It’s that annoying time of year again. No, I’m not talking about that time where we all start stressing over exams and final papers. I’m talking about the NCAA March Madness tournament.
March Madness is a huge college basketball tournament that happens every year, surprisingly enough, in March. The tournament showcases some of the best college basketball teams in the United States. Every year, sports fans all over North America hurry to fill out the 32-team bracket in hope they achieve the impossible, perfect bracket.
I am a huge sports fan. Admittedly a baseball and hockey fan, but I do enjoy the occasional basketball game and most sporting events. But why is the NCAA so big in Canada?
It’s broadcasted all over the country, but why should we really care? These are teams from United States colleges. We go to Carleton University, so what makes you passionate about any of these schools?
It’s great basketball, but there are other events going on that could be covered more in depth by Canadian media before March Madness. Everybody loves an underdog, a national hero, or just a great story—which I guess is why we watch it—but we’re missing a passion for our country’s teams and schools.
This week, Carleton’s men’s hockey team was in Halifax for the University Cup national championship where they lost an epic game by a score of 3-2 in not just overtime, but quadruple overtime. How many Carleton students know about that? They could have caught the game on OUA TV online or followed along on social media, but those are really the only options. Unless you go to the school, were at the game, or deeply into CIS sports, you easily would have completely missed it.
Sportsnet is covering the finals on the weekend, but that’s not nearly enough coverage to see such great hockey. Knowing our men’s team was heading to the national tournament, it would’ve been great to see the school make more announcements about it to support the team and try to get more students excited about a team other than men’s basketball.
It truly is special that our hockey team was competing to be the best in all of Canada. There very easily could have been an event set up at Oliver’s by the Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA), or the Fieldhouse by Athletics. The game could have been streamed and played on a large monitor to encourage more students to get excited about it and make watching the game more communal.
Around the school, the most recognition teams seem to get is from student reporters or social media. If a game is deemed important enough, a TV or radio station might pick it up. Lack of attention from the school itself and relevant student associations means we’re left with student reporters, The Charlatan, and social media.
CUSA does an excellent job cramming elections and campaigning down our throats, but perhaps it would be beneficial to promote something that will bring Carleton together. Remember how fun the Panda Game was? The game received excellent promotion and had an amazing turnout. People cared about it. We need to do that for all our sports, especially hockey—Canada’s game.
The NCAA tournament has only begun. We haven’t even gotten to the sweet 16, elite 8, or final 4 yet, and people are going nuts. There needs to be more promotion and passion for CIS sports. The league is a hidden gem.
