For millions of sports fans, March signifies the start of the college basketball playoffs. With a freshly printed bracket in one hand, a pencil in another and the dogged spirit to curate the perfect bracket, March Madness begins. Every year, on Selection Sunday — the Sunday after the regular season concludes — the current year’s bracket is revealed, launching what fans call “The Big Dance,” synonymous with March Madness.
Each year, 68 of the top college basketball teams compete in a single-elimination tournament. The bracket consists of teams that had exceptional seasons and those that snuck in by winning their conferences. Teams are sorted into four separate regions, each seeded 1-16. After the play-in round, known as the “First Four,” the competition narrows to 64 teams. Each round cuts the playing field in half — from the Round of 64 to the Round of 32, the Sweet 16 to the Elite Eight, and finally the Final Four — until the final two teams meet in the national championship game.
Ultimately, the objective is simple: correctly filling out a bracket every year to predict the winner of each game. While devoted basketball fans may confront the challenge more seriously, participation stretches far beyond staunch supporters. Everyone, from casual viewers to office coworkers and dedicated sports enthusiasts, is drawn by the competitive thrill, including Luke Collier ’28.
“March Madness is entertaining because its unpredictable underdogs upset powerhouse teams, games come down to last-second shots and every game creates a connection with the teams,” Collier said.
In 2025, a record 24.4 million brackets were submitted to ESPN’s annual bracket challenge in pursuit of the elusive perfect bracket. However, that number does not account for the private, paper-based brackets, with an estimated 60-100 million total paper brackets completed annually.
Despite the massive engagement surrounding the classic basketball tournament, no verified perfect bracket has ever been achieved. The probability of filling out a perfect bracket is a mere one in 120 billion.
The odds aren’t the only thing that keeps fans coming back each year, though. The fast-paced single-elimination format makes it all the more thrilling. Unlike other major sports, where teams get multiple chances in a series, the NCAA tournament allows for no second chances.
For fans whose colleges and alma maters qualify for the tournament, the stakes feel even higher. Last year, Owen Harms ’26 witnessed his favorite team, the Florida Gators, win the national title.
“I remember recording the final stop to win it all and sprinting upstairs with my hands on my head, in disbelief of what I just watched,” Harms said.
Emotions play a vital role in the environment surrounding the tournament. It shapes how teams perform and why fans are so invested in every game. For players, one big play can create lifelong memories, while one mistake can make or break a team’s season.
With no room for mistakes, upsets become inevitable in tournament play. The annual rise of “Cinderella stories” — lower-seeded teams advancing in the bracket — is one of the main reasons March Madness is so thrilling and unpredictable. Underdog teams feed off of excitement, confidence and a nothing-to-lose energy, creating passionate games with unexpected rivalries.
Ely Smock ’26 is an avid basketball fan, following teams, players and top stories throughout the season. Each March, he takes pride in crafting a bracket based on knowledge and instinct.
While big-time games and shocking upsets drive excitement within the sport, creating a bracket can add another layer of investment while providing a sense of community.
“Every year, I fill out a bracket with my friends. Filling out a bracket and trying to create the most perfect version is fun, but doing it with your friends and making a competition out of it means so much more,” Smock said.
That sense of community is central to March Madness. Bracket debates spark discussions on results from previous years. Trash talk is exchanged amongst friends or coworkers. Friends and family gather for watch parties to enjoy the final game together, regardless of how closely they follow the sport. March Madness is more than sports; it’s a shared connection rooted in paper and driven by unpredictability.
This community is what makes March Madness such a spectacle to engage in. Whether it’s your carefully thought-out bracket or the “Cinderella stories” that keep you engaged, the March Madness magic will always be there, and it will keep coming back year after year.
