The Final Four changes I would make to March Madness

As I sit watching mid-major conference tournament championships play out on ESPN and ESPN2, I can’t help but think about how these teams will fare in the Big Dance. The best thing about college sports can still be improved, and here are four things I would do to make March Madness even crazier.

1. Move the field back to 64 teams. The biggest reason that none of these changes will happen is because there’s too much money to be made by too many people. As pointless as I think the First Four is, enough people watch the games in Dayton for it to stick. What’s worse is that in 2011, VCU made it to the Final Four after being a First Four team, making it seem like a good idea to let more teams in. It’s not.

2. Get rid of automatic bids. Not only should the field be 64 teams, it should be the best 64 teams. It’s nice for mid-major conference champions to be in the NCAA Tournament, but a 16-16 Mount St. Mary’s squad just won their way into the tournament. A Milwaukee squad that’s 7-9 in their conference is in as well. There’s a reason that these teams end up with 15 or 16 seeds – they’re terrible!

3. Double elimination after the Sweet 16. There might be no better weekend in sports than the four days that are home to the Sweet 16 and Elite 8. A bunch of 1 vs. 4 , 2 vs. 3 matchups on Thursday and Friday, and then the best of the best, marquee-brand programs on Saturday and Sunday. Duke’s opponents in their past two trips to the second weekend; Louisville and Michigan State in 2013, Arizona in 2011. Some of the biggest programs in the country playing each other, and why not let it keep happening? Have everyone stay around a little longer.

4. Home games! I’m obviously biased towards this, because it would create a significant advantage for Duke, but imagine if there were home games in the NCAA Tournament. I absolutely understand neutral-court games – it makes perfect sense and I’m not saying I hate them. But just imagine if Kansas was playing for a championship at Allen Fieldhouse, or the Cameron Crazies could help the Blue Devils go to the Final Four at home. As nice as these 20,000-person arenas are for the big games, nothing beats the home court atmosphere.

Like I said, none of these will probably happen. But if I had all the power in the college basketball world, I would first snag season tickets at Cameron Indoor Stadium, and then make some changes, small and large, to the Big Dance. For now, I’ll be patiently awaiting the three best weekends in sports.