Dr. Midnight’s Musings

This tournament is already  shaping up to be among the best ever.    Two days ago, 15-seed Oral Roberts shocked Ohio State in overtime, 75-72 in overtime.  It was the Golden Eagles' first tournament win since 1974.  Elsewhere, North Texas earned their first-ever tournament win with another stunning upset of Purdue.  Ohio shocked defending champion Virginia, Creighton survived UC Santa Barbara, Maryland knocked off Connectitcut, UCLA upset BYU, and Abilene Christan surprised Texas.  Earlier today, Loyola Chicago, with Sister Jean at their side, upended first-seed Illinois. What a  tournament this already is.

March Madness, the NCAA basketball tournament, has just tipped off.  For sports fans like myself, having the tournament will be a welcome sight, especially after last year's edition was cancelled due to COVID-19.  Throughout the years, the tournament has given fans a seemingly endless supply of memorable moments. Here are the top 10 greatest games in NCAA tournament history.  10. 1979 Championship Game - Michigan State 75, Indiana State 64 This highly-anticipated clash between Michigan State, lead by Earvin "Magic" Johnson, and undefeated small school Indiana State, guided by Larry Bird, did not quite live up to the hype, as Magic's Spartans were in control throughout much of the game, ending up winning by eleven points.  Nevertheless, this game remains a watershed moment in college basketball history, as it helped make the NCAA tournament a national obsession, while scoring record television ratings which still stand to this day.  The game also launched the Mag...

Year in and year out, we look to the familiar excitement and spectacle of sports.  The magnificent plays, remarkable feats, and the hoisting of trophies have provided a familiar joy for America and the world, while guiding us all through tragedy and uncertainty.  Think of how baseball gave Americans a happy distraction during World War II, or how all sports helped unite the country after 9/11.  However, for several nightmarish months in 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic robbed us of these magical moments we took for granted for so long. On March 11, 2020, the day the World Health Organization declared the rapidly growing Coronavirus outbreak to be a pandemic, the sports calendar was reaching one of its most thrilling junctures.  Baseball was about to begin, the NBA and NHL regular seasons were in the home stretch, and March Madness, the NCAA basketball tournament, was mere days away.  But on that night, right before an NBA game between the Utah Jazz and Oklahoma City ...

Sports contracts are bigger than ever before.  Just take a look at some of the recent megadeals in sports, such as the 12-year, half-a-billion pact handed to Patrick Mahomes last year or the similarly-long $365 million deal the Dodgers gave to Mookie Betts not long after trading for him.  There are also contracts which become massive failures, like Bobby Bonilla's infamous contract he signed with the Mets in 1992, which has led to him being paid $1.19 million dollars by the team every year until 2035! Recently, Dak Prescott, who, over four full seasons with the Cowboys, has been good, but not great, was re-signed by Dallas for 4 years and $160 million.  The question is, does he truly deserve it?  Over his four full years as the Cowboys' starting quarterback, Prescott has had two solid seasons, but also one mediocre season in 2017, and another good-but-not-great year in 2019.  Despite what the NFL and Jerry Jones want you to believe, Prescott is hardly an elite q...

Hi there!  My name is Dr. Midnight, and my trade, or at least my interests, are sports, movies, and music.  That is what this blog is going to be about.  I am planning to especially cover my hometown teams, the Orioles and Ravens.  I know that Orioles have been awful as of late, and will likely still be a joke for years to come, but the Ravens, led by the amazing Lamar Jackson, can hopefully win a Super Bowl soom. I have been devoutly following sports since I was 10 years old, and I know more about sports than the average fan.  I have memorized the score and MVP of all 55 Super Bowls that have ever been played, and also know other historical sports tidbits, such as MVP winners in the NFL and baseball. I was born and raised in Northern Virginia, right on the outskirts of Washington, D.C.  However, since graduating from high school, I have been well-traveled, moving on to the countryside of Virginia, then to Baltimore, followed by New Jersey, before finally r...