It’s Friday and it’s 70 degrees on the first day of Serendipity – the only thing that could keep people from that ideal day: March Madness.The 2010 men’s NCAA Division I basketball tournament began on Thursday, March 18. The 64-team tournament bracket came out on Sunday, March 14. Fans filled out their brackets between Sunday and Thursday, making March Madness one of the most unique sporting events of the year because the fans compete, too, amongst each other.

“It’s almost like writing a paper,” said football defensive coordinator Joe Mitskas. “You have to go through and make edits, make sure your picks look right.”

However, separating loyalty to one’s team from making picks poses a significant problem.

“It’s always biased,” said junior Richard Paul, who picked his Florida Gators to win their first-round matchup against Brigham Young University; they promptly lost on opening day.

“Every year that UNC sucks, my bracket is really good,” said sophomore Alexis Goldman, who grew up in Chapel Hill and bleeds Carolina blue.

The Tarheels, who won the tournament last year, failed to make the field this year. Every tournament is different, and nobody has the formula for picking games perfectly.

In the past, Goldman has picked games based on the colors of the team’s jerseys; that strategy worked better than her knowledge of how the teams played.

Throughout the tournament, most fans wind up rooting against the picks they labored to make.

Sophomore Alex Philhower picked Kansas to win it all but, because UNC is out, he will root for West Virginia. Sophomore Micah Winterstein picked Kansas, too, but raised in Philadelphia, will pull for Villanova.

“Nova all the way,” said Mitskas, who picked Kansas to win it all, too, but his sister attended Villanova. “It’s where my heart is.”

Goldman and Paul picked Kentucky to win the championship, although Paul admits his bias as Kentucky plays in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) with his Florida Gators. Goldman and Philhower, being die-hard Tarheel fans, say that most of all they want Duke to lose.

The brackets become the “water cooler talk,” as Mitskas said. Every game means something not only to the teams, but to the fans as well. Walk into a sports bar and you’ll hear graying men scream through smoke-filled air at various televisions, urging on teams from schools they did not know existed. Ever heard of Wofford College?

Wofford, the regional’s 13th seed, led Wisconsin, the fourth seed, for much of the game before losing 53-49. Upsets haven’t been too rare in 2010, as eight teams seeded 10th or lower in their region, (there are four regions, 16 teams in each), won their first round matchups. After the second round, 12th seed Cornell University, 11th seed the University of Washington and 10th seed St. Mary’s College are the three remaining teams seeded 10th or lower.

Thus, another dilemma arises for the fan: to root for the pick or the upset?

“Everyone loves a Cinderella,” said Paul.

“The upset,” said Philhower, who visibly hesitated while answering. “At some point my teams better win.”

With bragging rights at stake, the concept of the upset is not what forces fans to root in spite of their brackets; it’s the unparalleled intensity of March Madness.

“Every second on that court matters to them,” said Mitskas, whose eyes lit up while talking about the intensity.

Wofford College never plays schools like Wisconsin during its season. Watching them dive on the hardwood as if it were a swimming pool for a loose ball is too hard to resist for sports fans. Watching the likes of Wisconsin dive with an equal negligence of safety makes this tournament unlike any other, hence its nickname: March Madness.

“Every team has their chance to shine,” said Philhower. “They’ve worked so hard to get to the tournament, and their life is on the line.