Brackets

For those otherwise unaware, the NCAA Men's Basketball Playoffs are currently happening. March Madness is in full swing, and people from sports analysts (not me) to people with zero interest otherwise in college basketball (that would be me) have filled out brackets, trying to guess who will win every game throughout the entire series. It's certainly not an easy thing to guess, and very, very, VERY few people actually end up getting all (or even most) of the picks right along the way.

I've developed my own strategy for filling out my bracket every year. Here are the steps.
  • In tribute to my undying love for my home state, if the Indiana Hoosiers are on the bracket, I click them through all the way to winning the championship.
  • I then click through any schools I've started cheering for through my times of moving around, such as the Michigan State Spartans, North Dakota State Bison, and Minnesota Golden Gophers, if they happen to be on the bracket, up until the point where they would play each other or Indiana. The Hoosiers win those contests by default, and then it's whoever I like the most at the time.
  • I make sure the Michigan Wolverines lose in the first round if they're on the bracket.
  • If I happen to hear about teams that do exceptionally well (without looking at the seeding numbers), or I remember hearing about a team that's almost always good, I then click them through (usually Duke, though I hate to admit it).
  • Finally, I go through the undecided games and just pick whoever I think is cooler. This step often ends up making changes to the previous step (I still want Duke to lose), but not generally to the first three steps.
These steps led to the creation of my amazingly titled "Hoosier Daddy" bracket this year. Unfortunately, the title is about the only amazing thing about it. At the midpoint of the second round, only two of my Final Four picks remain. Fortunately, the two remaining in that round are the two I picked to go all the way - the Kansas Jayhawks and the Indiana Hoosiers. Michigan State and Cincinnati didn't want to do me any favors this year I guess.

Life in general is at least as unpredictable as a tournament bracket. The only thing constant in life is change, and the only thing that doesn't change is God Himself. I'm so glad my eternal hope is found in Him and not a bunch of college kids shooting hoops!

Whatever you're doing this month, I hope you enjoy it. May you find God ever faithful, and may your bracket be ever unbusted.

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