Bracket Breakdown: The Midwest

Of the four regions, the Midwest may have the most intrigue due to the one seed it plays host to: the Wildcats of Kentucky. Sports fan or not, you surely know by now that John Calipari's team is only six games away from completing a perfect season. Many believe the Cats will pull it off and dance their way into history. Heck, even Vegas says that Kentucky's odds to win it all are even. Yet this region will not be a cake walk for Big Blue Nation. Kentucky has proven to be the best team in the land, but here's a look at the match-ups that make up the rest of the Midwest region.

General Overview:
Nate's Take: In an Indiana-heavy region, there is plenty of potential for two teams from the same state to meet up in the later rounds. Perhaps the two most intriguing games of the first round however, are the match-ups between West Virginia/Buffalo and Texas/Butler.

West Virginia finished fifth in a very deep Big 12 conference this season and are heading into the Dance with an overall record of 23-9. Led by Juwan Staten and Devin Williams, Bob Huggins' Mountaineers have the potential to end up in the Sweet 16, but their first game doesn't do them any favors. Bobby Hurley's Bulls are not to be overlooked, especially in the famed five/twelve game. And while statistics will always come into play when it comes to the total number of times a twelve has beat a five, Buffalo deserves credit in their own right. They only lost at Wisconsin by twelve, and were leading Kentucky by five at the half earlier this season. Bobby Hurley has a team that, going into this game, has nothing to lose and when the fact that Juwan Staten is not at full health is brought into consideration, it doesn't come as any surprise that Buffalo has more than a fighting chance to move into the round of 32.

Since 2010, the Butler Bulldogs have become America's sweethearts when it comes to March Madness. Once again, they find themselves in the tournament with aspirations of another miracle run. This year, they will be put up against a puzzling Texas team who barely, and maybe even questionably, made it into the field of 68 teams. The best news for the Longhorns is that Butler didn't finish the year ranked in the Top 25. Texas posted a horrendous record of 3-10 against ranked teams and fell off the map midway through the season. With that in mind, they still have the perfect balance of veteran leadership and young star power to lead them on what could be an unlikely run. Butler on the other hand finished 5-2 against ranked teams but has struggled to find consistency lately. The Bulldogs are 4-4 in their last eight games and will struggle to find an answer for Texas' front court. With Texas being a member of a Power Six conference, it's hard to call their potential victory an upset, but I believe the Rick Barnes and Co. will prove to be too strong for Butler to handle.

Do the Wildcats have more March Magic in them?

Zach's Take: Kentucky. That's all you really need to know. Obviously things have changed since November, but to put it in perspective how dominant the Cats have been, they beat the two-seed in the region, Kansas, 72-40 earlier in the season. They have beaten anybody and everybody and there's no reason not to pick them to win it all. With Cliff Alexander out for Kansas and Perry Ellis a bit banged up, it's hard to see the Jayhawks getting by Kentucky.

In fact, the Jayhawks may not get by the first weekend as a matchup with in-state rival could materialize in the third round. The Shockers have a dynamite backcourt and would be charged up for that game. I would say it's a safe bet Wichita State moves on to the Sweet 16.

The team that I believe can give UK the best game is third-seeded Notre Dame. The Irish are playing great ball at the moment and looked impressive in the ACC Tournament. They are talented at every position and have no problem scoring the basketball. The issue, as is it every game against Kentucky, is rebounding. Notre Dame ranks low in both offensive and defensive rebounding and that will be a major factor in the game.

There's plenty of other intriguing teams in the region, including an Indiana team that many did not think deserved to be in the tournament. However, the Hoosiers live by the three and die by the three. When they're living, they're living large. IU shot over 40 percent from deep as a team and hit 308 thres this season. If they get hot then they could knock off a few teams.

Upset Alert:
Nate's Take: The two aforementioned games, in my opinion, will result in the lower seeds being victorious, but another game that may surprise some others is the Notre Dame/Northeastern match-up. The last six times Notre Dame has been in the tournament, they've only made it out of the first round twice. While Mike Brey's team certainly has more firepower this year than in year's past, the ACC tournament champions would be foolish to overlook the Huskies who have emerged victorious in seven of their last nine games.

Zach's Take: As Nate mentioned, Bobby Hurley's Buffalo team is one to watch. I believe they will knock off a West Virginia team that doesn't shoot a very high percentage and struggles to rebound the ball at times. It's that classic 5/12 matchup and the Bulls have won their last eight games. Meanwhile, West Virginia limps into the tournament losing three of it's last four contests. Smells like an upset to me.

Player to Watch:
Nate's Take: This region has plenty of individuals that are game-changers and can put up great numbers. Yet the one player that I firmly believe will have the biggest impact on this region is Kansas' Perry Ellis. Before the conference tournament, Ellis suffered a sprained knee and was not as mobile as we have seen him during the tournament. With freshman Cliff Alexander ruled out for the tournament, Ellis' health is an even bigger concern because Bill Self will need to deal with that lack of depth. More importantly, Ellis averages 14 points and 7 rebounds a game. If the Jayhawks want any shot at avenging the 32-point embarrassment they suffered against Kentucky at the beginning of the season, Ellis will have to be at the top of his game. If that knee holds up, Kansas may be able to punch a ticket to Indy. But if poor health plagues Kansas' veteran leader, the Jayhawks may have trouble escaping the round of 32.

Auguste leads a well-balanced Notre Dame squad into the Dance

Zach's Take: It's a guard's game now, but Nate and I have both chosen big men as the players to watch in the Midwest Region. Keep your eye on Notre Dame junior forward, Zach Auguste. Auguste averages 12.4 points and 6.2 rebounds per game on a team that features plenty of guards. In a region with Texas, Kansas and Kentucky, Auguste is going to have to be huge for the Irish. He will need to stay out of foul trouble and rebound the basketball if Notre Dame is to make any noise. If the Elite 8 matchup with Kentucky does happen, Auguste would have to battle with UK's big men and that's about the toughest task in college basketball. In the ACC championship against North Carolina, Auguste battled with the UNC bigs and finished with 16 points, 13 rebounds and only one foul. That's exactly what Notre Dame will need from him during its tournament run.

Notre Dame and Michigan Prepare for One Last Showdown

Historically in the Midwest there is no greater college football than at Notre Dame and Michigan. Forty times the two teams have met and their storied histories and gaudy team records make their rivalry one to circle on the calendar. On Saturday the two will meet again, as has become the norm early in each season, but this time will be different. Because this time will be the last one for a while.

It's a complaint that has been filed too many times to count by college sports fans, but it's inescapable. Conference realignment stinks. Period. Kansas and Missouri no longer play basketball, Nebraska and Oklahoma won't see each other on the gridiron any time soon and Syracuse and Georgetown have played their last conference basketball game. Now, because of Notre Dame's new agreement with the ACC, the Irish won't play Michigan through at least 2017.

Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly made a silly remark earlier this week that the ND-Michigan rivalry wasn't "one of those historic, traditional Notre Dame rivalries." Earlier today he backtracked and said that the game was "a great and historical rivalry." Kelly was wise to change his tune because he was dead wrong with his first remarks.

Back in 1887 Michigan won the first meeting ever between the two teams and they proceeded to rack up eight straight victories against the Irish. Since those eight games, Notre Dame has a slight edge in the series, going 16-15-1. The rivalry is evenly matched and pits two of the top teams in college football against each other.

The two schools are numbers one and two in winning percentage all-time and numbers one and three in all-time wins. On top of that, they both own 11 championships. Every game since 2009 has been decided by seven points or less and in 2011 Denard Robinson left us with an instant classic as he led the Wolverines back from a 24-7 deficit and scored the game-winning touchdown with two seconds left in the first night game ever at The Big House.

With Notre Dame joining the ACC, Michigan was left out of the Irish's schedule. Wolverines head coach Brady Hoke insists that Notre Dame "chickened out" but the reality is that the conference alignment will always have the final say. Notre Dame has agreed to play five games against ACC competition which is absolutely ridiculous because everyone really wants to see the Irish play a team like Wake Forest instead of Michigan. Wrong.

So this is it for awhile. Notre Dame and Michigan on a September Saturday. Enjoy this one because in an ever-changing world of college sports it may not be back again. However, this game is historic and it's traditional and that is why it's one of the best rivalries in college football.

Bracket Breakdown: West

Steve Alford and Tony Snell of New Mexico

Of the four brackets the West is the probably the weakest, but that can also mean it is the most wide open. Gonzaga is the number one seed and deservedly so. They didn't play a real tough schedule, but anybody who wins like they did deserves the top spot. Ohio State played their way into a two seed after winning the Big Ten tournament and fellow Big Ten member Wisconsin sits at the five seed. New Mexico has played good ball and looks like they could make a run and Belmont and Wichita State appear to be upset picks. Also don't forget about Bruce Weber's K-State Wildcats. Here's a more in-depth look...

West Region winner: New Mexico Lobos
In a bracket that seems to have no favorite, take a good look at Steve Alford's New Mexico squad. The Lobos are 29-5 and went undefeated against ranked opponents. If you think for a second that the Mountain West was a walk in the park then hold on just a second. The MWC was arguably one of the top three toughest conferences and five teams made the tournament. New Mexico won the regular season and the conference tournament and they will now have a chance to make another tourney run -- this one of bigger proportion. It's not going to be easy as they will probably meet Ohio State in the Sweet 16. The Buckeyes have won 10 in a row and are playing very well right now. In the Elite 8 the Lobos will have to take down either Gonzaga, Kansas State or Wisconsin and that will be another tall task. However, Alford has played with the big boys before and has put together a tremendous season. Now it's time to do it on the national stage.

Lamont Jones of Iona

Upset Pick: Belmont over Arizona
The Bruins should come away the victor in this one. Belmont is 26-6 and won the Ohio Valley Conference behind a high-powered offense. They average 77.2 points per game which is the 15th in the nation and their 49 percent field goal percentage is fourth in the nation. Arizona has looked shaky of late, losing three of their last five. Although the 'Cats are talented, don't count on them making a run in this tournament.

Potentially Intriguing Matchup: Gonzaga vs. New Mexico (Elite 8)
Two mid-majors going head-to-head for the right to advance to the Final Four would be intriguing to watch. The Lobos and Zags have been in the tournament before and they both have seasoned veterans on the sidelines. However, neither team has made it the Final Four. It seems likely that this matchup could happen and if it does, the fans will finally get to see what all the hype is about these two squads.

Player to Watch: Lamont Jones, guard, Iona
Lamont Jones knows about big time competition. He transferred to Iona after two seasons at Arizona and he has torn it up for the Gaels. Jones averages 23.0 points, 3.1 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game and his Gaels will have the tough job of beating Ohio State in the first round. Last season there were two 15 seeds that won a second round game and they both did so behind Superman-type efforts from their star players. Iona needs Jones to bring his A game if they are to upset one of the Big Ten titans.

Bottom Line: There is no clear favorite in this league, but New Mexico, Ohio State and Gonzaga are all playing good basketball. One of those three will emerge.

Bizarre Te'o Tale the Strangest Yet

Sports have been around for hundreds of years and in that span there have been stories of heroics, humor, inspiration, victory, defeat and mystery. There may never have been a story as strange and bizarre as the tale that is unfolding in South Bend, Indiana involving former Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te'o though. By now, the details of the story are well-known and I won't go through them again on this post, but as I was reading an article about the latest developments I couldn't help but wonder why this is so newsworthy?

In the grand scheme of things this story, whether Te'o created/participated in the hoax or not, shouldn't affect the star linebacker that much. Sure, he will be embarrassed and humiliated by the media and fans, but his draft stock shouldn't drop that much, if at all. He won't be in any trouble with the law or anything like that and so it begs the question: why do we care? There are men in the NFL who have murdered people yet they continue to get picked up by teams so the idea that Te'o will see his draft stock drop because of this is silly to me. If the kid is a player then teams will want him.

The reason that this story is so interesting is because it is so mind-boggling. Online relationships are a reality in today's world and people are tricked everyday on who they are actually conversing with. There is an entire television program devoted to stories of online relationship fraud and lying which proves it is a very real thing. However, there was little thought that something like this would ever happen to a celebrity. Yet, here is Te'o claiming to be the victim of someone's sick joke and there was Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick almost daring someone to challenge Te'o on his role in this.

Manti Te'o was all that is right in sports. In a world where athletes take banned substances like candy, have frequent run-ins with the law and college programs are hit with sanctions almost weekly, Te'o was special. He was the All-American linebacker for the country's most recognizable team who had close ties with his family and endured enormous grief to orchestrate one of the greatest seasons we have seen from a defensive player in college football. In a six hour span on September 12th his grandmother and "girlfriend" passed away, but his play only improved as the year went on. He was a hero.

Now, he is the center of perhaps the strangest story to ever hit the sports world. People are fooled by others in online relationships every day, but what makes this one different is that is wasn't just one guy who was fooled by someone behind a computer screen. It was literally the entire nation. All of America watched Te'o produce big game after big game and then talk about his "girlfriend" in postgame interviews. We all believed it until a few days ago.

We may never know how someone could get away with something like this, but it truly is fascinating how it has all played out. There will be many more details to come, but it's my hope that Te'o didn't participate in this hoax for attention and I certainly hope he wasn't a part of creating it. If he was simply a victim then he is just a foolish college student who engaged in a relationship with someone he never met. If he participated or created this hoax then he is an attention-seeking fraud and this will leave a stain on his career and life forever.

So if he did participate/create the hoax then I hope the few months of fame and attention were worth it because forever is a long time. Forever is permanent.

"If this was a prize fight they would have called it off"

Brent Musberger couldn't have said it better after Alabama scored at one point in the second half. The Crimson Tide rolled all over the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in route to their third title in four years. It's a dynasty that hasn't been seen since the Nebraska teams of the late 90's and the scary thing is that like Kirk Herbstreit said, they might only be in the middle of it.

It was over after the first quarter as Bama led 21-0 and at halftime Brian Kelly seemed to be searching for answers just like the rest of America during an interview with Heather Cox. The reality seems to be if you give Nick Saban over a month to prepare for a game then he will make sure his team is ready and they will dominate the competition. We have seen it two years in a row and there's little reason to think that it won't continue.


The SEC has won the last seven national titles and they have a choke hold on the college football scene. Has their ever been a run this impressive by one conference in any sport? It would be tough to think of one. The idea that the SEC championship is the national championship has never seemed truer. It's also never seemed more obvious that a playoff system is needed in college football.

However, don't take that last statement as a slight to Notre Dame. The Irish deserved to be in the championship game after an undefeated season and people who argue that Oregon or Kansas State should have been in the title game must remember that no matter the schedules, those teams cost themselves the chance. They didn't do what was necessary to be in the title game and Notre Dame did. That said, it's still a better idea to do a playoff and thankfully college football has one coming soon.

I would imagine the television ratings plummeted in the second half as the Tide clearly had the game wrapped up. Fans complain that there hasn't been a good national title game in a few years and while a playoff won't be fool proof it certainly will put two teams in the championship that have won their way there in a playoff fashion that we are accustomed to in America.

When the playoff system is implemented don't be surprised if these two teams go head-to-head again. Both schools bring in remarkable recruiting classes and Notre Dame is still in the process of coming back on the national scene. This year, despite the blowout, will no doubt help the recruiting as the Irish finished undefeated in the regular season and Manti Te'o finished runner-up in the Heisman Trophy voting.

Hate on ND or Bama all you want, but the reality is that the game is better when both of them are good. They are the traditional titans of college football and they bring in the money for the sport. Their simultaneous greatness will help the sport as times do seem tumultuous with conference realignment and other money-hungry issues dominating the headlines.

With a playoff system on the brink, we can hope that routine beatdowns in the national title game are in the rear view mirror, but with the way Alabama looked Monday night in Miami, maybe that's not a sure thing.