This is (my) March Pt. 2

I was a sophomore in high school the first time I went to a March Madness game. 

The Golden One Center had just opened in Sacramento, Calif. And was hosting the first and second rounds of the tournament. 

I went to the second round seeing UCLA vs Cincinnati and Kentucky vs Wichita State. This was the year that UCLA had Lonzo Ball and Kentucky had De’Aaron Fox. Honestly it was pretty cool to see them play in their college threads. As I have said before, I am not really a hoops fan, so I was really just there because it was 20 minutes from my home. 

That same year, a few weeks later, I found myself finishing my races at the Stanford Invitational and driving home to catch a flight out to Phoenix to meet my parents and go to the Final Four for my dad’s birthday. 

The 2017 Final Four consisted of: Gonzaga, Oregon, South Carolina, and North Carolina. 

I had missed the semifinals due to my track meet, so the only game I got to catch was the finals. 

Being so for real, I had absolutely no dog in the fight, but I knew UNC was historically good, and so I wanted them to win purely out of the fact I actually recognised them. 

I know, kinda lame. 

The event of the Final Four is absolutely insane. When I say event, I mean EVENT. 

There is this total fan experience set up where they have swag, merch booths, places to take photos, mini games, musical performances, etc.. There is something for everyone from small children to grandparents to get them more excited and involved in the celebration of the Final Four. 

On Wednesday, 27 Mar. 2024, I stepped into Crypto.com Arena for the first time since June 2023. 

The last time I had been there was also for work, for that job I should have never taken.  

Being in Crypto again definitely led to feelings of inadequacy bubbling up. 

I knew I should be excited to be in this space, but my brain was being overtaken by how I had felt in that exact same space just 10 months prior. 

Day one: pregame/practice press conferences. 

I knew I would be in locker room press conferences throughout the event and transcribing quotes from the open locker room time as well. 

My job has always been to be around athletes, and has never really been to interact with them, but here I was talking with Caleb Love, Oumar Ballo, Jae’Lyn Withers, and Armando Bacot. 

It still kinda has me a bit taken aback. 

Then gameday rolled around and I was assigned to the Clemson and Alabama locker rooms. 

Losing sucks, and based on the predictions for the games, I was not looking forward to doing my job. Plus I still had that lingering feeling of inadequacy swirling around my mind walking around the guts of Crypto. 

I walked to the vom with just a few minutes remaining to see Clemson punch their ticket to the Elite 8. 

Then I went to work, helping to observe a 30 minute open locker room and get my own quotes to transcribe. I finished my transcriptions as Alabama and UNC were heading into halftime. 

Oddly enough, I was able to make a new friend here. As I was walking to find water, a girl who was also with media opps took me to the lounge where there were extra supplies, food, and drinks for those of us working. 

She also showed me where we could sit to watch the game, and we enjoyed the second half of the Alabama vs UNC game. 

This is when my experience in Crypto really started to change, and I started enjoying myself and feeling positive energy in this building. 

Truly, it is amazing what good people bring to life. 

It was incredible, watching Alabama battle out those final minutes and punch their ticket to the Elite 8. 

And I got another winning locker room to cover. 

When I say these guys are different, I mean these guys are different. 

Say whatever you want about Nate Oats, but the Alabama basketball players were some of the most impressive young men I have had the opportunity to be around. They all conducted themselves so well during open locker room periods, were engaging with media personnel, thanked reporters for their questions, were thoughtful in their answers, and lifted each other up through their responses as well. 

In my 90 minutes in their locker room, I never heard a “me” or “I” answer, everything was “we,” everything was about the team and how they couldn’t be here without each other. 

No one’s individual performance was individual, it was because the team worked to get that effort and feed play/flow that way, and I have to say, I think that's pretty cool. 

Saturday’s Elite 8 at Crypto seemed like more of a classic football matchup than a March Madness game. 

After being with Alabama immediately following their Sweet 16 win and then the following day for their practice press conference, I definitely wanted them to win, but would have been thrilled for either team as it would be the school’s first Final Four in history. 

Witnessing sports history is one of the coolest phenomenons. 

No one was assigned a specific school, just the winner or loser for the Elite 8. 

I was assigned to the winning team, so no matter what, I would be going out of Crypto with high spirits. 

There it was again, those final minutes where Alabama really put it away and punched their ticket to the Final Four. It was electric witnessing the guys celebrate. 

I never thought I would get to be on the court when a net gets cut down. 

And quite honestly, I always hoped that if I did, it would be with UCLA doing it. 

But instead, it was Alabama. 

Growing up in football, in a way this feels quite fitting. Not to mention, the head of Alabama communications had on a mini houndstooth sport coat, a little ode to Bear. 

Working in sports is truly incredible, changing my perspective and feelings within a building is also truly incredible.

This past weekend I got to be a part of such an incredible team. 

I had a great experience with women in the sports field this weekend. There was no pettiness, I did not feel as if I was not wanted. My work was appreciated, I was appreciated. 

As I reflect on these two weekends and this past year of work, it is really crazy how impactful others can be on your own psyche. 

I have always been pretty strong willed, have never really taken shit from anybody, and have never let anything bother me too much. But having good positive experiences, and being around good positive people makes me think that what I have been going through is much less of me being in the wrong field and more so of me just being in the wrong place.