To celebrate March Madness and get in on all the fun around here, ASoB is once again going to do our very own NCAA tourney bracket challenge on Yahoo! Sports. This will be the third year in a row for the ASoB challenge and if you would like try your hand against your fellow ASoB members, I invite you to fill out a bracket(s) for yourself. All ASoB members are welcome and encouraged to participate
Those of you who participated in this challenge in years past are old pros by now and know exactly what to do, but for those of you who didn't get in on the fun before this year or for those who need a reminder where to go, please click here. Once you click on that link, you will want to pick the "Join Group" button. If you don't currently have a Yahoo! account, you will be prompted to create one. After you have created a Yahoo! account, or you have simply signed in to your existing account you will need to enter the Group ID # 21007 and Group Password asob2010 (no space) to access our group and once you have created your bracket name you can then enter your picks. More details to follow.
As far as your bracket name, I would make the suggestion to use your ASoB username or something similar as your bracket name. Most of us who have participated in this challenge in the past have used our ASoB usernames (for example, I use BigSkyCat) and it definitely makes it easy to identify everyone that way, but, of course, you are welcome to choose something entirely different, as well, it's whatever you prefer. Also, if I remember correctly, last year there was some trouble with entering picks immediately as the Yahoo! site is quite understandably overrun with traffic the minute the bracket challenge goes live, so if at first you are unable to make your picks, don't fret, just try back in a few hours. The deadline for making your picks is the tip-off of the first game scheduled for Thursday, March 18th.
One difference in the bracket challenge this year is that I changed the maximum number of brackets you call fill out for the ASoB group from 1 to 2. I know some of you have children, spouses, nieces, nephews, etc. that might want to get in on the fun and I thought that increasing the number of brackets you are able to fill out might be an easy and convenient way to include them, or perhaps you yourself would like to try your luck more than once, and that's fine too. I know I fill out more than a handful of brackets every year and I'm sure ya'll are no different.
There will be no money involved, of course, and other than bragging rights for the winner(s) there are no physical prizes to speak of. But, provided you aren't afraid (wink, wink) and you feel like giving the bracket challenge a shot by competing against your fellow ASoB members, and you happen to have a bit of a competitive nature like I do (imagine that, a UK fan with a competitive nature, crazy, right?) -- go for it! Please give a shout with any questions you may have about the bracket challenge, and no matter if you end up making your bracket picks with your head or your heart, best of luck to you.
Feel free to discuss anything UK, March Madness or bracket related in the comments below, and of course, lastly, but surely not least, GO ‘CATS!