Another week in review

Wow, times flies when you don't have anything to blog about. Or, more accurately, when you're sidelined with what the sports world calls "flu-like symptoms".

Now I'm feeling great, thanks to some rest, my mom, and the culinary brilliance of Chili's To Go. What did I miss?

1. The Final Four were chosen. Called out from among mere men, the Final Four rose forth, shaking the Earth in their illustrious...sorry. I mean, I really have been inside too long.

Florida. Georgetown. Ohio State. UCLA. Who had them picked? I didn't, but it's not hard to imagine that thousands of fans did. Georgetown is the closest to being a surprise, but even they were a No. 2 seed in an up-for-grabs regional. John, go ahead and tell us you had Georgetown making it this far. Seriously. We're dying to know. (As you can see, I'm not bitter at all. Actually, I'm...well, I'll get to that at No. 2. Suffice it to say I have still never won an NCAA tournment contest of any kind.)

I think the lineup of teams is interesting, but I don't think it's too meaningful either way. My first post on this blog was about how sick I was of hearing about Cinderella teams, many of whom lose big after that inspiring two-game winning streak into the Sweet Sixteen. In a way, it's nice to see great teams taking every spot. Hopefully, it means there are three great games left to go.

Of course, the novelty of an unknown on the national stage is a nice thing too. Is it going away? The pessimist could argue that the new professional age limit is really only going to help major programs, who can now feature players that in years past would have already been in the NBA. I don't think this is true now, but it's possible.

I'm just glad college basketball lets the small schools play on the same floor as the big ones. They could just scrap the tournament altogether and let the most-hyped squads play in exhibitions two months after the season, you know.

2. Actually, I'm...(cont.) not that upset about North Carolina's tourney loss. Maybe I'm getting soft. Maybe it's that they won it all so recently, and the shot at another title so soon felt like a gift anyway. Or maybe the Tar Heels just completely fell apart and have no one to blame but themselves.

Georgetown dominated them down the stretch, and the Tar Heels were happy to play along, taking horrible shots and ignoring their post men in the halfcourt. They choked, but they probably weren't really contenders to begin with. Like the 2005-06 Broncos, I got too excited, but the titles would have been a little unexpected anyway. They didn't lose on a bad call or anything. I can live with that.

The part about it that really bothered me was a trash-talking phone call from a friend who recently became an N.C. State fan. (Don't ask me why.) Something about how the Tar Heels always fold under pressure, especially Tyler Hansbrough, who was only the game's leading scorer with 26 points and matched Hoya Roy "Julius" Hibbert's game-high 11 boards. Hansbrough's not my favorite player or anything, but geez, what do you want from him?

You're right, though, it's not as good as finishing tenth in a 12-team conference or nabbing that 6 seed in the NIT.

3. Broncos sign Dre Bly. Man, this post is getting long. So the Broncos signed Dre Bly to a seemingly reasonable five-year, $33 million deal. (By the way, the linked article is incredibly short, but I'm hopeful the Denver Post will fix it overnight before you read this.)

Is the NFL's free agency spending spree over? I don't know. I can't make sense of the deals under the new cap. $33 million still sounds like a ton of money for a No. 2 corner. But I'm glad he's signed, happy the distraction's gone, and I'm looking forward to seeing what a gambler can do opposite a Champ.