People wearing festive colors with big smiles on their faces, making a list and checking it twice. You think I’m talking about Christmas? Au contraire, mon frère, I am talking about something better than Christmas – March Madness! Sorry, Andy Williams, but you are going to have to make room for Andy Katz because THIS is truly the most wonderful time of the year. If you see me this month, there is a pretty good chance I am singing “One Shining Moment” in my head. And for sports fans all over this fine nation, Bracketology replaces all other thought processes for the next few weeks.

For those of you that don’t know the beauty of Bracketology, it is defined by Wikipedia as “the process of predicting the field of the NCAA Basketball Tournament, named as such because it is commonly used to fill in tournament brackets for the postseason.” But to me it just means basketball; weeks and weeks of glorious basketball. And although everyone that enters their bracket into a pool would like to win, it isn’t even about winning, it is about participating. Seeing your friend’s picks, enjoying the games together – it really doesn’t get any better than that.

There are four days in the month of March that stand above the rest – the first Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. And this Thursday – it begins. It has truly become an unofficial national holiday. People take off of work just to sit glued to the television, tightly gripping a painstakingly filled-out bracket in their hands, watching as many games as humanly possible. And the unlucky stiffs that can’t get out of work watch them on their computer, listen on the radio – whatever it takes to get a piece of the action. So don’t be surprised on Thursday afternoon if you hear a booming “YES” or “YOU’VE GOTTA BE KIDDING ME WITH THAT CALL” come from your cube mate.

To me, the reason the first four days of the tournament are so incredibly important is that you get to see so many games. For a basketball fan like me, it is a chance to watch teams play that I never get to see. Every year there are upsets that have us all cheering for the underdog. We all love to see a 14 seed take out a three seed or a 12 seed go down to a five. These Cinderella stories give a national stage to teams like Davidson in 2008 that made it to the Elite 8 and gave the Kansas Jayhawks (the eventual Champions) a run for their money. Or what Wichitan can forget the likes of George Mason? This is quite possibly the best Cinderella story in NCAA basketball tournament history. George Mason was an 11-seed taking it all the way to the Final Four, knocking off the Shockers and number one seed Connecticut along the way.

Great basketball, amazing stories and if you are lucky enough to see your team play and win in the tournament – “That’s gold, Jerry! Gold!!” So get out there and download a bracket, fill it out and play along. You don’t have to place a wager to enjoy (cue the music) March Madness.

Here are some March Madness stories from local basketball fans.

Joley: Most of my traditions revolve around my bracket selections. I carry my bracket with me for the entire tournament, so it is generally a wrinkled, beer-stained mess by the end of the first weekend. I have a Sharpie for each region that has to color-coordinate with my chosen regional winner’s school color. I also carry at least two hats and two shirts with me and change at the bar as my selected Final Four teams play. This combines my love of March Madness with shopping and gives me a disguise when I get into my annual altercation with a rabid KU fan.

Cory: I met my wife, Holly, for lunch at Heroes 10 years ago on opening day of March Madness and came to the realization that this could be the greatest two days of the year. I decided at that point I would never again work the Thursday and Friday that starts March Madness. This year I will be meeting friends for lunch at Hooters on Friday and will finish at the American Legion in Halstead.

Scott: The tournament? We don’t even have to speak about it. Plans come together in minutes, not days. The first two days are about male bonding and cracking the same jokes, but most importantly, they are about basketball. In truth, those two days really begin four days prior when the brackets come out. I pour over every matchup, carefully filling out my bracket before looking at the finished product, declaring it the most awful thing I have ever seen and starting over again. This is the point when March Madness truly becomes special. Can I name one player on UTEP’s team? Nope. But I will cheer for them as my adopted team since I have them picked for the upset. You’ve got so many games being played over the course of two days that unbelievable finishes and wild upsets are almost a given. You have something invested in every game. The bar can sound like a KU/K-State game during every single game because everyone wants to highlight their bracket rather than cross a team off.

Luke: For 18 years I have been running a pool for free out of my love for basketball and what I feel is the best sporting event in all of sports. I enjoy the storylines and excitement that every year brings. It was especially sweet the year Wichita State went. It actually started my tradition of taking off the first Thursday (as a legitimate vacation day) and spending it with my wife and friends. I remember that it all started for me with the black socks and style of play from the Michigan Fab Five. I bet my first $20 on the Duke vs. Michigan game… and lost, of course.

Emily: When KU played in the Final Four in 2003, I was in charge of saving seats at Tanner’s and got there when they opened… equipped with Cosmo and other assorted girly magazines to wait until game time (which was, like, 6 p.m.) I held off on drinking until 3:30… but I really don’t remember a lot of that game. Just remember I had a good time! It seems like I often end up saving seats… maybe that’s the unofficial role I play in March Madness.

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