March Madness: Embrace the underdog within
Most everyone can associate with being an underdog at some point in their lives. Whether it was being bron into a tough situation, or playing on an athletic team that wasn’t expected to win, or maybe getting into a scuffle after school with a bully, we’ve all been there.
Over the rest of this week, we will see that same underdog feeling play out across eight different cities and 64 teams, with kids and schools from around the country competing for a chance to advance in the NCAA Tournament. For most of us, this is one of the great times in American sport. We get introduced to new characters across the landscape, ranging from athletes to coaches.
Everyone old enough to remember a few tournaments has specific memories. For me, it will always be the run into the Final Four by No. 11 George Mason back in 2006. Then there were the consecutive National Championship Games appearances by the mid-major Butler Bulldogs.
Regardless of your age, everyone can reach back to a kid or team that inspired them, that glued them to the television set. It doesn’t always have to be a small school, either. Just ask the 1983 North Carolina State Wolfpack or the 1985 Villanova Wildcats. Yes, underdogs come in all shapes and sizes.
Unless you have a rooting interest in one of the blue-blood schools like Kentucky or UCLA, this is all about getting a chance to watch dreams made for kids who will likely never see the NBA. How could you not be pulling for a team like UNC Wilmington or Middle Tennessee, schools that are comprised of veteran players hoping for one last chance to make it into the Sweet 16 and perhaps beyond.
Frankly, there is very little exciting to the normal fan about Purdue taking on Oklahoma. Yet there is something to be said when Winthrop and Wichita State advance, while the drama builds with each victory over a more high-profile foe.
Come Thursday (don’t try and sell the nonsense of those four games in Dayton), we will finally have what we’ve all been waiting for since the last NCAA Tournament ended. Nothing beats that Thursday and Friday, with games going on throughout the afternoon and evening, while brackets all over America are being carefully watched to see who is going to win that office pool. After those two breathtaking days are complete, we’ll have seen 32 contests, with 32 teams remaining for another 16 games over the weekend. Now that’s sports. That’s college basketball.
It’s March. It’s Madness. Bring it on.
