Joe Kinsey
Videos by OutKick
On March Madness
As I sit here on a sunny Saturday morning in NW Ohio with temps hovering around 20-degrees and a windchill in the single digits, I’m thinking about Mark P. in Indiana who wrote to me this week to say his love of March Madness had been ripped from his body because his Hoosiers have “sucked for a long time.”
And then there I was Friday night about to doze off in the man cave/wife’s video game cave when the score flashed before my eyes:
Indiana 65
Illinois 63
Because I’m so dialed in on Screencaps, I immediately thought of Mark P. in Indiana and his email. I hope Friday night got the juices flowing again. I hope he was on the edge of his seat until the final whistle as Illinois went in for a game-winning layup.
Guys, we have to keep faith in all that we have rooted for in our lives. I had to keep faith in my Bengals. Mark P. in Indiana has to keep faith in his Hoosiers. I have to keep faith that my Toledo Rockets will somehow find a way to one day make the NCAA Tournament, especially after laying a massive egg Friday against Akron in the MAC Tournament.
And today Mark P. in Indiana gets to do it all over again with a 1 p.m. ET tip against Iowa on CBS.
I’ll have my own rooting interest later this afternoon when Richmond-Dayton tips at 3:30 on CBS Sports Network.
Rob in Indy writes:
Joe,
Your 14 things floating around in your head this Friday morning really captures the life of a sports-loving, father/husband. I work nights and right after starting my coffee, I sit down to read your content. As I read the comments from others to your queries, I’m amazed at how like-minded so many of us are.
As March Madness arrives, I get nostalgic remembering all the years I had it all figured out, only to lose the company pool to a 73-year-old lady that picked every game based on team colors, or arguing that Purdue had all the tools to get to the elite eight, only to watch them flame out in the 1st round due to poor guard play.
Growing up in Indiana, we played basketball after baseball practice, after football practice, and after basketball practice. We all pretended to be whichever player we just saw. When I read in a biography that Larry Bird took naps before games, I told my wife I had to nap on Thursday evening, before my weekly pickup games.
What a patient woman, making allowances for me.
So, thank you for your work, keeping our dreams and memories alive.
• Adam D. writes:
Joe,
Reading Screencaps this morning brought back a memory of watching March Madness with my oldest son who is now 20. He is a huge North Carolina fan. Being in Kansas makes getting to watch live games a challenge, but he has seen them play live twice; once when he was 12 and again at 18 in the Sweet Sixteen game against Auburn in Kansas City.
In 2014, when he was 12, he went down to the tunnel before the second half started and several of the players gave him high-fives. The grin on his face was from ear to ear. He did not want to wash his hand ever again.
This was parenting success that night! It was an early Christmas present and he loved it. Fast forward two years, with UNC in the national championship game against Villanova with several of the players who had high-fived my son two years earlier. He had watched the first half, but it was time for bed.
I know sounds like a huge parenting failure to have your 14 year old go to bed when his team is in the National Championship game, but he gets angry without enough sleep.
My wife and I continue to watch the game as it was an exciting game. UNC scores with four seconds left in the game and looks like they are heading to overtime. My wife and I decide to wake him up to watch overtime. So we pause the DVR, wake up our son from his sleep have him come out to watch the rest of the game in overtime.
We start the game on the DVR with Villanova inbounding the ball with four seconds left before overtime starts. EXCEPT, Kris F’ing Jenkins absolutely buries a three-pointer from behind an NBA three-point line as the buzzer sounds.
We all sat in complete silence for several minutes! We had just woken our son to watch his most beloved team lose at the buzzer in the National Championship game. Worst parent move ever! Finally, we both said “sorry” to our son and he went back to bed.
Is this the worst parenting move of sports fandom? Would love to hear other’s horrors as well.
####
Look, was it ideal for your son to wake up like that only to have his heart ripped out? No, but now it’s an incredible story that the family will cherish for a long time. UNC will win more national titles for your son, but he’ll only have one of these moments where mom and dad woke him up to suffer through complete devastation.
I’d argue this was actually a parenting success.
• Screencaps reader Bobby S. in Greensboro sent in this gem:
On beers in Nebraska if you’re ever in the neighborhood
• Bill L. writes:
Hey Joe,
Tell Indy Daryl and any other if your readers the kegerator is always available to the TNML and Screencaps community if they find themselves in the land of the Huskers.
On tap, but running out soon: Holiday Cacao Bourbon Sweet Stout
On deck, tapping soon: Double Rye IPA and ESBLate spring: Raspberry Jalapeno Blonde and American Wheat ale
####
Bill’s also a big Crockpot guy, so something tells me you 100% want to stop by Bill’s house if you’re ever in the Lincoln-Omaha region.
On snakes hidden in a guy’s clothing
• David C. writes:
Joe,
Thought you’d be interested. You just can’t make this stuff up.
####
I’m out dawg. I’m not a snake guy. Will never be a snake guy. Now, as a content guy, I really appreciate such a link because it will cause conversation. As you guys know, I’m big on crap the feds find on the borders or at sorting facilities across the U.S. I love content where the feds find cocaine stuffed into cookbooks and weirdos with 52 snakes buried into clothing.
However, you guys keep your snakes to yourselves. I’m out.
Now, get out there and have yourselves a Saturday. I am off to start building a custom box to hold the man cave/wife’s video game cave receiver, cable boxes, video game systems, etc. It’s the final build for the basement. That’s it.
But…college basketball will be on. Power tools will be used. Just one of those guy’s days you draw up in early March.
I’ll be back late Sunday night to get the March Madness bracket thing rocking. I’m hearing this could be an OutKick site-wide project that I’ll be handling to go along with my duties with the Woke Bracket Challenge that will be firing up soon.
Talk about busy. My ass is going to need several Fridays at the golf course after this run I’m about to go on.
Buckle up.
Email: joekinsey@gmail.com
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