The REAL. BIG. Blog

Wow! Promise yourself now that someday you will go to a Final Four game. I finally got a chance to do it on Saturday here in Detroit and it was awesome. Sure, sure, you think you got a better view of the action at home on your 50” mega-tube and you probably did. You got the commentary and the professional insight of the seasoned analyst.  You got the reverse-angle, close-up, slow-mo, rewind and repeat view of the action. But the action wasn’t just on the hardwood.

Over 72,000 people packed into Ford Field, the most ever for a Final Four. There were something like another 30,000 outside the stadium. With MSU only 92 miles away the chorus of “Go White! Go Green!” spilled out into the streets for blocks around. And that was before the tip-off. It’s Monday now and my ears are still ringing.

The last 15 minutes of the game, when all the Spartan fans began to think that the improbable might be possible, there was a human wave of emotion that you could physically see. It started with the in-bounds pass of either team. As the ball traveled up the court the wave would begin when a few fans down front would jump up. Each row in succession would rise until, in a matter of seconds, everyone was on their feet right up to the rafters. The last five minutes no one sat down.   

I give the UConnfans a lot of credit. They had to walk into the fires of hell on Saturday night and they stayed true to their team.  The teenage girl in front of me, sitting with her Dad in her UConn Tee, never gave up and never showed any fear.

Here at Fathead we talk about being Fathead Worthy. It’s what captures the essence of what Fathead is all about – the passion, the excellence, the memorable moments that you never want to lose.  We don’t do what we do because of the athletes and the entertainers. We do it because of the fans. After what I experienced on Saturday night in Detroit I just want to say that college hoops fans are truly Fathead worthy.

The Men’s Final Four are set and they’re headed to Detroit which is right in Fathead’s front yard. As the number one sports city in America, Detroit takes great pride in hosting these sorts of events: The MLB All Star game, the Super Bowl and now the Final Four in a matter of just a couple of years. The Pistons, Red Wings and Tigers have all contributed to civic pride in the past few years by bringing post-season games and championships to the city.

Now the Michigan State Spartans have the chance to shine in front of the home-town faithful. I’ll admit that I didn’t pick MSU to win it all this year when I filled in my bracket a couple of weeks ago but I did have them making it this far. After these last two games I’m starting to believe that joining President Obama in my selection of North Carolinato emerge as national champions may not have been the best call. In fact, I’d gladly give up a bracket win for the much more meaningful victory of Sparty at Ford Field.

This raises in my mind the reasons we pick the teams we do when we fill out our brackets. Logic would seem to dictate that the largely more knowledgeable tournament selection committee does the seeding to represent those in the best position to advance and we should all just pick the number one seeds for the final four. We also know that it rarely turns out that way though this year it turned out pretty close to the truth. We all want our teams to win and it’s just really hard to accept that they might not. I spent eight years teaching at the University of Oklahoma and I always want the Sooners to do well. When I picked UConnto beat OU in the regional finals I was going against what my emotions wanted me to do and listening to what my brain and the selection committee told me was most likely to happen. Did I feel good when UConn advanced and my bracket standing went up – not really. Should we just embrace the madness that is March and forget about the seeding?

For now, yes. May the home team win! Let the people of Detroit and Michigan celebrate again! I know I’d rather see the Spartans win than be right about picking some teams I don’t really care about.