March Madness Bracket Pool 2011

March is here, meaning that there is a new way to qualify for the blog's expert league! Regardless of what sport you prefer to watch, you can't call yourself a sports fan unless you fill out a March Madness bracket. In fact, the addiction is so strong that experts estimate the American economy misses out on $1.7 billion of productivity as workers fill out brackets and watch the games. Be a part of that wasted time and enter the bracket pool sponsored by the blog.

Why, you ask, should I enter this particular bracket pool? Because if you win, you are invited to play in the blog's fantasy football expert league! That means you get to compete head-to-head with the guru himself in a league consisting of the best fantasy football players on the face of the planet. If for some crazy reason that doesn't entice you, the winner also receives a Dick's gift card! Plus, it's absolutely free to enter.

Any individual with an email address is eligible to compete. To enter, simply send an email to with the following information: an alias/pen name (optional), your picks, and a score for the Championship Game. I would appreciate it if you formatted your picks in the following way to make scoring easier. List every team you predict to advance from the first round in one paragraph, preferably in a logical order. Do the same for each subsequent round until only one team is remaining. Indicate that this is the team you predict to be the National Champions. Include a score for the Championship Game, in which you indicate the scores for both the winning and losing teams.

You will receive 1 point for each correct team in the first round, 2 for the second round, 4 for the regional semifinals, 8 for the regional finals, 16 for the semifinal, and 32 for correctly predicting the National Champion. Tie-breaking procedures are as follows:

1. Closest to the total score (sum of home and away scores) for the Championship Game.
2. Closest to the score of the winning team for the Championship Game.
3. Closest to the score of the losing team for the Championship Game.

*The formula for determining the closest to the scores is as follows:
X=/(actual score) - (predicted score)/

There is no charge to enter the pool. Sending money will not increase your chances of winning. Only one entry per email address. In the case of multiple entries, only the first entry will be scored. All entries are due by 8:00 AM on the morning of March 15, 2011.

The winner will receive a special invitation to compete against the guru himself in a highly competitive fantasy football league. Good luck to all challengers. Remember, only the best and brightest gain access to the FG37FFEC.