Day One - I Guess it Turns Out Size Does Matter

Day one of the Wockey Pool, the most outlandish competition this side of the World Worm Charming Championships, is in the books!  There were a few upsets in the NCAAMIHT today, but that didn't stop 21 Wockeyites from compiling perfect brackets on the first day.  In seven years of Wockey, we've never had a perfect bracket.  This isn't all that surprising considering that the pool never reached two-thirds of the size it is today, and considering that the pool consists largely of these types of people.  What is surprising?  No one has ever had a perfect first round in seven years of Wockey.  That's very much a possibility as we head into day two.

Among those nailing their picks on Day One of Wockey:

-Two sportscasters:  Jody Norstedt, weekend sports anchor at WDAY TV in Fargo, ND and Chris Long, weekend sports anchor at KSTP in the Twin Cities both finished perfect after day one.  Long grew up a hockey player in the lacrosse hotbed of Maryland before moving on to the University of Missouri, and while his dream of division one hockey at Mizzou may never become a reality, his even loftier goal of becoming Wockey Champion is still very much a possibility.  Norstedt cut his sportscasting teeth covering the Huskies while attending St. Cloud State University.  His life was irrevocably changed after witnessing Wockey original Chris Walker savagely beating a seven-year-old.  In a game of Madden (or so his bracket name would have you believe).

-Chris Walker:  After finishing third in last year's pool, Chris is out to prove that not only is he the brightest Walker mind in the World of Wockey, but more importantly that he's not as stupid as he looks.  Wait, wrong picture.  Here we go.  Nope.  That's not right either.  There it is.

-Jeff Stark:  The man who runs Amsoil Arena, home of the UMD Bulldogs, is a self-proclaimed college hockey expert.  Maybe it's that special juice he drinks that makes his brain explode with Wockey knowledge.

-Jason Kuss:  Last year's Wockey Champion, has two of his eleven brackets unblemished after day one--including the only one of the perfect remaining brackets that has 16th-seeded Robert Morris upsetting Minnesota.  Wanna find out how Kuss does it?  Read more in this in-depth exclusive about this Wockey savant. 

-Kevin Jewett:  At this point, it should come as no surprise that the man after which the Wockey Champion's trophy is named is perfect through his first four picks.

Of course, there's a long ways to go for these and the other perfect-picking Wockeyites before they can claim the crown of 2014 Wockey Champion.  There's a much shorter path to be traveled to achieve the dreaded status of Wockey Puckhead, given annually to the Pool's last-place finisher.  Ten brackets were able to defy the odds by not having a single game predicted perfectly after day one.  Among those one was produced by Jeff Stark, he of the aforementioned perfect bracket.  Two were submitted by Jason Kuss, who has a legitimate chance to become the first-ever simultaneous Wockey Champion and Puckhead.  And one was submitted by Christy Michailidis, who earlier in the week discovered that her husband and fellow Wockeyite, Paul, is potentially a very distant cousin.  Rough week for Christy.

However, perhaps the most intriguing among the terrible ten brackets was the one submitted by Solvei Meister, the not-quite-one-year-old daughter of Elena Luoto Meister, our 2013 Puckhead who made Wockey history by failing to correctly pick a single game in the 2013 Wockey Pool.  Apparently the apple doesn't fall far from the tree--especially when it's the fruit borne of a tree of ineptitude.

In all 42 Wockeyites effectively ended their 2014 campaign when they lost their predicted NCAA champion after day one including 34 who fell when Wisconsin did, six who lost with Qunnipiac, and two who bowed out after Vermont got knocked out.  Vermont...seriously?  Day two is sure to bring more surprises both of the elated and of the heartbreak variety.  If you're still in the running, best of luck to you!  If not, well, it could be worse.

On to day two of Wockey!

Your Bubbly, Billowy, Baffling Wockey Commish,

Alex

P.S.  Go Huskies!