65 + 31 = Insanity

"Hey, don't you know it's a waste of your day / caught up in endless solutions" -- A Life of Illusion, Joe Walsh

This quote basically sums up my opinion on proposed expansion of the NCAA Men's Division I basketball tournament. It seems likely that the tournament will expand from 65 to 96 teams. let me count the ways I hate this idea.

The tournament already allows for the inclusion of 34 at-large teams, it usually incorporates the top 40-45 teams would you account for conference tournament champions. There already is a large enough avenue for teams to get in. If they can't avail themselves of these opportunities I'm sure they can find a mirror to yell at. Currently the top 10% get into the tournament. This tournament should be about the best teams and conference champions. It should not be simply an equivalent of a participation badge for the above-mediocre. We don't need to add the Not Invited Tournament (known in an alternate universe as the NIT) to the NCAA tournament.

But, of course the only purpose of an expansion is an expansion of revenue stream. Anyone who tells you differently is a liar or a delusional. The NCAA assumes that more games equals more money. They're probably right. But that doesn't mean an expansion of the tournament will make the tournament better. It's kind of like adding ice to a drink. At first, it seems like a good idea because it makes the drink cold. However, after a while all it does is water it down.

It's kind of hilarious to me that the latest news regarding tournament expansion comes from a USA Today interview with Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delaney [NMS-- correct spelling = Delany; but you're not getting any apologies (I'm childish)]. This from a man who is against a playoff in big-time college football. What a ridiculous dichotomy.

If the tournament does expand, here is what should happen. Coaches like Seth Greenberg Virginia Tech who always try to electioneer their bubble teams into the tournament should get a little karma. All of these coaches who basically push for expansion deserve to have terrible seasons if there is expansion. If there is any karma in the world, next year Virginia Tech will not be good enough to get in even to an expanded 96 team field. It may sound harsh, but if there is to be expansion, teams like Virginia Tech deserve to go 11-19-ish and have their coaches fired. If you're going to ruin it, at least make it a little fun.

Here is a line Nancy Reagan and Dylan Thomas can get behind. Just Say No to an expanded tournament, and Rage, Rage against the Dying of the Light that is the sanity of the current format.

Here's a slogan: 65+0 Or Fight!