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Presidents In Different Bracket When It Comes To NCAAs

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By MARTIN FENNELLY | The Tampa Tribune

Published: March 30, 2009

Updated: 03/31/2009 12:16 am

TAMPA - President Obama might be going oh-for in trying to get his budget passed, but he was holding his own where it really counted. That is, until last weekend.

As you might recall, the First Hoopster, who had nothing else going on, filled out an NCAA Tournament bracket for ESPN.

Hey, he's one of us. FDR had his fireside chats. President Obama breaks it down region by region with Andy Katz, boosting morale in unemployment lines everywhere.

The president started well, but then came the Sweet 16. It brought some misery (5-3). The Elite Eight (1-3) was even worse. He nailed only one Final Four team, but he does still have his national champion, North Carolina.

A source nowhere near the president said the Big O also thinks Calipari gets the Kentucky job and there's a crisis in national health care when former UConn player Nate Miles has to get his agent to pay for a surgical procedure in Tampa.

And now, here's how some other world leaders are doing heading into Final Four weekend:

President Vladimir Putin (Russia) is in ninth place. He went 28-4 in the first round (Siena over Ohio State, Cleveland State over Wake were sweet). He has Michigan State and Carolina in his Final Four. "Man, I had Villanova over Pitt written down, then changed it," Putin said.

President Michelle Bachelet (Chile) in fourth place. Bachelet went 30-2 in the first round. She has Villanova in the championship game, so watch out.

Hu Jintao (China) got creamed in the first round, going only 19-13. His upset special was Arizona to the Final Four. He has a UConn-Carolina final.

King Tupou V (Kingdom of Tonga) is sitting in 11th place. "If Purdue had beaten UConn and Xavier had beaten Pitt, I was in the money," said the monarch of the South Pacific archipelago of 171 islands. "Xavier just fell apart."

President Horst Koehler (Germany) is doing well on both his brackets. Everybody says he's a loser for putting in two.

Afghan president Hamid Karzai is the sleeper, with two Final Four teams. He's still kicking himself for going with Oklahoma and Duke. "The Dookies let me down big time," Karzai said.

Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jabir al-Sabah (Kuwait) has Villanova and two other Final Four teams left, but the one he doesn't have, Louisville, he picked to win it all. Wouldn't you know it.

Former president Fidel Castro (Cuba) said "history will absolve me" for picking Villanova to win it all. While it's his only Final Four team left, Castro said he was better off than his brother Raul, who had Cleveland State and Oklahoma meeting in the title game. "Too radical," Fidel said.

Kim Jong-il (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) picked Michigan State to win the national title. His points tiebreaker for the championship game is 145. He still hasn't paid his $5 entry.

Equatorial Guinea president Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo (joint entry with Prime Minister Ignacio Milam Tang) leads the way in first place and has "Carolina all the way, baby. I just hope Lawson's ankle holds up."

Good luck, Mr. President.

Make that Presidents!

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