Curses! The Buckeyes Foiled Me Again!

You know, if I wasn't already genetically and geographically disposed to dislike Ohio State, I might begin to hate those guys. They're really starting to bug me. Virtually every team I've rooted for over the past six months has been defeated/eliminated/etc. by the Buckeyes.

In football, they knocked Michigan out of the national championship race in November. In basketball, they ruined any chance Michigan had for an NCAA Tournament bid - twice in one week! And now, the Ohio State University has taken my bracket, crumpled it up, and thrown it into the garbage, by eliminating my homeboy Bruce Pearl and his Tennessee Volunteers in last night's regional semi-final.

Now that I think about it, did the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Detroit Tigers in the World Series, or did Ohio State? That happened back in October, so my memory's a bit hazy. I do remember the color red being involved, however, so I wouldn't be surprised...

Why do they enjoy hurting me? What did I ever do to piss those guys off -- oops, never mind, I know the answer to that.

I'm still not sure how the Buckeyes came back to win that game. (Yes, even though Rocky Top Talk has outlined a thorough explanation.) Weren't the Vols up by 20 at one point? I have a text message from Dr. Lil' Sis' fiancee that essentially confirms that scenario. And... and that Oden dude barely played in the game because he kept fouling people (though his fourth foul was a weak call). Yet there he was at the very end, blocking the Vols' last shot.

I suppose it's easy to say that Tennessee lost because all those three-pointers they made in the first half turned into bricks during the second half. (Those guards obviously have the green light from Coach Pearl to jack up all those threes. Otherwise, I don't know how the hell he could stand it. Maybe that's the way they always play, but I kept screaming "No! No! No!" at the TV every time JuJuan Smith or Chris Lofton hoisted it from near-NBA three-point range, only to say "Oh! Okay - well, keep doing that!" every time the shot went in.)

Anyway, so that happened. Thanks, Ohio State, for screwing me again. Dammit.

So let's bring this back home. Now that Tennessee's season is done, will their head coach be getting a call from the Michigan athletic department? Chalk this up to frivolous rumor (and a lot of those things have been swirling around over the past week), and that category could certainly apply here, but I've heard rumblings from the Volunteer State that Bill Martin plans to go after Bruce Pearl and go after him hard. Maybe even harder, now that Minnesota nabbed Tubby Smith (and if you haven't read Maize n Brew's account of that, get over there and go into your weekend with a smile). Of course, that could just be anxiety from Tennessee. Take it or leave it.

By the way, now that the shock has worn off, did Tubby Smith really leave Kentucky for Minnesota? I mean, that really happened? I just wanted to be sure. I don't have anything against Minnesota. I love Minneapolis; I almost moved there a few years ago. I'm just wondering when exactly the world I knew so well changed so drastically.