Greetings!
Since we are now officially less than three months from the start of practice, it is finally time to begin turning our eyes to the calendar with hope instead of despair. Basketball Appetizer Season (also known as "football" season in some circles) kicks off in just over a month while colleges and universities are entering their final stages of preparation for returning students.
Big things are happening at the Bracket Board, too. The WTBB (Wife of TBB or Woman TBB--like the WNBA) is expecting our first little bracket pod in January. I am also am attempting to qualify for the Boston Marathon at the St. Jude's Memphis Marathon on December 2nd. While I will not run Boston next April, a December qualifying time would also make me eligible for Boston in 2008. So, there are lots of good things happening right now at TBB. Especially if you enjoy pain (childbirth and marathoning).
As far as changes for this site in the upcoming season, readers can expect a lot of what they saw last year: evaluation of the college hoops landscape through the lense of the NCAA selection criteria. However, I must say that for the first time in seven years, I have lost faith in that criteria just a bit. Last year's committee clearly departed from "normal" committee behavior. We bracketologists did enough moaning and name-calling last March, so I'll spare you the caterwauling about their shortcomings. TBB will continue to evaluate teams as it always has and hope that last year's committee just had an off year.
Until January, this site will more about ideology than bracket projections. There will be at least one preseason bracket projection and maybe two. But until the non-conference season ends, TBB hopes to provide interesting pieces on college hoops sans brackets, Lockboxes, Bubble Boys, and the like. Once January hits, the site will probably follow a path similar to last season's routine: bracket projections on Mondays, Lockbox on Tuesdays, Bubble Boys on Wednesday, potpourri on Thursdays, and a Sun Belt breakdown on Friday. Of course, you can rely on TBB for daily GOI (games of importance) and for preseason, conference, and NCAA tournament brackets.
Enjoy the rest of your summer and the upcoming Basketball Appetizer Season. TBB will update periodically over the next couple of months and will return full force in late September or early October.
