#GiantBrackets, 2011-Present

      Comments Off on #GiantBrackets, 2011-Present

2011

Ten years ago, I made my first-ever #GiantBracket, inspired by the Mid-Majority:

And what a year for it, as it turned out!

IMG_3470 IMG_3513 IMG_3793

2012

I couldn’t find one photo showing the 2012 #GiantBracket in its final, post-championship form, but here are a few photos that collectively show most of it.

Heading into the Sweet Sixteen:

IMG_2865(1)

Heading into the championship game:

IMG_3115(1)

After the title game:

IMG_3182(1)

The “2-year-old overlord” comment refers to the fact that our middle daughter won my office pool that year, with Kentucky’s championship clinching her win.

Also in 2012, we did a #GiantBracket for the women’s tournament, which (unlike dad’s bracket) the girls had free rein to draw on:

IMG_3651 IMG_3381(1)

2013

The first major #GiantBracket subplot in 2013 was the LaSalle “Explorers” earning the fandom of one Dora the Explorer:

IMG_9801

Also, Harvard fought fiercely and won!

IMG_9783

But then Wichita State became the big story, first by making me sad (beating Gonzaga), then by making me happy (with another Mid-Majority run to the Final Four).

IMG_9865 IMG_0082 IMG_0085 IMG_0409

2014

A year later, Wichita State wasn’t a Cinderella surprise, but an undefeated #1 seed. Bally was excited!

IMG_1094

And this wasn’t just any mid-major dream season. The Mid-Majority’s 10-year run was ending whenever the last mid-major played its last game in 2014, and Wichita State was clearly the best hope for #TMM to “end in a win.”

So the Shockers’ loss in a second-round thriller to regular-season underachiever and eventual Final Four team Kentucky, a.k.a. the most talented 8-seed ever, was one of the more heartbreaking of the #GiantBracket era.

IMG_1099 IMG_1103

With Wichita out, the #GiantBracket’s lonely eyes looked to Dayton:

IMG_1087

But alas, it ended — as always — in a loss.

IMG_1325

IMG_4283

2015

I don’t have as much to say about 2015, but here’s that year’s final bracket:

IMG_5007

2016

The most memorable bit of the #GiantBracket in 2016 was the bipolar ride of Northern Iowa. First, exquisite joy:

And then, unfathomable sadness:

The final bracket:

IMG_1080

2016 also saw another very colorful #GiantBracket for the women’s tournament:

IMG_9683 IMG_9685-2

2017

In 2017, the #GiantBracket left Colorado for the first time, as we were on spring break in Puerto Rico during the tournament’s second weekend. So I rolled it up, brought it on the plane with us….

IMG_5633
IMG_6086

We were back home in time for the Final Four, and Gonzaga’s first championship game appearance.

IMG_6815 IMG_9155

But alas…

IMG_6830 IMG_5982

2018

This was probably the most memorable #GiantBracket of all-time, and if you remember what happened in the first round that year, you know why.

And then the #GiantBracket boarded an airplane again (for Final Four weekend this time), to Mexico.

Imported 2018-04-21 Imported 2018-04-21

Also, I was so damn excited about the Notre Dame women’s buzzer-beating national title, it, uh, sort of took over the championship line on the men’s bracket… 🙂

IMG_1286

2019

Like 2015, the 2019 #GiantBracket was a comparatively boring one, so I’ll just post the final bracket:

IMG_1919

2020

This, of course, was the saddest #GiantBracket ever.

Last in the evening on March 9, realizing that the tourney was in jeopardy, I made this whiteboard:

And then on March 12…

Imported 2020-03-21

2021

This year, I debuted the #GiantWallOfBrackets for the conference tournaments:

And then…