[ARETE] Sport and Society - March is full of Madness

[richard crepeau]

SPORT AND SOCIETY FOR ARETE
March 27, 2025

Today is the first day of the Men’s Sweet Sixteen in the Moveable Feast called March Madness. It comes in an extended weekend of what might be the maddest March in history. No, I am not talking politics. I am talking about sports in America and a television schedule that could burn out the circuitry on TV sets across the country.
It started quietly yesterday afternoon with the first day of the World Figure Skating Championship in Boston. NBC offered the Women’s Short Program and Pair’s Short Program on one of its lesser networks, USA. The event will continue through Sunday with coverage in the afternoon and evening. All of the events will also be shown on NBC’s Peacock Streaming Service. NBC will carry the finals of the Women’s and Men’s competition on Friday and Saturday night. The Pairs Final will be Thursday evening (tonight).
The pace picks up in earnest today, Thursday, with an avalanche of events. The Men’s Sweet Sixteen opens tonight with four games carried on TBS and CBS. The NCAA Hockey Tournament opens with four games at two regional venues. These can be seen on one or more of the ESPN networks.
If this isn’t enough, it is opening day stateside for most of Major League Baseball. Fourteen games will be played beginning in Yankee Stadium at 3:05 eastern time and ending with games in Arizona and Seattle with first pitch at 10:10 eastern time.
This should get the juices flowing and the TV sets warmed up, not to mentioned your phones, tablets, or other devices (I love that designation with its touch of mystery).
On Friday, the Women’s Sweet Sixteen begins with four games added to the mix that will be televised on ESPN. The men’s side will offer four more sweet sixteen games. There will be four more regional matchups in the NCAA Hockey tournament. Baseball continues with one more opening day and eight other games on tap. Figure skating moves to the finals of the Women’s Free Skate.
Saturday will feature the Men’s Figure Skating final. Also, on the ice, two regional finals will be played in the NCAA Hockey Tournament. Four women’s games in the Sweet Sixteen will be held, and on the men’s side two elite eight games will he played.
Sunday, there will be two more regional finals in the NCAA Hockey Tournament. These games will complete the slots for the Frozen Four. The men’s basketball will have two more elite eight games filling out the final four. On the women’s side two elite eight games will be played.
Monday will bring this weekend endurance test to an end for fans with two more elite eight games in the Women’s Basketball rendition of March Madness completing that final four bracket.
It should also be noted that the NBA and NHL are entering the final stretch of their seasons. Teams are maneuvering for playoff position and, of course, some teams are trying to hit the bottom for a chance at the first pick in the next draft. For some teams, each game is critical and a must see for their fans.
I remember when if you suggested that all of this would be available to sports fans in one weekend, it would be proof that you had lost touch with reality. Now, it is simply a matter of reality having lost touch with reality. So, is this a good thing or not? Is it too much? Or is too much never enough? Do you mind having a fog over your brain or a dulling of your senses?
If this glut is a problem, there is a fairly simple solution. It was once known as self-control or self-discipline. Don’t watch. Read about these events later or watch highlight packages if you must have an electronic experience to verify the results.
For me, it is a problem because many, too many, of these events are things I want to see, preferably live. My solution is to prioritize and record all those events that are not first priority for me. I will eventually watch them, sometimes days or even weeks after the fact. It may be surprising how interest is maintained although much of the tension in the event is reduced. The skill and artistry are still there, the joy of victory and the agony of defeat remains, with a bit less intensity in some cases.
I remain stunned by all that is available and still I wonder if it is a good thing. If I am numb by Monday night, I will have to reevaluate on Tuesday.
And what of next weekend?

On Sport and Society this is Dick Crepeau reminding you that you don’t have to be a good sport to be a bad loser.

Copyright 2025 by Richard C. Crepeau

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