Bobby Knight, of all people, has decided to give a little St. Patty’s Day gift to wishful-thinking Yinzers. While many an ESPN analyst went safe and picked a plethora of 1 seeds to reach the Final Four, Mr. Knight went against the grain and picked the red-hot Pitt Panthers.
And not just to reach the Final Four. He has Jamie Dixon’s squad winning it all.
Holy shit.
Now, “expert” opinions on matters such as March Madness mean absolutely nothing. It baffles me how guys can make a career out of made-up words like “Bracketology.” Just because some talking head picks a certain team to win a certain game…it doesn’t mean its going to happen. However, it blew my mind that someone…anyone…picked the Panthers to win it all.
I mean…that used to be MY deal.
I was the asshole who picked Pitt to win it all every year, because I didn’t want to be the douche who picks against his hometown team in the year that they win it all. How bad does that make you look when you picked some bullshit SEC school just because they had the flashy record/conference. I’d always pencil Pitt into the final, just to avoid circumstances such as these.
That changed last year, when I rode Acie Law’s Texas A&M squad to another upsetting bracket.
And this year, I picked my field before this Bobby Knight news came out. I don’t waste time analyzing matchups and all that noise. Like I said, there’s no way to pinpoint what teams are going to get upset. I had my bracket filled out immediately after the field was released. I have no idea who North Carolina is playing in their first round game (the winner of a play-in game between two eventual losers), but I know the Tar Heels are moving on. I keep it simple, and stick with what I think is going to happen.
With that being said…I have Pitt losing in the Sweet 16. Didn’t see that coming, didja? As good as the team has looked in the Big East Tourney, and as much as I want them (and have faith that they can) win it all, I can’t be that asshole again.
My Final Four: NC, Kansas, Texas, UCLA.
Final: UCLA: 86, NC: 80.
But I hope Bobby Knight is dead-on. Click the below link to see my bracket.
PSaMP’s Bracket. [Deadspin Pants Party Group via ESPN] (Can only be viewed after March 20th)
P.S. I have UConn losing in the first round. Because I can’t stand Calhoun, and San Diego looks pretty athletic.
UPDATE: My bracket is below. I use the same bracket everywhere, and this one is from Facebook. Click to make it bigger.
