Rule number one about filling out your NCAA Tournament bracket is to never, ever talk sh*t. As sure as you might be about your college basketball knowledge, recent years have proved that there are few absolute truths come tourney time. The games will be chaotic, and the word “upset” will be a buzzword for the next three weeks.
And that is why we love March Madness.
The most exciting tournament in American sports is finally set to tip, with the announcement of this year’s field of 68. A look at the teams given a ticket to the dance, and the committee seems to have done yet another good job of promoting the deserving (Louisville is the most dangerous team in the nation this year, despite the relative lack of hype when compared to Indiana or Kansas) and omitting the teams that weren’t quite good enough (sorry, Kentucky).
Click to enlarge. Download a printable file by clicking here.
Little else needs to be said. Get ready for three very unproductive weeks at work, red and green ink, frustration, elation and every emotion in between. And, naturally, feel free to hype up your squad if your team made it this year.
Who will be this year’s Cinderella? Who’ll be the bracket-busters? Your Final Four?
Grab a printable bracket (download the PDF here) and get your games in order. Make your predictions in the comments section but be mindful of your words. Unlike your bracket, whatever you say there can’t be easily erased and could very well come back to haunt you.