As we spring ahead our clocks, March Madness is creeping that much closer to tip-off. While everyone starts to put the finishing touches on one of their 5 brackets in 3 different pools, do we ever stop and think that no matter how many of these damn things we do we’re still going to have so many gaping holes?

If only we could combine all five for one super bracket. Well for myself and the million others I think that is part of the beauty of this madness.

When the 2010 brackets came out there were a few things that came to mind. First off I think the committee did a great job picking the tourney this year. For those that were left out in the Alaskan cold I can’t say it’s the committee’s fault.

To the three saddest teams in America: Virginia Tech, Mississippi State and Arizona State, I looked over your resume and I can only give Miss. State the benefit of the doubt on this one. They played Kentucky into OT twice and have three wins against teams in the tournament Old Dominion, Vanderbilt, and Florida.

Arizona State you went 12-6 in the weakest power conference, which isn’t bad, but you only beat Washington and Arkansas Pine Bluff and even though you played a great non-conference schedule you lost to all three of those tournament bound teams. So in my mind the best place for you was the NIT.

Virginia Tech who I thought was the biggest snub at first but when digging deeper saw that your best non-conference win was Seton Hall who is an NIT team and of your three quality wins against tournament foes, none of those teams are higher than a No. 7 seed. The two teams in question that made it from the ACC ahead of you Georgia Tech and Wake Forest both have five wins against tournament bound teams and have beaten much better teams like Duke, Maryland, and Butler.

Now on to the actual bracket without a second glance its seems obvious to me which No. 1 seed got a cake walk of draw and which one got stuck fighting off the wolves of the pack.

The #1 overall seed Kansas has got to deal with Ohio State, Georgetown, Maryland, Michigan State, and Tennessee. I name Tennessee because even though they are a sixth seed they have beaten Kansas and Kentucky and have a great coach in Bruce Pearl. Michigan State is the toughest No. 5 seed I can remember because who wants to face Tom Izzo and the always dangerous Spartans.

If you don’t know ask Uconn, Louisville, and Kansas last year. Oh by the way you also have two very capable final four teams in Ohio St. and Georgetown. Ohio St has the best player in the country in Evan Turner and Hoyas have great inside and outside presence. The Hoyas have been streaky this year but when their playing well they can beat anyone at any time. They dominated Duke and have beaten Syracuse, Villanova, and lost by only two points in the Big East Championship game to West Virginia.

The opposite of this bracket is the South region where the Duke Blue Devils sit as the #1 seed. I feel like Dick Vitale made up this region. Dickey V has quite the man crush on the Blue Devil’s program and has for years. Villanova who has lost 5 of their last 7 games is the No. 2 seed. Baylor who is the three seed is a good team that only has two bad loses all year, but there still the Baylor Bears and this is a stage that their not accustomed to being on.

The fourth seed Purdue is about as sorry as a No. 4 seed can get since they lost their second leading scorer and defensive leader Robbie Hummel to injury. They have look lackluster since that injury barely beating the bottom feeders of the Big Ten and then got blown out by Minnesota by 27 in the Big Ten Tourney.

My picks from the sweet sixteen on go a little like this.

In the Midwest I like Kansas, Michigan State, Georgetown and Ohio St. No surprises here these are the best teams in the bracket and I’ll take Tom Izzo’s five final fours over Maryland’s squad even though I feel they are pretty evenly matched.

Izzo’s magic is no secret come tournament time. From here I do like Kansas and Ohio St. advancing. The Jayhawks just have too much firepower this year and will be looking for revenge after the Spartans ended their season last year in heartbreaking fashion. Ohio St. and Georgetown is a tossup and I’ll use my Midwest biases here and take the Buckeyes. In the Elite 8 matchup I have to go with the Depth and star power of the Jayhawks to beat the Buckeyes.

In the West I like Syracuse, Butler, Xavier, and Kansas State. Butler played a difficult non-conference schedule winning some games losing others but were in every game and then went undefeated in conference play. I think the winner of their first round matchup with UTEP makes the sweet sixteen. Xavier I like upsetting Pittsburgh because although they started slow they’ve been playing better in an underrated Atlantic 10 conference and Xavier has always been a tough outcome tournament time. I like Syracuse and Kansas State Advancing with Syracuse making it to the Final four joining the Jayhawks.

In the East bracket I like Kentucky, Wisconsin, Marquette, and West Virginia. Kentucky should handle the defense of the badgers pretty easily with their athletic ability. In a Big East matchup for the second time this season I think West Virginia beats Marquette in a tight game and heads to Syracuse to face Kentucky. In this Elite 8 matchup I like the Mountaineers Offensive rebounding and experience to upset the young Kentucky Wildcats. Sorry John Calipari, I just don’t see your freshman sensations getting it done against the tenacity of the Big East tournament champs West Virginia.

In the South Bracket I like Duke, Texas A&M, Richmond, and Baylor. I like the Aggies here to upset Duke with their solid defense and ability to get to the free throw line. I have not been high on Duke all year and feel the ACC was the second weakest power conference in America and think that they will get bounced in the round of 16.

I like Baylor to advance also to the Elite 8 in nearby Houston by beating 7th seeded Richmond in a close contest. I love Richmond’s team and their A-10 player of the year Chris Anderson but I think playing so close to home for Baylor is a huge factor in advancing this round. I like Baylor beating Texas A&M in a Big 12 clash and advancing to their first final four in school history.

My Final Four I like West Virginia beating Baylor and Kansas upending Syracuse. In the Finals I think the best team in the tourney survives and Bill Self brings home the title for the Jayhawks.

My Sleeper teams that could make some NOISE!

Richmond 7 seed
UTEP 12 seed
Siena 13 seed
BYU 7th seed

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax™

Previously published in Baseball Digest Daily on August 22, 2008.

DETROIT – Witnessing the demolition of Detroit’s historic ballpark, Tiger Stadium, is like attending the burial of a loved one. While we cannot stop death from consuming one’s final breath and beat of a heart, we can never allow it to pilfer the memories.

At the corner of Michigan and Trumbull, demolition experts and heavy machinery continue to flatten Tiger Stadium, one beam and support at a time. Those bulldozers may rip the concrete and riveted steel girders out of that structure and bury it in a nearby landfill, but it will never purge the heart and soul out of that ballpark.

Tiger Stadium has done more than was ever asked of it. It provided the hard-working, blue-collar fans of Detroit a place to escape from the stresses of their physically-demanding jobs at the steel mills and auto assembly lines.

Though ancient, rusting and long-outdated, it withstood decades of punishing winters and the wear and tear of millions of fans stomping in it’s aisles over the years.

While preservation groups and a few politicians continue their efforts to stop the complete demolition of the stadium and convert a portion of it into a museum, the wrecking ball continues to dismantle the historic landmark.

Before the stadium is reduced to a final shovel of dust, it is a great time to reminisce about our experiences there.

The first game I ever attended at Tiger Stadium was on a sunny Saturday afternoon. Donning my full baseball uniform with ball glove in hand and chomping on an oversized wad of baseball card bubble gum, I accompanied my Little League baseball team to a game against the Minnesota Twins.

The area near the ticket windows felt like a disaster scene to a scrawny eight-year-old, like me. People scurried around like ants, bumping into each other, trying to gain position and make their way to the ticket windows and into the stadium. I felt like a human pinball but somehow managed to stay connected to my group.

Once inside, I bee-lined straight to the hotdog vendor where I quickly learned Mom did not make the best hotdogs. There was something about those Ballpark Franks at Tiger Stadium. They seemed to plump more when they cooked ‘em.

The journey through the short tunnel to our right field seats was almost surreal. Hustling through that corridor seeing only the blue sky, I couldn’t wait to get a full view of the park.

As I made my way to the end of that tunnel I saw the most extraordinary image I had ever seen; like Dorothy stepping out of a black & white world into one full of vibrant colors in her Land of Oz. The blue skies, vast field of vibrant green and borders of perfectly manicured dirt has left a lifelong impression etched in my mind.

Tiger Stadium provided many memories for Detroiters over the years; most notably the 1968 dramatic comeback World Series win over the St. Louis Cardinals and the record-setting Tiger team of 1984 led by World Series MVP Alan Trammell and Kirk Gibson.

It’s amazing how some of these images remain as clear as if they happened yesterday . . . Norm Cash crushing the leather off the ball, sending another one over the right-field roof and onto Trumbull Street . . . Mark “The Bird” Fidrych pacing the mound like a maniac, having full-on conversations with the ball triggering a roar of approval from 53,000 screaming fans.

Many hard-working blue-collar families in the Motor City took advantage of “Family Night” games at Tiger Stadium. On Family Night, the head of the household would pay $3.50 for a reserved upper deck seat down the third baseline then only .50 cents apiece for the remaining tickets.

That’s $6.00 to take a family of six to a MLB game and the product was outstanding with baseball icons Al Kaline, Norm Cash, Willie Horton and Denny McClain in the lineup. Family Nights were the only time I remember my father refusing overtime on the docks.

Many of us remember Tiger Stadium being the home of the Detroit Lions back when the team and fans endured the weather conditions, playing outdoors on natural grass, like the game is meant to be played.

Three layers of clothing many times was no match for the frigid Canadian winds that blew off the Detroit River on some of those December Sundays. The only heat provided during those games was the body heat of the thousands of devoted Lions fans packed shoulder-to-shoulder in their seats.

Peering through a steady cloud of cold breath, hot chocolates in hand, the fans survived those frigid afternoons and many of us learned at an early age what being a loyal, die-hard Lion fan was all about.

While the crews rip apart and haul away the remaining twisted steel and concrete we should reflect on the treasured memories provided by Tiger Stadium.

Like loved ones who have passed on, Tiger Stadium has been a huge part of many of our lives . . . and like loved ones, the memories will survive forever.