Bracket Blogs

It's been a while since I was active in the college basketball scene, well over a decade, and since I don't follow sports regularly ”March Madness” can slip right by me.

Of course, there have been plenty of reminders of brackets lately. KRock ran a “Bracket Brawl” in which listeners could vote on favorite bands. They started with 64, which came down to 16, then 8, then 4, then finally two of my favorites, Metallica and Pearl Jam. Metallica won by a narrow margin, 1.8%, and overall I was happy with the results.

How I Met Your Mother put their spin on the bracket system this week as well, as the gang tries to narrow down which of the many girls Barney loved and left is now going around Manhattan warning others of his lecherous ways. They manage to narrow the list down to four, and while they never quite find the mystery girl, at least not in this episode, there is a pretty awesome payoff at the end with an inevitable reference. Also, in lying to one of the girls and telling her he was Ted, Barney's actions led her to create a website bashing “Ted”. That show is great with viral marketing.

I don't know if this is going to work, but I figured if my radio and television were doing it, I had to try. In a grueling process involving darts and highly trained monkeys, I managed to go through my blogroll and whittle down a list of 16 contenders. I considered 32, but the monkeys pointed out that many of the ones I chose, while favorites, hadn't updated in months if not longer. Through a highly scientific process too complex to explain, we then figured out appropriate pairs for the first round:


(Click the Picture Above for a Larger Set of brackets)

1) Lorna vs. Cube

2) CoffeeSister vs. Willow Crossing

3) The Art of Getting By vs. The Unseen Blogger

4) Rey's A Point vs. Spiritual Tramp

5) A Golden World vs. The Southern Conservative

6) Rocketship of the Mind vs. Lyndonology

7) The Chronicles of Rhodester vs. The Bayer Family Blog

8) B13Fotographica vs. SwanShadow

Leave a comment saying who you're voting for in each of the 8 match-ups. In one week, I'll update the chart accordingly and you'll have 4 showdowns to decide on. This will continue each week until only one blog remains to claim bragging rights, honor, and perhaps a prize.

You can vote for yourself and you can encourage your readers to stop by and vote for you as well. If you were left off the list and feel you should have been included, or if you think someone else in my blogroll should be on there, you can substitute a vote in any of the 8 spots. There's no guarantee others will add to your vote, but the option is there.

Only you can decide who goes on to the next round. Voting begins....NOW!