March Madness pretty much pays for all non-football college sports on the national level. More than 95% of the NCAA's revenue comes from the men's basketball tournament, which has become a 10-figure TV contract.
That popularity has skyrocketed despite a dropping overall interest in regular-season college basketball over the last decade-plus.
Sure, the unpredictability and the finality of the results in March has helped the tournament's popularity, but the Dance became this big of a deal in large part because of the brackets.
Even folks who don't regularly gamble would throw in a buck or $5 in an office pool entry (or three). Susan may have picked her winners by uniform color; Tom's 12-year-old son may have filled out his bracket by choosing which mascot would prevail in a fight against the others.
But in the age of coronavirus, it's a lot harder to have an office pool when next to no one is going to the office.
Sure, there are online options aplenty. And we'll have one next week for you good folks, too, online at timesfreepress.com in the "5-at-10" column each morning.
That said, the connection between Susan and Tom's preteen and everyone else in the office pool may be just the next line item in the things forever changed by COVID-19.
Signs of the times
So apparently some new emojis are dropping this month.
Yes, to no one's surprise, my emoji game is non-existent. I actually take pride in that. And that I've never worn a jersey not handed to me by someone I called coach.
Emojis, of course, are the little electronic communication images that add to the continued deterioration of the written word. So it goes.
There are countless emojis, from the No. 1 to a well-recognized No. 2 to an underlined 100 that apparently is a good thing.
The class of 2022 includes 37 news emojis, including one that somehow has not been thought of until now. There's now a "saluting" emoji, and you'd think that would have been around since the dawn of emojis time.
Then there are those that make you wonder, "Who's using this in abbreviated communication?"
Like the new addition of a variety of bean emojis, a pregnant man and a heavy equals sign.
Now that's a new-school math problem - kidney beans + pregnant man with a heavy equals sign - that will demand you show your work.
Obit observation
When famous people die, their legacy lingers.
For the folks who we frequently describe as "salt of the earth," their memories and stories circulate on a much smaller scale.
That's what I thought when Robert "Bob" McKenzie's obituary was sent my way.
Bob died last month at the age of 94, and as you would expect, lived a long and fulfilling life. He also persevered through some of the toughest hurdles God can place before us.
Bob buried four kids and a grandson before he passed. He served in the Navy and spent his professional life on the road working for the CSX railroad.
He is survived by his wife of 72 years, Kewpie, as well as his daughter, Angel, his son-in-law, Greg Whitson, and four grandchildren.
Life is hard. Being a steady influence through those hardships is an exemplary example.
Contact Jay Greeson at jgreeson@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6273. Follow him on Twitter @jgreesontfp.
View other columns by Jay Greeson
Jay Greeson