News-Record.com

I fell asleep on the Carolina game last night. They were up 27 when I dozed off. They were up four when I awakened.

I managed to see most of the second half after that, but it wasn't easy. Yes, I'm complaining again.

One of my colleagues has pegged me as a "glass is half-empty" guy when discussing college basketball. For example, I'm always on a very good UNC team's case for sleepwalking (pardon the pun) through parts of games -- as in nearly blowing that 27-point lead last night to Eastern Kentucky.

But it's hard not to get a little perturbed about an East Coast game (in Winston-Salem, for goodness sakes) that's starts after 10 p.m. But the TV ratings gods must be obeyed.

Or the charade that a lot of college basketball is, with very few of the "student athletes" actually getting college degrees. (A current special edition of "Bob Costas Now" on HBO offers some disturbing insights on this shameful reality.)

Or the preponderance of beer advertising during the tournament even as new statistics report a rising problem in binge drinking on campuses.

But I'll still push a lot of these issues to the back of my mind this weekend, and cozy up in front of the set. And cheer like a madman anyway.