March Madness

I really had no intention of writing any post related to the NCAA Tournament.  In fact, I didn’t even fill out a bracket this year.  This is the first time I haven’t done a bracket in probably five years.  I rarely do well on my brackets because I love picking the underdog.  And let’s face it, rarely does the underdog come out on top.

Except for last year.  Butler University’s Bulldogs had an outstanding and exciting run.  The past few years my alma mater has not even made it to the dance, so I have to pick someone else to root for.  I’ll admit it; I jumped on the Butler bandwagon.  But seriously, is there any better feeling than watching the team that no once expected to advance come out on top over and over again?  The tournament is not like regular season games.  If you lose a regular season game, there’s always another one to play.  With the tournament, you’ve only got one shot (well, not literally…haha, I’m a comedienne).

I decided I was not going to get sucked into March Madness this year.  But I live in the midwest and it’s called March Madness for a reason.  After Butler eked out a last second win at the buzzer on Thursday, I of course had to start rooting for them again.  Tonight’s game was another nail-biter, and as the leads were never much more than a handful of points, I reminded myself of why I try not to get invested in a team.  It’s an emotional roller coaster!  I find myself feeling nervous, elated, angry and excited as if I were actually playing.  And if the team I’m following ends up losing, I am depressed.  I might even cry a little.  It’s too late, though.  I’m once again hooked.

Assuming Butler wins the next game, we will be in New Orleans when the game after that is played.  How cool will that be?  Not that we’ll actually get to go to the game, but we’ll be there for the excitement and celebration.  Maybe the mascot, a bulldog named Blue 2, will get to go to the Sweet Sixteen.  (By the way, Blue 2 is on Twitter and he’s hilarious and awesome…@butlerblue2).

Are you following the Madness?  Is your team still alive?  If not, who are you cheering for now?  I say go for the underdog!