The Future Is Wide Open

When somebody pretending to be Tom Petty asked a question 49 minutes into our eight-hour marathon BracketBusters chat, it seemed at the time like any other funny non-sequitur we've encountered in four-plus years of doing those things. But then the Heartbreakers references kept flying for the next seven hours -- it was as if the music of this stringy-haired, nose-talking, marijuana-loving minstrel was the one thing that all mid-major fans could agree on, despite our differences in creed and (team) color.

With a week of retrospect, it's no surprise at all that Mr. Petty is indeed the de facto poet laureate of Hoops Nation. Guys like Mellencamp and Springsteen are too regional, and it's easy to forget that the artist formerly known as Charlie T. Wilbury, Jr. is from Gainesville, Fla. (I always think he's Californian, for some reason). He also never attended the revolting, oversized power-conference school in his hometown, to his eternal credit. His lyrics have always incorporated and emphasized themes we know well here: yearning, losing, struggle and toughness. And his vision of the top of the world includes a $1,000 bank balance, so he's definitely our kind of guy. Bally's always been a big fan, too.

While it's possible to buy your way into Bally's Playaz Club this week, many others of you have opted to take part in our weekly contest. The mission was simple: take a Tom Petty song and rewrite the lyrics to form a Selection Committee plea on behalf of your favorite team. No fewer than 42 of you took the time to do this, and entries were judged on the basis of awesomeness, ass-kicking rawk content, and phrasing. We'll now put the final four to a vote, then announce a winner on Tuesday.

Louis went with the orange guy's favorite Petty tune, "Breakdown." His William & Mary Tribe aren't in position to make the heroic title game run they made last year, but this year's version likely has a much better theme song.

It's all right if you love them
but it's more likely you don't
There's plenty of seats for you to sit down in
But I get the feeling you won't

Last March's hot streak in Richmond
was no fluke, so we'd pray
They took down Northeastern but lost to Manhattan
It's the 2009 CAA

(so watch the)
Breakdown, go ahead, one-bid league
Breakdown, honey, screw the RPI
Breakdown, the parity, can't you see?
Breakdown, it's alright

It's all right?
It's all right.

"Free Fallin'" was a popular choice, mostly because it captures the dilemma of a team trying to explain away a late-February losing streak. But Travis out in Idaho was able to substitute in an actual player's name, so his entry goes to the head of that particular subregional.

He's a good boy, son of a legend
Drains jumpers and cleans up the glass
He's a good boy, crazy 'bout lay-ups
Dishes to Watson and Big Jefferson too

It's a long night, playin' in Boise
Been ten years, since Idaho won there
And the Broncos, they slink off in shame
He's a bad boy for breakin' their hearts

And he's Mac, Mac Hopson
Yeah he's Mac, Mac Hopson

All the Vandals, playin' in the Spectrum
Should be Dancin', 'cos Verlin's the man
All the hoops fans, cheering in the sta-ands
See a mid-major, whose glory's restored

And he's Mac, Mac Hopson
Yeah he's Mac, Mac Hopson

I wanna dance now, into the tourney
I wanna see Don's 'stache on TV
I wanna 12-seed, chance for an upset
Gonna dream now, of the Sweet 16

And he's Mac, Mac Hopson
Yeah he's Mac, Mac Hopson

Some teams really need to get in the heads of the Selection Committee, and get them humming their song. Here's Josh's toe-tapping ode to Davidson, to the tune of "Runnin' Down a Dream."

It was selection Sunday
The committee bore down
I had CBS on
I was hopin'

The seeds went by
Me and Dell [Curry] were pleading
for a Wildcat bid
for our triple superhero guy

Yeah runnin' and shootin' threes,
and ganging up on D,
McKillop working on the referees,
Steph going where ever he needs,
Yeah runnin' and shootin' threes

Heath likes VCU and Dayton in equal measure, and submitted this general explanation for to the tune of "Learning to Fly."

Well, we started out
Down a Non-con road
Started out, on the road
As Christmas neared
And conference play began
We played our foes
And won again

We're learning to fly
But we don't have wins
Gaining RPI
Is the hardest thing.

Well, the good old days
They did return
And 3's rained down
And their defense burned.

We're learning to fly
But we don't have wins
Gaining RPI
Is the Hardest Thing.

We're learning to fly
Around the clouds
When Cinderella goes up
The big boys go down.

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