Budd Dwyer High Flyer!

Battle of Youth vs Experience

Peacocks, Papa Keep Struttin’

Fortunes or Flop for Big Ten Faithful

Budd Dwyer, whose handle should probably require a trigger warning (literally), wrestled first place away from tourney savant Blizzard T. Husky Saturday night by virtue of the second tie-breaker, most teams in the Sweet 16. Both players currently have 48 points.

Dwyer (R. Finlan), known affectionately as the Romeo of Montague, was in the running for the Championship late into last season before collapsing to 70th place like Frazier vs. Foreman after Michigan lost in the Elite 8 to UCLA. This year Dwyer will need the Wolverines to lose, as he picked Villanova to beat them in the Sweet 16.

Down, not out (B. Snider) and Daphne Dooster (D. Corwin) are in third and fourth place, respectively. There is an age gap of some 82 years between the two players, but in conversation Daphne revealed she knows how to pick like a seasoned pro.

“Why did you pick Tennessee?” she asked me, incredulously.

“They were supposed to be good,” I said.

“I picked Michigan because Grandma lives there,” she said.

There you have it, folks—a can’t fail strategy for success in March. Put her on stage next to Barkley!

Congratulations to Pokey Princess Papa, who was once again the only player to pick St. Peters in the Sweet 16. Princess picked the Peacocks all the way to the Elite 8. That’s the good news for Princess. The bad news is St. Peter’s is his only remaining viable team.

There are several big games on Sunday’s slate with five Big Ten teams in action. A lot of players in this tournament hail from Big Ten country, which means Big Ten teams tend to get picked more often than perhaps they should. A Texas over Purdue or Houston over Illinois “upset” could make a big shift in the standings.

BoilerBaller, whose team usually takes a “Purdump” about now, will be watching that game closely. He is currently looking very nice in 6th place with his Elite 8 fully intact, and he is one of just four players with Purdue winning it all. What’s more, with losses by Baylor and Kentucky in that region, Purdue has a very manageable road to the Final Four.

And, of course, Michigan State’s faithful contingent will be watching that game closely. Sparty’s support has seemed to waver a bit this year compared to previous years, with only 20 players picking them over Duke. An upset there would richly reward the hardcore Spartan fans who kept the faith.