Unless it is your job to cover college basketball, you probably went in filling your bracket with little to no knowledge about the 2021-22 season. We often makes picks based on seeding, the programs with a history of making a deep run and sometimes we just close our eyes and decide who wins an 8-9 seed matchup in the first round.

The first round of the tournament for me was pretty good. Had some hits and misses. I was very proud of my bold prediction that Notre Dame would get out of the First Four and then upset Alabama. But from the second round on, it got worse.

How bad did it get? Well, here was my Elite 8…

-Gonzaga-Texas Tech

-Saint Mary’s-Kentucky

-Auburn-Kansas

-Arizona-Tennessee

THE ACTUAL ELITE 8

Duke-Arkansas

North Carolina-Saint Peter’s

-Kansas-Miami (FL)

-Houston-Villanova

OK. Kentucky screwed everybody over losing to Saint Peter’s in the first round. By the time we reached this point, I was rooting for the Peacocks to knock off North Carolina and then ruin Coach K’s final game by beating them in the Final Four, by Saint Peter’s turned back into a pumpkin when they ran into the Tar Heels.

The only team I got right was Kansas. That was the safe selection. Should have been safer with my other picks.

If you’re laughing hysterically and have a pre-existing heart condition, here’s my Final Four…

–Gonzaga-Saint Mary’s

–Arizona-Auburn

THE ACTUAL FINAL FOUR

–Duke-North Carolina

–Kansas-Villanova

Remember how I said it got worse?

For some reason, I didn’t think UNC and Duke would face each other again and was all about that West Coast Conference rivalry.

And, now…my national championship…

Gonzaga 81, Arizona 77

THE ACTUAL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL

Kansas 72, North Carolina 69

So, in the end, my bracket is the equivalent of 1-seed Virginia losing to 16-seed UMBC in 2018. It is so bad that one of my parents should be forced to look at it and sign it like they had to do when I got an “F” on a test.

Please enjoy “One Shining Moment” sung by a random guy accompanied by a kazoo…