Tourney Time!

Well ladies and gentlemen, it's that time of year again.  It's time to get out those brackets and fill them in way you hope the NCAA tournament to go.  Although given that it's the NCAAs, don't expect your brackets to go as smoothly.  But don't worry.  It's not just you.

Everyone is going to pin their hopes on someone to either make the Final Four or win it all, only to have that plan go awry at the hands of a team who you've either never heard of, or by a mid-major that got lucky. 

The best team who I have losing to UNC though, in the Sweet Sixteen.

Nonetheless, it's still a fun enterprise, even for amateurs.  I've done it all with regard to the bracket picks over the years and if there's one thing I learned, it's follow your gut.  If you don't have a good feeling about a team or you find yourself picking a team just because they're a one seed, don't take them.  There's a reason it doesn't seem like you believe in them.  Listen to yourself.

That being said, here is an overview of some of the methods that people use each year, along with my thoughts on each...

1) Pick all higher seeded teams

This is a valid method and probability does suggest you would do quite well.  However, remember that some years all number one seeds have been gone before the Final Four.  It's usually a safe assumption that most will make it past their first few rounds, but that's not always the case.  I like this method, except for the fact that it takes the fun out of picking a few upsets here and there that allow you to get ahead of others in your pool who pick higher seeds out of laziness.

If you feel like you're picking a #1 seed or other highly seeded team just because the media and  your friends are, does not mean you should if you feel uneasy about it. 

I just picked Syracuse in the bracket from my buddy Pete (called UConn, if anyone is interested in joining) but I don't feel good about them and probably won't pick them in any other brackets because they haven't proven themselves and I don't think they will this year either.

2) Pick all lower seeded teams

People do this, but remember that probability does not favor this outcome.  No #1 seed has ever ever ever lost to a #16 team, and it's unlikely to happen in the future.  Sometimes history can be a good guide.

3) Pick based on the mascots

I know people, women especially, who do this.  I have no opinion or data on the statistical aspect of whether or not this works, but I do not recommend it.  It might be unique and a non-mainstream way to go about the bracket, but I don't think it pans out.  Unless you get a good combination of mascots associated with good teams.  Most people I know go for "cuteness" of mascot as their criteria for selecting each game.  This rarely is helpful to their chances.

I bet this person, who picked the St. Peter's Peacocks based on cuteness alone, didn't do very well since they bowed out in the first round.

4) Coin flip method

For this, pick all top teams from the beginning to the Sweet Sixteen, except flip a coin when you have the dreaded 8/9 matchup.  From the Sweet Sixteen, flip a coin for each matchup that you have.  Again, this worked for a friend of mine once, but I have never tried it myself.  Go for it if you dare.

5) The "More Famous" Method

Any school that's worth its weight will have some sort of celebrity alumni.  Do a little research. Pick based on that.  For example, let's say you're torn between Wichita State and VCU.  If you go on Wikipedia, look up their notable alumni.  Wichita State: most notable would be Dennis Rader (the BTK serial killer).  VCU: none were found. There you go!  Easy as pie.

6) The coolest method to picking the NCAA tournament bracket?

Cut out all the teams into their own piece of paper. Go to the top of the Empire State Building (or Sears Tower, but do not use the Statue of Liberty as the prevalence of water defeats the purpose) and toss them off.

Run to the bottom of the Empire State Building and fight past the doorman to find your shreds of paper. If you are lucky enough to find a single one, pick that team to win the whole thing no matter what. It is fate personified.

I hope everybody does a bracket and has fun.  Most importantly, go with your gut.  You can research all you want but at the end of the day, just pick who you want and have fun.  Also, did you know that most upsets occur in the 12/5 seed matchup?  You should have at least one of those.   

Good luck to Temple and also to Elena Delledonne and the University of Delaware women who won their CAA Conference Tournament yesterday.

My Heckler

Happy 2012 everyone!

Soon enough, I knew it would happen. When you upload public videos for everyone to see, you'll eventually get that one loser who trolls the Internet for said videos so they can trash the people in them and make asinine comments.

So this blog is about hecklers and my thoughts on them, including how to handle them.

Comedians and celebrities deal with hecklers and naysayers constantly.  You know the type.  The loser who is probably in their 30s or 40s, is unemployed, lives in mommy and daddy's basement playing World of War Craft all day, and trolling the Internet trying to make fun of other people because they aren't happy with who they are.

My heckler goes by the handle MikeDitka100 and posted several nasty comments about my videos and me personally.  Words can hurt, but you've got to get over it.  If you don't like the YouTube channel, change it, bitch.  I'm looking at you MikeDitka100.

Hecklers are an interesting breed.  My guy decided to post several comments and click "dislike" on many videos, presumably around midnight so that I would see them Christmas Eve morning.  But thankfully I saw them as they were posted, so it didn't upset me too much once I got over the initial shock.

Hecklers aim for below the belt, personal attacks on you because they're not happy with their own lives.  I am happy with my life.  I have a great family, friends, a house, and a job.  Pretty much the American Dream, right?

So I wonder about MikeDitka100.  Does he fit the stereotypical characteristics of what I described regarding cyber hecklers, or is he someone who was not loved as a child, like Voldemort?

I was at a comedy show in Atlantic City recently where there was this one heckler whose last name was McGedigan who would not leave this one comic alone.  The comic employed techniques in response that left this kid, who was celebrating his bachelor party, almost in tears.  It was great to see him get his comeuppance and be embarrassed in front of the whole crowd, as in the clip above.

There's no need to personally attack the heckler; just attack their logic.  When they're calling you names like asshole or bitch, they're just resorting to the negative to try to tear you down. Ask them: and so what if I am wearing an Eagles shirt with cats in the background in a house?  To me that says I am successful and have pets and a house.

You've gotta have thick skin and realize that these people (admit it, we all encounter hecklers in our everyday lives) have no life and are basically using the only comeback they know because they are stupid losers: "Are too, nanny nanny boo boo!"  It's funny to see how pathetic they are.

So I guess don't let anyone tear you down.  You know how awesome you are and how awesome other people think you are.  That's all that matters. MikeDitka100 went away like the Internet troll he is but it's crazy what people will do for attention. Imagine, I actually took the time to write about it.

Have a great New Year's and I hope 2012 is a better year for everyone!