I've actually been signing into my Yahoo account with the most frequency I've had since the NFL season. The NBA and NHL fantasy leagues I was in this year got updated with about a once-a-week frequency when football concluded, maybe once every two weeks at times when I was busy being, you know, employed. But now that I've got a little more time on my hands during this lull on the job front, I guess I'm allowed to dwell on how I'm spending my time online when not sending out the resumes.
My entry into the Public League on Yahoo with the number of participants closest to the 500-person maximum represented my only set of brackets filled out this year, and I was able to enjoy sharing 15th place with a number of other entrants after the day's first games.
The downfall in the standings was swift, and I was four-hundred-something by Friday before finally settling in at 334th when the weekend was over. The upside, of course, was the elimination of Kansas—which a number of other people had winning it all. I'm happy for this moment which my predicted National Championship is still possible. While my Midwest bracket is entirely worth jack-fucking-shit now, I've still got three of those other Final Four teams still kicking. How do I feel about them going into next weekend? Well, a total and definite "meh," of course. I'll put it this way: 99 percent of the time, I'm rooting for the outcome that will most upset the room's largest asshole. So if the guy who's say a vocal Jayhawks fan is going to lose money or risk openly weeping at the possibility of a loss, then damned if that's not what I'm rooting for.
Somewhat unbelievably, there is actually a remote possibility that I could still in fact win the Public League pool I'm entered in. The scenario I screencapped here lays out what I believe is the only possible way. And while that scenario only has a couple of technical upsets, it's really that Ohio State-Tennessee game that would make the difference. Still, I think there's a good chance that I'll move up in the standings and my decision to pick Georgetown to come out of the Midwest won't be too terribly costly—although I'm guessing that Spartans and Buckeyes fans are going to reap the biggest rewards. I should improve on my previous attempts at NCAA Tournaments, which never finished higher than either 366th of 500 or the 41st percentile overall.
And now that the insanity that was last weekend's first two rounds has passed, Yahoo does something called "Second Chance Tournament Pick'em" which lets everybody lay out what they think will happen when the Sweet Sixteen is set. I naturally filled one of those suckers out too—and this one, I would say, is actually more reflective of what I'm thinking will happen as opposed to letting my preferred outcomes creep in. Between this or the other bracket, something else has to get added to that trophy case (I think).
I did make the Final Four of the larger 12-team NHL league last weekend though, leaving me a Semifinal matchup with none other than Steve-O—who at least has one team worth a damn, since whatever that bullshit deal is with my other team (Henrik Sedin was drafted in, what, the 14th Round? And I can't cut him why?) doesn't allow me to add to the distance between myself and his other club as well as the rest of the competition over there in the points league. A win over his club here would put me in the Finals (which, if the No. 1 seed advances, would create the logical Crosby-Ovie matchup), while a loss would leave me fighting for third to close out the year.
So for now, I end on a happy note that, to me, sounds a bit more chipper than how I spoke about fantasy football—even though, I've clearly got to admit that football's still the most ideal sport for this kind of stuff (of what I've tried so far). Level of success clearly equates to level of enthusiasm.
My entry into the Public League on Yahoo with the number of participants closest to the 500-person maximum represented my only set of brackets filled out this year, and I was able to enjoy sharing 15th place with a number of other entrants after the day's first games.
The downfall in the standings was swift, and I was four-hundred-something by Friday before finally settling in at 334th when the weekend was over. The upside, of course, was the elimination of Kansas—which a number of other people had winning it all. I'm happy for this moment which my predicted National Championship is still possible. While my Midwest bracket is entirely worth jack-fucking-shit now, I've still got three of those other Final Four teams still kicking. How do I feel about them going into next weekend? Well, a total and definite "meh," of course. I'll put it this way: 99 percent of the time, I'm rooting for the outcome that will most upset the room's largest asshole. So if the guy who's say a vocal Jayhawks fan is going to lose money or risk openly weeping at the possibility of a loss, then damned if that's not what I'm rooting for.
So for now, I end on a happy note that, to me, sounds a bit more chipper than how I spoke about fantasy football—even though, I've clearly got to admit that football's still the most ideal sport for this kind of stuff (of what I've tried so far). Level of success clearly equates to level of enthusiasm.
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