Twins over Rays, 7-6
Game 4: Twins over Rays, 4-3 (F/10)
TWINS WIN SERIES, 3-1

Seattle Mariners (92-70) v New York Yankees (92-70)
Game 1: Mariners over Yankees, 3-1
Game 2: Yankees over Mariners, 4-3
Game 3: Mariners over Yankees, 5-4
Game 4: Yankees over Mariners, 6-1
Game 5: Mariners over Yankees, 4-1
MARINERS WIN SERIES, 3-2

NL DIVISION SERIES:

Colorado Rockies (94-68) v Philadelphia Phillies (90-72)
Game 1: Rockies over Phillies, 5-1
Game 2: Rockies over Phillies, 7-4
Game 3: Rockies over Phillies, 6-4
ROCKIES WIN SERIES, 3-0

Atlanta Braves (92-70) v St Louis Cardinals (91-71)
Game 1: Cardinals over Braves, 3-0
Game 2: Braves over Cardinals, 5-3
Game 3: Cardinals over Braves, 4-3
Game 4: Braves over Cardinals, 6-5 (F/11)
Game 5: Braves over Cardinals, 2-1
BRAVES WIN SERIES, 3-2

AL CHAMPIONSHIO SERIES:

Seattle Mariners (92-70) v Minnesota Twins (91-71)
Game 1: Mariners over Twins, 4-2
Game 2: Mariners over Twins, 3-2
Game 3: Twins over Mariners, 7-3
Game 4: Twins over Mariners, 8-3
Game 5: Mariners over Twins, 4-3
Game 6: Twins over Mariners, 6-5
Game 7: Mariners over Twins, 4-3
MARINERS WIN SERIES, 4-3
SEATTLE MARINERS: AL CHAMPS 2010

NL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES:

Colorado Rockies (94-68) v Atlanta Braves (92-70)
Game 1: Rockies over Braves, 6-3
Game 2: Braves over Rockies, 4-1
Game 3: Rockies over Braves, 3-2
Game 4: Braves over Rockies, 3-2
Game 5: Braves over Rockies, 5-4
Game 6: Rockies over Braves, 5-1
Game 7: Rockies over Braves, 8-6 (F/10)
ROCKIES WIN SERIES, 4-3
COLORADO ROCKIES: NL CHAMPS 2010

2010 WORLD SERIES:

COLORADO ROCKIES (94-68) V SEATTLE MARINERS (92-70)
Game 1: Mariners over Rockies, 2-1
Game 2: Rockies over Mariners, 5-3
Game 3: Rockies over Mariners, 6-2
Game 4: Mariners over Rockies, 4-3
Game 5: Rockies over Mariners, 2-0
Game 6: Mariners over Rockies, 2-1
Game 7: Rockies over Mariners, 5-3
ROCKIES WIN SERIES, 4-3

2010 WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONS:

COLORADO ROCKIES (94-68)


According to BBTN, the five best teams of 2010 are pictured in this World Series Idol.



This is what I was lucky enough to witness on April 17, 2010.



One month in and it's already been a memorable season. I can't wait to see what the next five months will hold in store for my beloved Rockies:)

This Will Make You Laugh

Ok, enough doom and gloom. I'm ready for April to be over and May to start. April sucks.

This (along with a very promising phone call) put a huge smile on my face today. And made me laugh. Over and over and over and over again. Makes me wonder how bad I was after I got my wisdom teeth out:)

11 Years/Hell Week

CAUTION: This blog contains unhappy material. Read at your own discretion. Thanks:)

11 years ago today, two students at Columbine High School commited what was then the worst school shooting in American History. Even after 11 years, the impact of that fateful day still shows its effects. In fact, April 20, 1999 is the final day in what I have dubbed Hell Week. It seems to me that, regardless of the year or the incident, something tragic tends to happen between April 15 and 20. Here are some of the tragic events occuring during this disastrous week:

April 15:

4/15/1865 - President Abraham Lincoln succumbs to gunshot wound from previous evening, shot in the head by John Wilkes Booth.
4/15/1912 - The RMS Titanic sinks in the North Atlantic, resulting in 1,517 lives lost.
4/15/1989 - 96 Liverpool FC fans lost their lives in what is called a human crush.

April 16:

4/16/1947 - Texas City, Texas catches fire after a freighter in port suddenly explodes, killing almost 600.
4/16/2007 - Seung-Hui Cho goes on the worst killing spree in American History at Virginia Tech, killing 32 and injuring 23 before committing suicide.

April 18:

4/18/1906 - The SF earthquake and fire destroys most of San Fransisco.

April 19:

4/19/1993 - A 51-day siege of the Branch Davidian building in Waco, Texas ends with 81 people losing their lives in the fiery siege of the building. 20 of the deceased were children.
4/19/1995 - Timothy McVeigh commits the worst domestic terrorist attack in US History, bombing the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, killing 168 - 19 of whom were children under the age of 6 - and injuring more than 680.

April 20:

4/20/1914 - During a coal miner's strike in Colorado, the Ludlow Massacre ensued, killing 45.
4/20/1999 - Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold committed what was then the worst school shooting on US soil, killing 13 and injuring 24 before each committing suicide.
4/20/2007 - A man with a gun barricades himself in NASA's Johnson Space Center before taking a hostage's life, along with his own.

These are the many reasons why this week always sticks out in the back of my mind as the worst week of the year. Even so, there is still good that happens during Hell Week, and that's why every year, on April 20, I listen to the song The Change, by Garth Brooks. Brooks actually released this song specifically for the aftermath of the Oklahoma City Bombing. It always seems to be a good song to remind that, regardless of what evil is upon us, we can still be strong to overcome its adversity.



Here are the lyrics as well.

One hand
Reaches out
And pulls a lost soul from harm
While a thousand more go unspoken for
They say what good have you done
By saving just this one
It's like whispering a prayer
In the fury of a storm

And I hear them saying you'll never change things
And no matter what you do it's still the same thing
But it's not the world that I am changing
I do this so this world will know
That it will not change me

This heart
Still believes
The love and mercy still exist
While all the hatred rage and so many say
That love is all but pointless in madness such as this
It's like trying to stop a fire
With the moisture from a kiss

And I hear them saying you'll never change things
And no matter what you do it's still the same thing
But it's not the world that I am changing
I do this so this world will know
That it will not change me

As long as one heart still holds on
Then hope is never really gone

I hear them saying you'll never change things
And no matter what you do it's still the same thing
But it's not the world that I am changing
I do this so this world we know
Never changes me

What I do is so
This world will know
That it will not change me

SC Highlight Of The Night

SC Highlight Of The Night

First No-Hitter in Rockies history! Unfortunately I couldn't embed any of the videos of Ubaldo's historic performance, but this at least has the link. This is easily one of the most special moments I have witnessed as a die-hard Rox fan. Truly amazing, go watch!

Take a Look

The moment he met her, he understood; it was quite obvious to Chris Hunter why Eric would never shut up about his new girl. Aimee Martin was strikingly beautiful, from the way her bronze hair shimmered effortlessly with every tiny movement, to the power expertly concealed behind her electric green eyes.
"Eric!" Aimee squealed, whipping her arms around the boy she loved. "What in the hell took you two so long? And why haven't you introduced me yet?" she said, playfully scolding Eric for not properly introducing his old friend.
"If you give me about two seconds to catch my breath, I might be able to," Eric choked, seemingly suffocating from Aimee's death grip. "Not that I don't like being smothered every time I see you," he added with a smirk.
"Aimee, this is my buddy Chris. Chris, this is my girlfriend, Aimee. Me and Hunter here have known eachother for - how long's it been?"
"Pushing ten years, bud," said Chris, "how long have you two been together?" knowing full well that the answer would be...
"Three blissful months," said Aimee dreamily. Chris choked back a laugh; he couldn't help it. He had never seen his friend act so...gushy. Eric was always the kid gloating about being in control, never having to worry about being whipped. Girls would literally go crazy for him back in high school, Chris remembered, but Eric never actually had a legitimate girlfriend for more than a week. But if there was ever a girl to settle Chris's friend down, he knew it would sure as hell be this girl.
"You guys hungry? I'm in the process of cooking some wicked mac and cheese," said Aimee, beaming her brilliant smile.
"No, we're not hungry at all, are we Hunter?" said Eric sarcastically, "We just drove 300 some odd miles without stopping for food, right? Nah, we don't need to eat." That was the Eric Chris knew; Eric Palmer simply couldn't resist using his dry humor ever chance he got.
As the three were finishing up dinner - and Aimee wasn't kidding, she could make one mean macaroni and cheese - they heard a sound eerily similar to a gunshot, a sound that unearthed some haunting memories of Hell Week two years prior.
"You guys ok?" Aimee asked, feeling slightly uneasy at the way both boys' faces drained all color with one sound. "That's just my roommate, her car's a serious mess, and backfires every time she stops. It can be really annoying, actually, especially when she works late. No chance of sleeping when you hear a shotgun at two in the morning."
"Anyone ever take a look at it before?" asked Eric, the color creeping back to its normal shade of tan.
"I don't think so; I don't think she can afford taking it to a mechanic, what with having to pay for college on her own and everything."
"Palmer can probably take a look at it, he's a wizard when it comes to cars," said Chris wryly, only slightly trying to bust his buddy's ego in front of his girl.
Aimee snorted. She couldn't help but laugh at Eric's lack of expertise in the simple task of changing the oil. While his old and new friend teased eachother, Chris realized they had company.
"This a good time, Aimee? Or should I circle the block for a couple hours?" the roommate quipped.
That was effective. "Good to see you made it home without your car murdering you," said Aimee, finally breaking away from Eric. The two roommates embraced for a quick hug, and then Aimee went through introductions, predictably leaving Eric as the last to be introduced. As kind as she was, Aimee sure seemed to enjoy the spotlight, and somehow it worked well for her.
In fact, Aimee's roommate seemed to be the polar opposite of the bubbly, happy-go-lucky Aimee Martin.
Olivia Eddy was a naturalist in the way she looked and dressed. Unlike her best friend, Olivia didn't bother to dress up every time she went out, nor did she need to. Her soft olive skin, combined with her small, simple smile, was as warm as a fireplace quietly cackling in the dead of winter. And just like her Italian mother, her golden brown hair resonated in the dying sun.
But it was not Olivia's smile, nor her tanned feature, that got Chris's attention. It was merely a look shared by the two blue-eyed strangers, a look that - in less than a second's time - seemed to grab at Chris Hunter's stomach with the force of a wild thrill ride.
This was definitely something Chris was not accustomed to feeling. Yes, he had a few girlfriends back at home, but they never seemed to create the same feeling he just felt, and this was all by a coincidental look that most likely had no meaning, or feeling, behind the twinkling eyes of the girl across the kitchen table.
Yes, he was sure of it now, it was purely accidental. Now that he thought of it, he did have a few moments in high school where sparks surely seemed to fly, only to discover the sparks had rapidly turned to ash. And those were with people he knew. There just couldn't be anything behind this look, not with his luck.
Hours passed by before anyone noticed the time. The four new students at Southwestern University shared much of the same interests, talking deep into the night about whatever seemed to cross their minds. For a moment, Chris became silent. It was a favorite hobby of his to just sit back and watch his friends laugh jovially. It always reminded him how lucky he was to be sitting here, soaking it all in.
The newly acquainted friends called it a night after Olivia started dozing off on the kitchen counter. "Aims, I'm heading to bed," the roommate yawned, staggering off the counter. "Racquetball tomorrow?"
"Of course, wake me up when you get up?" Aimee asked.
"Will do. Eric, Chris, it was quite fantastic meeting you fine gentlemen," said Olivia, slightly mocking formality. "I'm sure I'll see you two a lot around here." she winked and was off.
But not before another look at Chris. He was so caught off guard that he merely stared while she stumbled down the stairs. One random look happens frequently, he knew that. But two looks? Is that still a coincidence? And there was a genuine smile there too, he was sure of that. Certainly wasn't the same smile she gave during introductions. Right? But how could he tell? He was no expert in psychology; maybe the smile was exactly the same, but just looked different to him because...why?
One thing was certain, he concluded, he sure felt something for her. The question he suddenly was dying to answer seemed an easy question, but could be maddening all the same: was the feeling mutual?

Final Defense

After three weeks of the most exciting basketball I've seen in a long time, the stage is set for the biggest show in College Athletics: the Final Four.

I can honestly say I cannot remember being more excited for the final weekend as I am this year; each team is richly sugared with inspiring side stories, two teams suffered what was thought to be crippling injuries during the tournament, one team is literally living a Hollywood dream by playing in their home town, and the only No. 1 seed left was strongly considered the weakest 1 seed.

Above all the candy-coated sweeteners, the story I love the most is how all four teams reached Indianapolis. In a world overwhelmed by a high-powered offense, it was defense that won each Regional.

Most everyone, from experts to casual fans, see the Big Ten as the most boring Power Conferences, simply because of their "inability to score." At least, that's how people portray the Big Ten. "No offense." "Too slow." "No premiere scorers." Too bad the general public can't see what really separates the Midwest Powers from the other Big Six Conferences: it's called defense. Shut-down defense. In-your-jersey, hand-in-your-face, smothering defense. The scoring's low because, yes, the defense is exceptional, but it's also low because of the unique style all eleven teams tend to play. It's a simple half-court offense, wearing the shot-clock down on every possession, playing for an efficient possession during each sequence. To the outsiders, this would be dubbed "boring basketball." But, to me, this is brilliant basketball; it's the way the game was played back in the days of Bill Russell, Jerry West and Wilt Chamberlin (before Wilt went nuts and scored 100 in a game). Michigan State is a prime example of Big Ten basketball; highly ranked preseason, loses a few close games in conference, receives an undeserving seed in the tourney, shrugs off the seed and shuts down team after team with its unique style of defense. That is why Tom Izzo and the Spartys are dancing in the Final Four for the second consecutive year and the sixth time in 12 seasons.

Sparty's opponent, the Butler Bulldogs, are the darlings of the tournament, and could be argued as one of the all-time darlings in March Madness history. Why? Well, they're from the Horizon Conference, a low/mid major conference incapable of having a representative for a Regional Final, much less a Final Four appearnce. The Dogs are the 5-seed out of the West Region, which might not seem like an insurmountable feat, considering Michigan State is also a 5-seed. Take one glance at who Butler had to beat to get here, though, and it's a completely different story. Gordon Hayward and co. killed any talk of a first round upset by controlling the second half of a 77-59 beatdown on UTEP. Butler then escaped the second round on a brilliant steal by Hayward in the waning seconds to secure a 54-52 victory over 13-seed Murray State. The Bulldogs really showed up in Salt Lake, dethroning top seed Syracuse in the Sweet 16, 63-59, and shocked the world with a 63-56 upset over 2-seed Kansas State. Cuse and K-State are considered two of the top offenses in the nation, with both teams averaging at or near 80 points/game (Syracuse averages 80.7, Kansas State averages at 79.7). So, naturally, Butler's slow, methodical, yet overwhelming man-to-man defense held both teams under 60 points. That's 20 points under both teams' season averages!

When the brackets were unveiled on Selection Sunday, there was a mad uproar, including this kid, about Duke's cream-puff South Region. To draw Villanova as a 2-seed and Baylor as a 3-seed, the Blue Devils were licking their chops at the prospect of making their first Final Four since '04. While their road may not have been as taxing as the other 1-seeds, give Coach K and his Dukies much deserved credit for proving the country that Duke is still a powerhouse in basketball and can still beat anyone on any given night. The Blue Devils fully convinced me of that statement with a clutch win ove a Baylor squad basically playing at home (the Regional Final was set in Houston, a mere 180 miles from Waco). Duke also showed its toughness and power, outplaying the Big Bears down low, something Duke has been very weak at for many years. With their classic Duke Defense and the finesse of Scheyer, Singler and Smith, the Blue Devils find themselves back in the big stage.

When I tell people I'm a West Virginia fan, they look at me incredulously and ask, why? I can see why they're in shock; West Virginia's not the cleanest team in the world, the state itself is widely ridiculed as the dumbest state in the Nation, and, as ESPN's Rick Reilly so blatanly pointed out in this article, the Mountaineers are coached by Bob Huggins, the grumpiest coach in basketball, also a coach who had a 0.0 graduation rate with his Cincinnati players back in 1998, and that's usually frowned upon, especially by the NCAA. In hindsight, this is generally NOT a team I would root for, but it's for these reasons why I DO root for them. They might look like thugs on the court, but they know how to play together better than almost any team in college. The people of West Virginia are hard-nosed, stubborn people, but they are incredibly hard workers and don't care what anyone else thinks about them, which is a trait I respect, and somewhat admire. Above all, regardless of what Bob Huggins has done in the past, his ability to create a family out of his team is awe-inspiring. He doesn't do it the conventional way; he tells his players that he'll yell at them so much that they'll have no choice but to band together, even if it is sharing their dislike of his hard-ass work ethic. That's why Huggy Bear is a perfect fit in West Virginia; he is a hard-nosed, blue collar worker that you typically find in a coal mine in the 50's, and he doesn't give a damn what you think of him. When he took over the program three years ago, he flawlessly eased his gritty 1-3-1 zone into the old John Beilein Princeton offense-style of play, and it has turned out to be the perfect storm. With John Beilein, nobody could stop the Eers from scoring, but the Eers also couldn't stop the bleeding on defense. Huggy changed all that in a few short years. Although the offense isn't where it used to be, the back-door cuts are still vicious, and nobody can score on WestVa, which has turned them into - in my mind - the clear favorites of this Final Four.

The Deseret News came out with an article a week ago stating that "BYU can learn something from Butler's Final Four run." While this is indeed true, DesNews writer Mike Sorensen was way off with his explanation, as, admittedly, most journalists usually are in this situation. Sorensen thinks the schools in Utah, namely BYU, Utah and Utah State can mirror Butler's magical run by creating a tougher schedule and having a big-time coach. Ok, it's pretty easy to say that a tough schedule and a big coach will get you to the Final Four, but there's so much more involved than that; consider Siena's murderous non-conference schedule this year. They limped through to a 10-6 record, having to go 17-1 in the MAAC and eventually win their conference tourney just to make the Big Dance. You don't see them in the Final Four, do you? In fact, they bowed out in the first round to a Robbie Hummell-less Purdue squad. As all coaches will say this time a year, a big factor in making the Final Four is the draw you receive and who you play to get there. Look at Michigan State, who didn't play a seed higher than 4-seed Maryland; how about Duke, whose biggest competition didn't come until the Elite Eight in 3-seed Baylor; what about West Virginia, who didn't play a single-digit seed until they knocked out 1-seed Kentucky in the Elite Eight; Butler had the toughest road of all, but they barrelled through with their masterful man-to-man defense and methodical half-court offense. So insteaed of saying "we need better scheduling," let's focus on the coaching itself, and that includes better defense, which is precisely what created this year's Final Four.

Some good articles for tonight's games:

No superstars, no problem, Dana O'Neil wirtes.

Hometown all in for Butler, writes Mark Schlabach



Scott Powers says that Scheyer's making memories.

Draymond Green's smarts smart off bench, writes Pat Forde.

Games are about to start, it's been a pleasure watching these teams, can't wait for some great games tonight!

Expansion Video #2

Another great argument on why the NCAA should not expand to 96 teams.



It unfortunately looks like they're going to anyway. Thanks for putting loads and loads of green in front of everything else important, NCAA, now I know where your priorities are.

Delaney says expansion "probable."

And then there were Four

Jay Bilas was right.

From Midnight Madness in November to Selection Sunday a few weeks ago, ESPN analyst Jay Bilas repeatedly stated that there are "no great teams" this season. A plethora of fans vehemently disagreed with Bilas, arguing that Bilas's statement was an insult to their respective schools.

I agreed with Bilas from the get-go; if you digest each elite team this year, you'll find multiple flaws in their systems, gaping holes that could be potentially disastrous come tourney time.

Compare present-day Kansas to last year's National Champions, North Carolina. Sheron Collins is a talented, smart point guard, leading the Jayhawks' dominance of the Big 12 this year, but Collins never had the explosive speed nor the steely confidence Ty Lawson possessed; Lawson's ability to seize control of a game is the reason the Tar Heels were the clear favorites last season. Cole Aldrich might have the look of one of the scariest Centers in the game, but has the tendency to play soft, sometimes not even demanding the ball in the post. In stark contrast, Tyler Hansbrough, with his intensity level bordering insanity, was aptly nicknamed Psycho-T by his coach, Roy Williams. Coach Williams said numerous times last year that Hansbrough is the hardest worker he has ever coached. This picture does justice to Hansbrough's intense style of play.



The 2009 Tar Heels were superior to the 2010 Jayhawks in every aspect: the Heels played harder, worked harder, had more talent, had better chemistry, had experience beyond their years, had better playmakers, and had better leaders. That is why Jay Bilas categorizes the '09 Tar Heels as a "great team."

That is also why there is no great team this year. I compared Kansas to North Carolina simply because Kansas was the consensus choice to cut down the nets this weekend. If the Jayhawks couldn't match up with the Tar Heels, then no team in this year's bracket could.

The beauty of having no great teams in a season is - more often than not - the potential of having a great tournament. Once again, Bilas nailed this right on the noggin. The first weekend saw 2-seed Villanova make a desperate rally just to force OT against 15-seed Robert Morris (a 15-seed has not defeated a 2-seed since Hampton shocked Iowa State in 2001), eventually squeaking by the Colonials, 73-70. Naturally, Nova went down in the second round to a sound Saint Mary's squad, led by big man Omar Samhan, one of the many tournament darlings this year.

Before the upset over Villanova, the 10-seed Gaels knocked out 7-seed Richmond, 80-71, making Saint Mary's one of the eight double-digit seeds to advance to the second round. Joining the Gaels in busting the nation's brackets were 10-seed Georgia Tech smothering 7-seed Oklahoma State, 64-59; 13-seed Murray State stunning 4-seed Vanderbilt at the buzzer, 66-65; 12-seed Cornell toying with 5-seed Temple, 78-65; 11-seed Washington continuing their hot streak, beating 6-seed Marquette late, 80-78; 10-seed Missouri adding to 7-seed Clemson's first round woes, 86-78; 11-seed Old Dominion staving off a fierce 6-seed Notre Dame rally, 51-50; and the upset of the first round, 14-seed Ohio (seeded 9th in their conference tournament) dominating Big East Runner-up, 3-seed Georgetown, 97-83. How does a team ranked 9th in the MAC utterly destroy a team playing for the Big East Championship? They don't call it March Madness because it's predictable; they call it March Madness because the little teams like Ohio, Cornell, Murray State, and Old Dominion defy logic and advance.

By Thursday night, I was already content with this year's tourney; I had seen more upsets in one day than I had in 2007's entire tournament. Little did I know that Thursday was merely the beginning of a beautiful three weeks. Round two brought more bracket busters, including 11-seed Washington dancing through 3-seed New Mexico to the Sweet 16, 82-64; 6-seed Xavier holding off 3-seed Pittsburgh, 71-68; the aforementioned Saint Mary's upset over 2-seed Villanova; and, what is being called the biggest upset since George Mason over UCONN in 2006, 9-seed Northern Iowa overwhelming 1-seed Kansas with their smothering defense, dethroning the overall number one seed in the tournament, 69-67. It was the first time a 1-seed failed to make it out of the first weekend since Kentucky stumbling to UAB, also a 9-seed, in 2004.

Remember, this is a Jayhawk squad that was a very good team, but not a great team. And they were the TOP SEED in the tournament. And 42.7% of the 4.8 Million brackets entered in ESPN's Tournament Challenge declared Kansas the victor. I even picked Kansas to dance all the way to the National Championship, eventually falling to West Virginia. So, naturally, the very-good-but-not-great top seed couldn't survive the Missouri Valley Champs.

In four short days, March became Mad again. Not one region included all four of its top seeds, and only one - the South Region - involved three of the top four (1-Duke, 3-Baylor and 4-Purdue). In most years, the fun stops after the first weekend and the chalk begins to take over the tourney. Luckily for us, this isn't most years. No Great Team was the smartest thing Bilas has ever said, and he says a lot of smart things.

While 12-seed Cornell couldn't keep up with 1-seed Kentucky (losing 62-45) and 9-seed Northern Iowa came up short against 5-seed Michigan State (falling 59-52), there were two upsets that shocked the Nation almost as much as Northern Iowa: 2-seed Ohio State, with Kansas out of the picture, was the new favorite to cruise through the Midwest Region. So what does Ohio State do? They step up for the fans and allow 6-seed Tennessee sneak away with the win, 76-73.

The big winner was 5-seed Butler's defensive dominance over 1-seed Syracuse, eventually icing the game with clutch free throws, 63-59. The talk all year had been about the Orange's wicked 2-3 zone and how nobody could beat it. Like so many teams in the tourney, Butler proved the experts wrong, hitting virtually every perimeter shot, which subsiquently crippled Jim Boeheim's work of art. The Bulldogs also proved their in-your-face man-to-man defense is a force to be reckoned with.

With two 1-seeds being sent home early, the Elite Eight was set up to be surprisingly intriguing. The Midwest Region was guaranteed to have, at best, a 5-seed as a Final Four participant. Butler was just one win away from being the first team since UCLA in 1962 to play the Final Four in their hometown. The East Region played host to the top two seeds in the region in Kentucky and West Virginia, but neither school had been to the Final Four in the last decade, with the Mountaineers absent since 1959. 3-seed Baylor was playing a virtual home game against 1-seed Duke in the South Region in Houston, with the Bears having returned to the Elite Eight for the first time since 1951 and the Blue Devils back in the Regional Final for the first time since 2004, which, for Duke, is almost as serious a drought as Baylor's extended absence.

As most of you know, when it comes to sports, I'm about as unlucky as a person can get. That's why Saturday turned out to be one of the most special sports days of my short life. Not only did Butler complete their dream of playing at home in the biggest stage, but West Virginia also found a way to take down mighty Kentucky with an impenetrable defense. For those of you who don't know, the Mountaineers are considered my third favorite college basketball team, with Butler sitting pretty as my sixth favorite team. To see both win - to pull off upsets, really - in the same day was one of the most satisfying experiences I can recall. It was a perfect sports day in the World of Cheyne Heiny.

With the Final Four set, I can easily say this is the best tournament, from start to finish, that I have ever witnessed. I also find that painfully ironic if Duke were to cut down the nets next Monday. As an avid Tar Heel fan, how can I possibly say the best March Madness in the history of March Madnesses ended with my archrival hoisting the boring, yet beautiful, NCAA Plaque? That just goes to show you how Mad this March has been. It also seems fitting to me that a Duke boy (Bilas) called this five months ago.

Here's Jay Bilas's take on the Final Four:

Here's Andy Katz's Final Four Primer:

You can't have March Madness without Dickie V, right? Here's his Players to Watch:



I'll have more on the Final Four teams, but for now, congratulations to Michigan State, Butler, Duke and West Virginia for their outstanding seasons and for winning their respective regions.

Possible Expansion

A lot of issues have recently surfaced this month, including a possible expansion of the NCAA Tournament (from 65 teams to 96 teams). Here's an excellent debate by the experts at ESPN:



I'll have much more on this later, including my own opinion.

March Madness Eve

In what has turned out to be the greatest regular season in BYU basketball history, the Cougars' time for a first round victory in the NCAA Tournament is "now or never," according to Salt Lake Tribune's Gordon Monson. And, considering what BYU has done in the past, and what they've accomplished this season, he might be right.

The Cougs finished the season at 29-5, setting a school record in wins (BYU won 28 in 1950-51). This team has the most depth its had in ages, it has a star in Jimmer Fredette that fans in Provo haven't seen since the glorious days of Danny Ainge in the late '70s/early '80s, it has a masterful thief in Jackson Emery, shattering the single-season steals record with 89; Marty Haws held the previous record with 66 thefts in 1989-90. Funny enough, BYU has Marty's son, Tyler, playing the dominant freshman, averaging just over 10 points a game as a greenie.

This is clearly the most well-rounded team the Cougars have had since the mid-'90s; in fact, this team plays better together than the 1992-93 team that last won a game in the NCAA Tournament, beating SMU 80-71. The chemistry between Jimmer, Jackson, Tyler Haws, Jonathan Tavernari, Chris Miles, Noah Hartsock, Brandon Davies, Charles Abouo, Michael Lloyd Jr, Lamont Morgan Jr, James Anderson, Brock Zylstra and Logan Magnusson is as good as I have ever seen in any team; for me, it rivals the '07 Rockies, when they stormed their way to the World Series. If the Rox could win 21 out of 22 to make the Fall Classic, then why can't BYU win four straight to find themselves Dancing in Indy? With the way the bracket is set up this year, it's a decent possibility.

Here's Bracketologist Joe Lunardi's preview on BYU:



Here are some other articles/columns regarding BYU and their chances at making a deep run:

Pat Forde's Best/Worst Case Scenarios for all 64 teams.

Pat Forde's Forde Minutes: March Madness Edition. Both of Forde's articles are definitely WORTH READING! He is a hilarious columnist, and these are usually my favorite annual articles to read before the Madness.

Video Preview of West Region:



Bracketologist Joe Lunardi reveals his tourney bracket:

Eamonn Brennan's Five Bold Predictions.

Andy Katz's Breakdown of the West Region.

As you can see, I'm crazy excited about MARCH MADNESS starting tomorrow! In a lot of ways, it's a good thing BYU's the first game of the weekend, mainly because I don't have to stress about them while watching all the other games. Win or lose, I'm ready for a great game against Florida tomorrow!

With the BYU talk all out of the way, here's a look at my bracket:

MIDWEST REGION:

First Round:

1) Kansas over 16) Vermont
9) Northern Iowa over 8) UNLV
5) Michigan State over 12) New Mexico State
4) Maryland over 13) Houston
11) San Diego State over 6) Tennessee
3) Georgetown over 14) Ohio
7) Oklahoma State over 10) Georgia Tech
2) Ohio State over 15) UC-Santa Barbara

Second Round:

1) Kansas over 9) Northern Iowa
5) Michigan State over 4) Maryland
3) Georgetown over 11) San Diego State
2) Ohio State over 7) Oklahoma State

Sweet 16:

1) Kansas over 5) Michigan State
2) Ohio State over 3) Georgetown

Elite Eight:

1) Kansas over 2) Ohio State

WEST REGION:

First Round:

1) Syracuse over 16) Vermont
8) Gonzaga over 9) Florida State
5) Butler over 12) UTEP
13) Murray State over 4) Vanderbilt
6) Xavier over 11) Minnesota
3) Pittsburgh over 14) Oakland
7) BYU over 10) Florida
2) Kansas State over 15) North Texas

Second Round:

1) Syracuse over 8) Gonzaga
5) Butler over 13) Murray State
6) Xavier over 3) Pittsburgh
7) BYU over 2) Kansas State

Sweet 16:

1) Syracuse over 5) Butler
7) BYU over 6) Xavier

Elite Eight:

1) Syracuse over 7) BYU

EAST REGION:

First Round:

1) Kentucky over 16) East Tennessee State
8) Texas over 9) Wake Forest
12) Cornell over 5) Temple
4) Wisconsin over 13) Wofford
6) Marquette over 11) Washington
3) New Mexico over 14) Montana
10) Missouri over 7) Clemson
2) West Virginia over 15) Morgan State

Second Round:

1) Kentucky over 8) Texas
4) Wisconsin over 12) Cornell
3) New Mexico over 6) Marquette
2) West Virginia over 10) Missouri

Sweet 16:

4) Wisconsin over 1) Kentucky
2) West Virginia over 3) New Mexico

Elite Eight:

2) West Virginia over 4) Wisconsin

SOUTH REGION:

First Round:

1) Duke over 16) Arkansas-Pine Bluff
8) California over 9) Louisville
5) Texas A&M over 12) Utah State
4) Purdue over 13) Siena
6) Notre Dame over 11) Old Dominion
3) Baylor over 14) Sam Houston State
7) Richmond over 10) Saint Mary's
2) Villanova over 15) Robert Morris

Second Round:

1) Duke over 8) California
5) Texas A&M over 4) Purdue
3) Baylor over 6) Notre Dame
2) Villanova over 7) Richmond

Sweet 16:

5) Texas A&M over 1) Duke
3) Baylor over 2) Villanova

Elite Eight:

3) Baylor over 5) Texas A&M

FINAL FOUR:

1) Kansas over 1) Syracuse
2) West Virginia over 3) Baylor

NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP:

2) WEST VIRGINIA OVER 1) KANSAS

WEST VIRGINIA MOUNTAINEERS are your 2010 NCAA CHAMPIONS!

Well, there you have it; I was forced not to pick my beloved Tar Heels to win it all, as they suffered their worst season under Roy Williams. So what do I do? I pick my 3rd favorite team, West Virginia, to hoist the NCAA Plaque (see picture).



64 teams. 3 BEAUTIFUL WEEKS of Madness. 4 Region Champs in Indy. 1 Champion. ONE SHINING MOMENT.

As for me, the search for the Perfect Bracket continues...

YES!!!!!!

MARCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Finally, the BEST month of the year is here! The next 31 days are like Christmas for me, starting off nicely with a new Bracketology, Bubble Watch, Top 25 Rankings, and finding out New Mexico head coach Steve Alford received a reprimand for cursing at BYU's Jonathan Tavernari. I would say that Alford needs to show more class, but, with his record, it's like telling me to stop watching sports.

Anywho, that's my tiny rant about the disaster that was Sautrday. I might talk about more of it when the pain desists; that is, if it ever does.

So, back to why March is so perfect...I've thought about the Ide(al)s of March ever since I was a senior at Wheat Ridge, and I've successfully been able to brew up a list of 10 Masterful March Moments:

10) Increasingly Warm Weather
-Bitterness becomes brightness as February turns to March. Aside from the occasional 10-foot watered-down blizzard, March is a clear sign of spring!
9) World Baseball Classic
-Although it is now featured every 4 years, it brings a new addition to the game: International Camaraderie.
8) Outdoor Track
-Back in high school, this was always a great thing to look forward to; I felt like I was being let out of a cage in the form of Indoor Track/winter running.
7) St Patrick's Day
-I don't care how silly of a holiday it is, it has always been one of the best, and I honestly have no idea why.
6) Spring Break
-It's nice to have a week off of school, sure, but Spring Break usually meant Tucson or Disney World, which always made it one excellent week off.
5) Shamrock Shakes
-This might be the main reason why St Patty's Day is so amazing. Shamrock Shakes are quite possibly the greatest thing to happen to liquids since the discovery of drinking water.
4) Conference Tournaments
-This is why March Madness starts two weeks early for me: 347 teams in 32 conferences deperately fighting for a ticket to dance.
3) State High School Basketball Tournament
-Probably the longest on-going tradition in my family. I've gone every year since - I think - 1988. I'm pretty bummed I'm missing it this year.
2) Spring Training
-Hope springs eternal. Spring Training is a fresh start. It's fantasizing about a World Series ring in October, regardless of how talented the team is; that's how unpredictable baseball really is.
1) MARCH MADNESS
-Does it really need an explanation? No, but I'm gonna give one anyway. It is the greatest postseason of any kind in any sport in the World. Pat Forde of ESPN once stated that the Dance was "exactly one micro-element away from human perfection." To me, it is human perfection.

CLOSE!!!

ALMOST.....

SOOO

ITS......

New Life, Second Chance, Redemption

Call it what you want to call it, but that's what the Provo Experiment is quickly turning out to be. In high school, I was lazy and took way too much for granted. At home, I felt like I was stuck in the middle of nowhere; couldn't look back to my "glory days" and couldn't motivate myself to move to the future. Until one brilliant day working back at Dick's.

I remember thinking, almost panicking, about having virtually no chance at a career that I was, and still am, dying to pursue. Every option running through my head ended with receiving some sort of higher education. I realized, as I was greeting customers through the south doors, that it was high time to actually DO something about it!

I had considered moving to my friends' house in Ft Collins, but quickly retracted my thought process, knowing that the Fort would most likely have the same sad ending as my Lakewood life.

That's when the idea of moving to Utah crossed my mind. It wasn't the first time I've thought about living in Utah; in fact, I foolishly convinced myself I would be running for BYU in '06. It was a great dream, sure, but you actually have to put in a great deal of effort to even be considered at an elite, private school like the Y.

Through the rest of that agonizingly slow Sunday in February, I mapped out a plan of going to a two year college with every intention of transferring to BYU with my Associates.

After an informative talk with my parents, however, I ultimately decided on attending Utah Valley University and, depending on my experience, decide to become a Cougar.

It took an entire year before I could actually act on this new plan of mine, but, alas, that year has come and gone and I now no longer call 3OH3 home. I feel somewhat accomplished at finally reaching one of the many goals I have given myself, which leads me to believe that I have truly turned a corner in my time-to-grow-up stage.

I'm sure almost all of you know, but I wanted to move to Provo, above all the other reasons, to be around people who cherish the same morals and values as I do. It's not that I'll like you less if you party hard, I'm fine with people who drink, smoke, do heroin, etc. Just kidding about the heroin, don't do heroin, kids! But honestly, if that's what you want to do, then that's what you want to do, I understand that, maybe better than you know.

With that being said, I didn't want to constantly put myself into the "Designated Driver" position, so Provo was the easy choice for my new life, so to speak. Every time I mentioned moving to Provo to my friends and family, they would tease me about moving to "The Bubble," obviously meaning the presence of so many LDS kids tends to cut you off from the Real World.

If there's a proverbial bubble over Provo, then there must be a pretty darn big proverbial hole somewhere, because with what I've seen so far (which, admittiedly, is not much), it seems like a fairly normal college town to me. Well, not counting the drinking, smoking, etc., but you get my point. I was expecting this aura of haughtiness, this general understanding of "We're BYU students, we're the best, most righteous, most holy of all other kids." I have quickly realized, though, that if you have the right attitude towards people here, then you don't notice any kind of self-righteous atmosphere. If you're nice to them, they'll be nice to you. I truly believe it's that simple.

While I'm feeling more at home now that I have finally moved in to a nice condo, there have still been some downsides to the Experiment. First, I put a lot of trust into somebody I shouldn't have trusted from the start and, had I not bolted from my last apartment, could have turned into a wicked bad deal for me, most likely resutling in a hefty bill that would have been quite difficult for me to pay.

I've also been working hard, almost too hard, at trying to make friends with a particular group, mainly because I had these grand expectations of something working out in my favor with someone in the group. But, as I learned on Thursday, with high expectations comes a higher risk of falling short, and, more often that not, there's not one thing you could have done to have prevented yourself from falling.

Even with a couple minor hiccups, things have been great so far in Provo. A big reason why it has, up to this point, been an easy transition is the unflinching help of my family members, most notably the Leamings, for letting me stay at their house until the whole contract situation was under control, and Kimbot, for letting me crash at her place whenever I needed a place to sleep. I can't thank you guys enough!

I just got an overwhelming feeling that I know this is where I want to be; not just where I want to be, but where I need to be. I have full confidence in my decision to move to Provo and I am more than grateful for the opportunity to be out here.

I Love Mondays

No, this is not a joke.

I think I might be the only kid in the Universe who actually loves Mondays. But I do, I eagerly look forward to the start of the week more than any other day, even more so during the months of January and February, which sounds disgusting, I know. I mean, how could anyone actually enjoy the idea of waking up at the crack of dawn after a tantalizingly short two days to yourself? For me, it's simple, really. It all comes down to three phrases: Top 25, Bubble Watch, and one of my two all-time favorite words...BRACKETOLOGY.

Every Monday, ESPN issues a new Top 25 in College Basketball and, usually beginning its weekly showing at the start of the new year, Joe Lunardi unveils his 65-team bracket. Those two gorgeous gems are enough to send shivers down my spine, but, in pure, vintage ESPN, they don't stop there; oh no, they know how to serve the luscious dessert to complete the engorging three course meal for college basketball crazies both young and old: Bubble Watch.

Bubble Watch does exactly what it states (for those of you who might not understand this phrase, college basketball calls its fringe teams "teams on the bubble"); it simply keeps a close eye on the bubble teams around the nation. This season is indeed a very bubbly season (It's 2 in the morning, and I'm having too much fun coming up with corny phrases, so...I'll try and be less corny, but I make no guarantees!).

It seems like no bubble teams want to step up this year. Actually, check that, it seems like NO TEAM wants to elevate its game to make a run at the beautifully boring NCAA Championship Plaque. Unlike previous years, no team is dominating its respective conference, with the possible exception of low-to-mid major teams win in weak conferences (i.e. Butler @ 11-0 in Horizon, Siena @ 10-0 in MAAC...two conferences who will not receive multiple bids).

And to make matters even crazier, two of last season's Final Four teams (North Carolina and UCONN) and the Number 1 Overall Seed (Louisville) are in serious danger of missing the tourney. I can honestly say I have NEVER seen three dominant programs stumble so fast in 10 short months. And this doesn't even include UCLA, or the entire Pac-10 Conference, for that matter.

Traditionally, the Pac-10 is the most respected conference in College Basketball. No other conference owns more National Championships than the West Coast Powers. As great as the Pac-10 has been, that's how bad they are this season. Every team has suffered what I like to call a Beautiful Tragedy (phrase stolen from an excellent song by In This Moment); for example, USC, who owned the best chance of receiving an at-large bid to the dance heading into conference play, was put on probabtion for violating NCAA rules involving recruiting. Part of their probation is to forgo any postseason play this year. UCLA, like virtually every other western team, lost immense talent to the circus (formally known as the NBA). Cal and Washington were ranked in the preseason, but simply forgot how to win in the regular season. Ironically, the current co-leader of the Pac-10, Arizona, lost at San Diego State, at home to UNLV and at home, BY 30, to BYU. All three victors over the Wildcats are sitting in the upper echelon of the Mountain West Conference and two of the three will most likely be dancing come March.

It has been the wildest regular season that my tiny brain can remember, but it's been a magical season - so far - for BYU, who survived a scare over the summer involving their head coach, Dave Rose. Rose was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in June, but miraculously defeated its deadly opponent within a few months. The Cougars have clearly rallied around Rose, which has them sitting pretty at 21-1 and looking at a possible 3 Seed come Selection Sunday.

Above all the craziness, BYU's excellent play has me most excited for the next Monday to arrive. So, like I said before, I LOVE MONDAYS.

Which brings me to another memory...

So during Christmas Break, my Uncle, Aunt and their kids came out to Denver to spend the holidays with us. On Christmas Eve, as we were wrapping up the evening, my Uncle Ray and I saw that Southern Methodist was playing Nevada in a Bowl Game (Football, for those who needed the reminder), which brought us to our discussion on how SMU had not made a Bowl Game in (I think) 25 years, mainly due to major NCAA infractions on recruiting, which also brought us to the memorable 1980 Holiday Bowl, where BYU stormed back from a 26-point 4th quarter deficit to win on a Hail Mary from Cougar legend Jim McMahon, 46-45. In the college football world, it is deemed as the greatest comeback in Bowl history.

Once our reminiscing was over (and yes, I realize that I actually wasn't alive when this classic was played, but that doesn't mean I can't appreciate its greatness, right?), my mom turned to Ray and asked, somewhat incredulously, "How do you remember all that?". That's when my 11-year old cousin, Jamen, turns to me and demands, "How do YOU know all of that?!" I laughed for a good five minutes after that. This is what being a sports freak will do to you, Jamen. You remember the craziest things, even if you weren't alive when it happened.

Here are the highlights of that INCREDIBLE game!

My mind is crazy!

So while watching the BYU-UTEP game tonight (Cougars won, 83-77, and are off to their best start - 16-1 - since they started 17-0 during the 1987-88 season), I recognized Charles Abouo for a wicked defensive rebound, but I didn't call him Abouo; instead, I yelled (yes, I yell at the TV while watching my favorite teams...are you surprised?) "NICE work Luongo!" I immediately knew I totally screwed up Abouo's name, and it kinda bummed me out, because, when it comes to sports, I NEVER mess up a name, ESPECIALLY when that athlete is on my favorite team. So after kicking myself for that little screwup, I googled Luongo - Roberto Luongo, actually, because I somehow knew this guy's name was Roberto - and discovered that Roberto Luongo is the goalie for the Vancouver Canucks! Yes, I follow hockey, but only the standings and line scores for Avs games. So that brings me to the conclusion: How the HELL did I know Roberto Luongo??

Shoulda been a Hawk

It seems as if I have possibly made the wrong decision in picking a college. I thought UVU would be a great pick, but it appears I have been mistaken; indeed, I should have chosen Saint Joseph's University. Why? They provide an online course named THE FUNDAMENTALS OF BRACKETOLOGY, which is, naturally, taught by Joe Lunardi, the founder of Bracketology and one of the key staples in my aspirations to become a Bracketologist. Check it out!