I Miss March Madness In Las Vegas!!

[Greg Ambrosius]

This is the first time since 2001 that I haven't been in Las Vegas for the First Weekend of March Madness. I began hosting the Fantasy Sports Trade Conference in March of 2001 (at the Rio) and continued to do that through 2008, while adding the NFBC in 2004 (also at the Rio). It was a fantastic weekend to host industry events and our debut High Stakes consumer draft. What a weekend to be in Las Vegas.

This year because of Major League Baseball pushing back the start of their season by a week, we aren't in Las Vegas today to host NFBC drafts. What a BUMMER!! Damn that Bud Selig for pushing back the season opener. I hope it rains and snows every night in late October/early November during the final week of the World Series. That will make him push up the start of the season again.

It's hard to even fill out a March Madness bracket knowing that I won't have the chance to bet on 16 games today and 16 tomorrow. Dennis and I made it a tradition to bet on every game those first two days just so that we had some skin in the game!! We never won money doing it that way, but I think the last two years we broke even on those 32 games. Let me tell you, breaking even or just losing a little with so much on the line on so many games is LIKE WINNING BABY!!! Pure enjoyment.

The bad new is that I'm sure we'll have the same setup next year as this year. The first Monday of April is April 1 and so I'm sure MLB will open the season on April 3. We'll likely be on Sweet Sixteen and Final Four weekends again. The next year, however, when the first Monday of April is April 7 I'm sure we'll be back on track. So look to 2014 NFBC to possibly be back on March Madness Opening Weekend.

Enjoy the games today. I'll be sad all weekend.

[Fourslot40]

Feel the same way Greg. Bummer.

[Oaktown]

Same here....I miss today and tomorrow in the Sports Book

[Greg Ambrosius]

Sure, Marquette and Wisconsin would have to cover the spread the one year I'm not there!!

[Greg Ambrosius]

I know this is a long ways off, but it's probably something we should all look at and talk about when we get together in the next two weeks:

Someone smarter than me looked at the calendar for 2013 and noted that Easter is on March 31. It will be mighty tough to host live drafts on that holiday. It's very possible that even if Opening Day is Wednesday, April 3rd that we may have to go a bit earlier for the live drafts. It's not ideal, but let's discuss it well in advance of knowing what Major League Baseball is going to do. It's very possible that they even move up their starting date next year with this additional Wild Card game now in the plans. Maybe they open on a Tuesday or a Monday.

Anyway, with Easter on the 31st in 2013, maybe we return a little earlier for the two weekends of live drafts. We'll see.

[Joe Sambito]

If that is a way to get the live draft back to the First weekend of March Madness, I am all for it. Easter drafts will work for some, not most. Bagging out on Easter won't sit well at home. I am all for earlier drafts, might make that FAAB 1 very exciting!!!

[Lunatic]

I also miss the 1st weekend of the NCAA Basketball Tournament. Nothing quite like the excitement throughout the various Sprortsbooks.

As for LIVE Drafts on Easter weekend, Mrs. Christie would not be happy, at all; and before Magner makes some comment about that, Mrs. Magner wouldn't either
We just may need to move them to March 22-24 and March 15-17 and we all have the same parameters to do this. Is there more risk? of course, but I think the live events suffer if we go Easter weekend. It would be a bachelor's live event joined by the soon to be divorced group

[Fourslot40]

I know this is a long ways off, but it's probably something we should all look at and talk about when we get together in the next two weeks:

Someone smarter than me looked at the calendar for 2013 and noted that Easter is on March 31. It will be mighty tough to host live drafts on that holiday. It's very possible that even if Opening Day is Wednesday, April 3rd that we may have to go a bit earlier for the live drafts. It's not ideal, but let's discuss it well in advance of knowing what Major League Baseball is going to do. It's very possible that they even move up their starting date next year with this additional Wild Card game now in the plans. Maybe they open on a Tuesday or a Monday.

Anyway, with Easter on the 31st in 2013, maybe we return a little earlier for the two weekends of live drafts. We'll see.

Greg... was thinking of this earlier, but didn't want to be the one to suggest it. It would be awesome to push up the two weeks of live events to coincide with the first two weekends of the NCAA tourney. Especially with the Easter holiday in play.

[Catch]

2013 Dates:

First and Second Rounds
Thursday and Saturday March 21 and 23, 2013
Friday and Sunday March 22 and 24, 2013

Regionals
Thursday and Saturday March 28 and 30, 2013
Friday and Sunday March 29 and 31, 2013

Final Four
Saturday and Monday April 6 and 8, 2013

More detail info can be found @ http://www.bracketography.com/ncaa-tournament-sites/

[Greg Ambrosius]

2013 Dates:

First and Second Rounds
Thursday and Saturday March 21 and 23, 2013
Friday and Sunday March 22 and 24, 2013

Regionals
Thursday and Saturday March 28 and 30, 2013
Friday and Sunday March 29 and 31, 2013

Final Four
Saturday and Monday April 6 and 8, 2013

More detail info can be found @ http://www.bracketography.com/ncaa-tournament-sites/

Wow, this get's stranger by the moment. So now the NCAA isn't hosting the final on the first Monday of April?? So now we would have our Second Weekend on First Weekend of March Madness??? We go from Final Four to Opening Weekend? This is crazy. I guess we'll just deal with this next year, but I agree that Easter is a killer. We'll try to stay away, but we'll also see what MLB has planned for their opening date. Wild day with this today. Thanks all.

[Greg Ambrosius]

Now that I look at this schedule for 2013, I'm REALLY PUMPED!! NCAA has pushed back their schedule one week because of Easter and MLB will likely move their starting date up a day or two because of the Wild Card addition. We may have to go a week earlier, which means our Second Weekend would be the First Weekend of March Madness. WOW. And our First Weekend would be Conference Tournament weekend, which has even more games than March Madness Opening Weekend. Could be 2 fun weekends in Las Vegas in 2013. Good job all.

Oh, and one thing I CAN'T STAND about this year's tournament: They are calling today's games the Second Round!!! How lame. Like those play-in games were the First Round of the Tournament. Give me a break. SECOND ROUND!!!! Someone in the suits must have made that call. Crazy.

[CALI CARTEL]

Oh, and one thing I CAN'T STAND about this year's tournament: They are calling today's games the Second Round!!! How lame. Like those play-in games were the First Round of the Tournament. Give me a break. SECOND ROUND!!!! Someone in the suits must have made that call. Crazy.

It's the first step in the 96-team tournament format that we'll see in a few years.