5 Bracket Scenarios: Which is Most Intriguing???

Plenty of scenarios have come up lately from major media outlets this week in relation to brackets and the overall madness we have in March, including:

-2 Big East matchups BEFORE the regional finals (CBS)
-Sticking it to sound reasoning and filling our your bracket in 64 seconds (CNNSI)
-A truly wide-open tournament in which even Kansas, Syracuse, Duke, and Kentucky are far from locks to advance deep into the bracket (Yahoo!)
-BYU, who hasn't won a two tournament games in one postseason since 1981, is potentially Elite Eight bound. (ESPN)

Chalk city, right? No? Tell us YOUR sleeper. And please, no 2 or 3-seed sleepers.
Credit: None needed. It's a picture of chalk.

Nevertheless, I have 5 scenarios of my own I'd like to throw out there...

1) Is it completely unrealistic to believe that the Big East can put in two, three, or (gasp!) even four teams into the Final Four. Take that 1985! Syracuse is the 1-seed in the West (Onuaku's health a MAJOR factor), Georgetown is a lethal 3-seed in the Midwest (although Kansas and Evan Turner lay in the weeds), Villanova is the #2 (which they shouldn't be) in a weak South region headlined by the Dookies, and West Virginia (the nation's "should've been a #1-seed") is the top nemesis in the East for the young pups (does that work with a team mascot of a Wildcat) of Kentucky.

2) If this isn't a chalk bracket, could anything possibly top 2000?
-Two 1-seeds out in the first weekend (Arizona & Stanford)
-Three 2-seeds out in the first weekend (St. John's, Cincinnati, & Temple)
-Two 8-seeds in the Final Four (North Carolina & Wisconsin)
-Elite Eight with matchups of a 3 vs. 5, 7 vs. 8 (with Tulsa included), 8 vs. 6, and a solitary 1 vs. 2
Although I can't go without saying that #1-seed Michigan State did end up cutting down the nets when all was said and done. Nevertheless, could such chaos be replicated again?

3) Are the 12-seeds getting a little too much respect? Is Cornell really prepared to take down such a highly underrated (in terms of the brackets) Temple? Is Butler being too easily dismissed against UTEP? Are people bold enough to go against Tom Izzo in March with New Mexico State as their opening round flyer!?!?

4) Statistics have been flying around that you can't win it all without at least 3 NBA players on your team. They don't all need to be All-Stars or even perennial starters, but you better have at least three. Want an exception? It's not so easy, unless you're me (and that's not due to my intellect, believe me). Syracuse in 2003. Carmelo Anthony, Hakim Warrick, and ??? Keep wondering, because there wasn't another. Not even sitting on the end of the bench, waiting to play.

5) Might the tie-breaker (typically total points) in the championship game not be enough? A ton of chalk is behind Kansas (for good reason). Syracuse and Kansas State dominate the West's bracket favorites. Duke and Villanova (don't call them a sleeper, please) for the South. West Virginia still hasn't passed Kentucky in the East, either. While there are other selections out there, outside of these eight, - i.e. Baylor, Ohio State, Georgetown, and even Texas A&M - you might be 1 of MANY in your office, work, or social networking pools that has Kansas v. Kentucky in the final. That means you better correctly identify the winners of those pesky 8/9 and 7/10 games (forget the major upsets) and target your 2-seed that falls the earliest. Otherwise, total points it may be...

...unless bracket managers get crafty and come up with a SITUATIONAL set of 5 questions. Let's say it is chalk-city and it's Kansas vs. Kentucky. Here are my 5 (you?):

Pay and I can't be alone when noticing this guy's bullishness, right?
Credit: CommercialAppeal.com

1) How many actual fouls will DeMarcus Cousins commit?
2) How many NBA scouts will be in attendance?
3) How many times will we hear Sherron Collins described as "gutsy"?
4) How long until they void this Final Four for Coach Cal (he's already lost two)?
5) How many hours in the hotel room before tip-off will Jim Nantz practice his not-so-famous final lines (i.e. "Simon Says Championship")?

10AM NFL Draft Update: Rumors, Reports, and other R-related issues

It's a little after 10am and the NFL Draft is officially under-2 hours away from beginning.

...

I know, it's just the calm before the storm.

Here are a few issues that need to be discussed and quasi-dissected before the frantic fun, filled with draft updates here on the blog from yours truly, finally begins. It's also the last time to banter and rant!

Roll on!

1. Seattle is reportedly trying to move wide receiver Darrell Jackson
-Injury issues and plenty of bank spent on the duo of Deion Branch & Nate Burleson have left the Seahawks more than willing to deal D-Jax. Interestingly enough, the team most interested in the wideout is their NFC West up-and-coming rival...the 49ers. Rumors are swirling lately, the best of which has the Niners dealing one of their three4th round selections (or perhaps even a 3rd rounder). Apparently New Orleans and Tennessee have also expressed mild interest in acquiring Jackson; and, it's important to note that D-Jax probably wouldn't need to restructure (4 years remaining on a deal signed in '04 for 6 years and $25-million). This could be a rather substantial, Javon Walker-esque (at least from a 49ers perspective witht their wideout corps), move during the heart of this draft's opening rounds.

2. The Oakland Raiders haven't offered any type of contract to Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn
-Seems like a friendly rumor-mill deal that was added into all the Calvin Johnson-speculation (probably from the Raiders themselves) so that JaMarcus Russell's contract could be just a percentage point or two cheaper. The Raiders will select the LSU Quarterback first. It's been reported by just about everyone in this galaxy.

3. Oklahoma RB Adrian Peterson's shoulder is going to be fine
-The medical staffs that saw Peterson...collectively reported to their respective teams that the running back would be just fine. Although, it does seem a little interesting that his numerous past injuries haven't hurt his draft-stock previous to this immediate weekend that much. Honestly, the guy hasn't had a healthy season in college and despite his intense workload for the Sooners...he's far from the toughest back in this draft when it comes to withstanding nagging or game-missing injuries.

4. There will be trades in the 1st Round.
-Whether it's a half-dozen, a dozen, or two...we can''t know yet. Yet, plenty of teams will spend the entire fifteen minutes they are alloted exploring every option possible. This will begin at pick #2 and probably continue throughout the majority of the top ten. Don't underestimate the moves at the end of the 1st round either. Plenty of teams love to move back, move slightly up, or exit the 1st-round altogether. It's a very popular notion as of late (just ask the Jets) to move a late first-rounder this year for a new second-rounder this year as well as an extra second-rounder next year.

5. Chris Leak and Troy Smith won't even be mentioned the 1st day.
-Sorry to the BCS Title Game QBs...but neither is likely to have a fun Saturday. Smith killed himself - exposing what most already knew - in a worthless title game performance. Leak's shotty mechanics, lack of height, and statuesque-motioning will end up making him a career backup at best.

6. Chris Berman will be as annoying as ever
-ESPN's biggest name, and man, will repeat the same stories, the same tiresome catch phrases, launch the same appeals to draft those character-guys, and the same stupid references to Favre, Brady, and Hurricane Katrina that he always does. Memo to ESPN Management: It's time for him to retire or move away from such spotlight events. Much like Stuart Scott, who is cartoonish in his ridiculous attempts to appear young and with-it, Berman is a tired-joke that never was funny in the first place. Only Kenny Maine is unfunnier than the two of them. But back to Berman, it's easy to see the guys at ESPN love him and while some women think he's funny at bars (or so I have learned in my experiences)...in the end he is far too corny, cheesy, oversentimental about sports and life (winning one game over Atlanta didn't cure New Orleans of the tragedy of Katrina, in fact most of the fans there probably weren't directly affected in those incredibly low-socioeconomic settings) and doesn't retain the knowledge to be up on the stage with the crew he works with. If only I could mute his fond recollections or the players he loves to love, my draft day would be that much sweeter. Now that was a tirrade-filled rant!

7. Michael Turner won't be traded.
-This is a straight-guess from me. By the way, before I continue on this topic, ESPN's Mark Schlereth called this guy a "top 3-4 potential talent at running back". Seriously? A top 5 running back? This is beyond lunacy. The guy backs up LT - who bruises defenses beyond belief with speed and cutting-power - and is now a soon-to-be elite back? Give me a break. While Green Bay is always in the market for an RB and teams like Tennessee and Atlanta seem unsure by the day on their backfields...please don't overpay that much for someone so ridiculously unproven.

8. Trent Green will be gone by the end of this weekend. Daunte Culpepper will be cut by June 1st. Randy Moss will be a Raider next season. The Patriots will be given an A+ no matter what they do in the draft by everyone in the media. There is zero chance Larry Johnson is dealt. Peter King will salavate over the Steelers pick which will invariably be labeled as truly a "Steeler-guy".
-Quite a rant, I know. It all explains itself. But wait! There's even more on the horizon...

9. CNNSI reporting potential major draft rumors after humorous quotes from Clinton Portis (which he excells at) were released throughout the Washington-media proves yet again that their draft coverage is as weak as anyone could imagine.
-No surprise at all. Bang-up job as always guys. [Insert Borat-inspired NOT!]

We'll see how full of it I am...shortly.

Until next time...