Earlier this week, the Kansas Jayhawks returned to the top of the college basketball mountain after storming back from a 16 point deficit against the UNC Tar Heels. It was an amazing game, as most of the March Madness titles have been throughout history. Sadly though, tons of people didn’t get to catch it because it took place at 9:30 EST on a goddamn Monday night.
Coincidentally, the other biggest championship in college sports, the college football National Championship, also takes place on a Monday night. I know I sound a little “get off my lawn”, complaining about a game being on a Monday night instead of on a weekend, but I’m not complaining for myself. I am lucky enough to have parents who understand what sports mean to me. That’s why they woke me up to watch the Super Bowl at 4:30 in the morning when we lived in Belgium. I got to watch Tracy Porter intercept Peyton Manning and see Drew Brees win his first super bowl, before a long day of 2nd grade.
Many people aren’t that lucky, and they have now missed some of the best moments in college sports history, all because the championship games are on Monday nights. Sports fans are being robbed of moments like Kris Jenkins’ 3 to win it for Villanova, Jameis Winston’s last-second touchdown pass to stun Auburn, and amazing games like the one we had Monday night.
What’s the reason for the NCAA placing these games on a Monday night you might ask? The same reason the NCAA does anything; money. The last NFL regular-season games are the same week as the College Football championship, and with the NBA playoffs about to start, the NCAA has to make sure nothing interferes and they have good ratings. Everyone knows that the NCAA is a money-hungry organization, as evidenced by its lack of willingness to let players monetize their own name and likeness until this past year, but it’s especially egregious when it harms the fans as well.
Even fans who don’t have an unwavering 9 pm bedtime like myself still have work, families, and other responsibilities during the week. I was forced to watch the Kansas-UNC game while doing homework and then woke up for work at 8:00 the next day. I’m sure other fans had similar situations that might just make watching the game live not worth it. Even fans on the west coast may have had a practice or a work dinner that caused them to miss much of the game, if not all of it, which is just not right. These are the National Championship games damnit, and the fans deserve better.
Thank you for coming to my TED Talk. Let us know what you think in the comments below! Do you think the Championship games should be moved from Mondays? What should the NCAA do about it?
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