Is The Madness of March Still Alive?
Selection Sunday has arrived, and America prepares for its most beloved sporting ritual — but in the NIL era, we’re left wondering if the chaos we love can still survive.
Is the Madness of March Still Alive?
Or has money killed something that was once so pure, so beautiful, and so uniquely American?
All across the country today, people are filling out brackets and convincing themselves they’ve picked the right upsets and Final Four. Office pools are forming. Phones are ringing with coworkers negotiating sick days. Some people will “work from home” this Thursday and Friday. Others will simply call in and admit what we all know — productivity in America takes a brief but glorious hit every March. CBS invented the boss button for a reason, after all.
Happy Selection Sunday, everyone.
The NCAA Tournament begins this week, marking one of the most unique stretches in all of American sports. And sometimes I think we forget just how different our sports culture is from much of the rest of the world.
Basketball may be one of America’s greatest exports. Countries like France and China have developed massive fan bases and talent pipelines in recent years. The NBA has become a global powerhouse.
But the one thing the rest of the world truly doesn’t experience the way we do is March Madness.
The NCAA Tournament is the greatest reality television sports has ever produced.
It is raw drama. The ultimate thrill of victory and agony of defeat in a pure, win-or-go-home format. An entire season — months of practices, travel, injuries, pressure, and dreams — comes down to forty minutes. Sometimes it comes down to a single possession.
