There are two things I learned from watching this season’s NCAA Tournament: Adam Morrison’s mustache couldn’t save Gonzaga once the Bulldogs faced an elite team, and Billy Packer should be locked in a retirement home closet.
I do need to preface my statements about Morrison by saying that I spent my spring break growing a ‘stache, and I must say Mr. Morrison, I think I have you beat.
Not only do the ladies love it, but a true ‘stache provides leadership and is a testament of how confident a man (or woman, as the case may be) can be in any and all circumstances. I have learned this by catching glances from nearly every person I walk by, although I have a feeling that most of the looks have been out of admiration.
Morrison and the Bulldogs fell to UCLA, who face Florida in tonight’s championship game, and no matter how much Morrison and his ‘stache gave to the game that night, it wasn’t enough. It nearly wasn’t enough for much of the conference season when Gonzaga would usually beat fellow West Coast Conference teams by a late field goal.
After turning the ball over and blowing a lead in the final minute of the game against the Bruins, Morrison showed his emotion and once the final horn sounded, he collapsed to the floor with nothing left. All of the basketball analysts critiqued it, but I admire it. I know exactly what he was feeling, and I honestly believe it is because we are ‘stache brothers.
The other day I was in a heated battle of skiball with a friend. It came down to the final game in a best-of-five series. Well, I choked and lost by 40. It was a tough loss and I was barely able to stand afterward. But I knew that I gave it my all and when I could have played it safe and went for the 30 and 40-point holes, I rolled that ball for 100 every time.
Morrison, you are my bro. I’ve got your back and I hope that if someday I am covering a professional game that you are in, we can compare ‘staches afterward.
That segue is perfect to guide me to my second point. Billy Packer has to be the worst announcer in sports. And that is coming from a guy who mutes the television during games John Madden and Dick Vitale broadcast.
Besides trash-talking a top seed a couple of years ago (see St. Joseph), he “accidentally” revealed the wrong matchup between two teams while the NCAA bracket was being announced live this season. Oops, who forgot to watch Packer? He wandered onto the court and started talking to the television camera again.
I believe in paying homage to past greats in the journalism field and respecting the men and women that have paved the way for me, but there are some that slip through the cracks. Packer, who has crossed a line regarding racism, is not one of those guys, and CBS does a disservice to its viewers by continuing to put a microphone in front of him.
If I know anything, two things are for sure: Mustaches are in, and Packer should be out.

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