March Madness Part I

John Berger
Senior Editor

It’s that time of year again. Every March, millions of people across the country fill out a March Madness bracket, whether it’s an office pool or with friends and family. Before every week’s games during the tournament, I’ll break down the bracket and the upcoming match-ups. Right now we’ll start with the opening weekend of the tournament, where upsets are frequent, and brackets are often burst.

Balls Super Bowl Preview

John Berger
Senior Editor

After a long five month season, only two teams remain in the NFL. The Ravens, after an inspiring three game run through the AFC side of the bracket, will take on the 49ers, a team that overcame a seventeen point deficit in the conference championship game to reach the Super Bowl. Both teams are very similar, with very good front 7’s and versatile offenses. I think that the 9ers are the more talented team, but the Ravens have played so well since the playoffs began, and they’re pretty talented themselves. Something interesting to note in this game is that the coaches, Jim Harbaugh and John Harbaugh, are brothers. That has undoubtedly led to a number of articles in the media written about their childhood, and a number of articles written about their parents. It’s certainly leads to an interesting scenario, but it’s more of a side note in this game. Both Harbaugh’s are very good coaches, and it will be interesting to see how they go against each other tactically.

Conference Championship games preview

John Berger
Senior Editor

The final four in the NFL has been set. After two round of the playoffs, the Ravens, Patriots, 49ers, and Falcons are the only teams that remain. The only surprising team that is left is the Ravens, they beat the #1 seeded Broncos in Denver last week when they came from behind in the last minute to tie the game and then won it in overtime with a field goal. I ended up going 2-2 last week with my picks. The Seahawks lost on a field goal in the last 10 seconds, and mentioned above, the Broncos were upset by the Ravens. That means that I’m 5-3 so far in the playoffs. At the beginning of the season I predicted a 49ers/Patriots Super Bowl, and I don’t see why I’d change that prediction now. Nevertheless, here is what I think about the games this weekend:

1 3 4 5 6 7 13