I’m here at my desk with a blank NCAA tourney bracket in front of me prepping for victory in the office pool. Admittedly I am not a basketball fan until March at which time I just like to be rowdy and competitive (go figure). Here’s my criteria for picking teams:
- Is it a Cincinnati team? If yes, choose that team to win. This year, Xavier will be the miracle team and beat Gonzaga.
- Have I been to that city or state before? If yes, choose that team to win. It’s a good thing I’m well traveled or only Midwestern teams would win! As is I have Washington, Nevada, LSU, UNC, California, UCLA, etc. going on.
- Is one of my friends from the city or state? If yes, pass them on. While they’re ranked #2 anyway, I passed Texas on for Trey J., #5 George Washington for Kenny, and #4 Illinois for Jamie C.
- ** NEW FOR THIS YEAR ** Do I have a friend with the team location as part of their name? That’s how Marquette got moved on thanks to Anne Marquette.
- Are there any cool letters that I like to write, specifically G, Y, Z, X, or K? Full speed ahead Arizona, Georgetown, etc. Exception to this rule is if an item above takes precedent. So, with sadness, I did not move Gonzaga through even though they have the best name in the tournament.
A science? Admittedly not. But, in 2003 it banked me $72 in winning in the office pool which has funded my participation for the following 6 years! :)
8 comments:
Arizona all the way!!! Of course I'm biased since I went there, but..........
You're hilarious... I hope OSU does something good. They've had a pretty good year so far. Too bad they are practicing right now or I'd be there just for the fun of it... not to mention it's free.
You are the only person that I know who would actually spend time coming up with such strategy and actually write it down! Who chooses teams based on "cool letters I like to write"!?!?!
By the way, I laughed out loud as I read this post because I can actually picture/hear you explaining it all and the thought process behind it!
Good thing you forgot that I'm from Wisconsin... because UW-Milwaukee won today, and Wisconsin will win tomorrow. Plus you picked Marquette, but for other reasons.
I follow a very similar strategy and so I picked Oklahoma to go the the finals. I know lots of people from there. Unfortunatly they got their ass kicked today. I still have hope with Duke as my winner. But I also picked my bracket on whether I liked the school's name. I was also sad not to pick Gonzaga, what a great name, but I had to stay faithful to Ohio teams...even if Xavier SUCKS! LOL!
I have heard of some quirky methods behind pool-picking, but you take the cake! You crack me up. Odd, how the people with the quirkiest methods, or least knowledge, tend to do the best. But be the lack of analysis.
That's just as good of a system as what the guys on ESPN use, except they waste a lot more time and energy on it!
I usually like to pick upsets, but for whatever reason I didn't this year. The brackets are weird, anyway.
Post a Comment