March Madness is finally here

There is something about the term, March Madness. It is the one time when the hype never matches the reality, but in a way that can leave us all smiling in the end.

Every year, we expect to see the impossible dreams of young kids come true on the hardwood in random cities, and it happens in even greater ways than we expect. There always seems to be something truly memorable taking place, whether it is from a Christian Laettner vanquishing the Kentucky Wildcats in the final moments of a classic in the Elite Eight, or the Butler Bulldogs twice reaching the National Championship Games in consecutive seasons.

It could be the winning shot by R.J. Hunter to cause his head coach, and father, to fall off of his stool or the brilliant play of the 11th-seeded George Mason Patriots, navigating their way into our hearts – and the Final Four. Perhaps it is even the continued genius of Tom Izzo or the one-time capture of glory by Jim Valvano in 1983, forever etched in our mind’s eye, looking for a player to hug.

March Madness gives us everything that is right in sports. For a few weeks, we can put away all that is wrong with the NCAA, players getting paid under the table and legal issues dotting the headlines. We can simply focus on 68 teams desperately trying to play one more game, because in the end of all this, that is what the tournament is about. It’s about getting to play one more game. For the seniors, it is simply about not watching a career end forever.

While we are more than used to watching sports become big business – and make no mistake, March Madness is a massive cash-making machine – we get to see kids from small schools with no shot of playing professionally giving it their all. For many, it is the only time they will be in the spotlight, getting a small taste of fame even if it only lasts a couple of hours.

One day, we will have our first No. 16 to beat a No. 1, and it will immediately become one of the greatest upsets of all-time. We will see those young men turn back into little kids, while grown men and women weep in the stands, knowing they have just seen the essence of sport.

It might not happen for 50 years. It might happen this week.Welcome to March Madness.