Ooh, Ahh Chieftans on the Warpath

AMHERST – The Chieftans utilized a big Friday night win by 6-Tennessee to open a 2-point lead in the 2026 edition of the William A. Karin Memorial Calcutta over their nearest competitor.

The top three teams could lay claim to the title, with the Amigos and Catholic Boyz nipping at the Chief and crew’s heels.

First three out in the Sweet Sixteen were the Elders, Commish and Slayers….see ya next year!

The Counselors and Win-Docs can only hope to run the table with their lone teams and potentially grab a slice of the show spot.

Let’s take a team-by-team capsule look into the weekend festivities:

Chieftans advance two to Elite Eight, Calcutta is in their hands.

A repeat of last year’s Elite Eight headline for the Chieftans who could win a record ninth Calcutta and back-to-back titles. Went 0-and-2 on Thursday only to sweep Friday’s affairs with 1-Duke surviving a scare from the relentless 5-Johnnies. Huge Michigan-Tennessee tilt with the second-place Amigos on Sunday could say a lot on who will advance. They’re the ones to beat.

Amigos defy odds, riding Michigan and Iowa
coattails

I have to admit on draft night I was skeptical of the Amigos draft, when focusing a little closer while setting the morning line, I started to warm up to their bracket positioning and made them the third choice. They gathered the necessary first round wins, advanced two to both the Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight and can ride 1-Michigan as long as they can. Cinderella 9-Iowa has done yeoman work to get this far and a big matchup loom with the Boyz tonight in Houston.

Catholic Boyz poised to strike

They sit one behind the Amigos and three behind the leaders, with two strong B1G squads remaining. 2-Purdue and 3-Illinois have monstrous Elite Eight matchups and we’ll know their potential fate much better after this evening. Illinois beat Iowa by six in Iowa City in early January, which would indicate this could be an all-out brawl in H-town. Purdue faces a strong Wildcat team, but you have to beat the best to be the best. The Boyz will be putting on their finest whites for a big Saturday night.  Oddsmakers would give them a much better shot if they were playing after mass on Sunday, however.

Sayonara Commish, Elders, Slayers

I swear the Commish would have 6-7 wins coming out of the first round. Au Revoir Le Commish.

The Elders started with three in the Sweet Sixteen and end with a Code Blue. Mid-pack finish for the old guys.

The Slayers likely finish in last, worthy of their 20-1 longshot casting by the ML maker.

Peace out.

Win-Docs survive, need Wildcats to run the table

The Win-Docs will look to break a tie with the Slayers for most national champions selected should 1-Arizona win out. They’ll have a rough road to hoe with a potential Purdue, Michigan and likely Duke path to the natty. We shall see. 

Counselors ride the back of Dan Hurley the rest of the way

The solicitors and Dan Hurley are a match made in heaven. Tough, carefree and a mouth as dirty as a kid after spaghetti night. They can play a huge spoiler with a 2-UConn upset of Duke tomorrow. Court will be open on Sunday.

The results will be posted over the next few days in the google sheet link in the top right corner as usual. Final Four report - Monday morning with all possible outcomes. 

Good luck everyone!

 

Chieftans distance themselves from pack, eye record

AMHERST – The Chieftans secured the top spot in the 2026 Calcutta heading to the Sweet Sixteen with four second round wins to catapult the defending to a tw0-point lead.

The big story is that the Calcutta 15-win record could be in jeopardy as the Chieftans have three brackets covered going into next weekend.

The Amigos rode the B1G into second place and is nipping at the heels but will need some help next weekend.

The Elders are right there and a big matchup with the Amigos and a bigger one with the Chieftans.

The Catholic Boyz are within striking distance, like the Amigos riding the B1G into Sweet Sixteen weekend.

Let’s take a team-by-team capsule look into the weekend festivities:

Chieftans prime for back-to-back titles

Looking for a record setting tenth Calcutta title, the morning line favorites continue to roll in this year’s Calcutta. Advancing an 11-seed in Texas to the Sweet Sixteen to go with 6-seed Tennessee is all you need to know. With juggernaut 1-Duke avoiding the upset bug over the weekend, it looks like the Calcutta is there’s to win (or lose).

Amigos knocking on the door with powerhouse Wolverines

The Amigos knocked out top-seed Florida with 9-Iowa and will face the Elders’ Huskers in the Corn Derby in the Sweet Sixteen. 1-Michigan looks monstrous after tearing through a very good SLU team in Buffalo. Will need the Chiefs to go 1-3 in the Sixteen and squeeze out an Iowa win to have a shot.  It could come down to Duke-Michigan in the finale.

Elders hanging around (again)

The Elders once again are hanging around as we march on with three teams remaining and a legit national champion contender in 3-Michigan State. The Elders have never had the winner of the natty, so this is potentially a historic run to glory. To win the Calcutta, however, the issue is the 5-Johnnies are in the same bracket so something’s gotta give. Big matchup with the Amigos with 4-Nebraska taking on 9-Iowa in the South that could ultimately decide some placings.

The Catholic Boyz

2-Purdue and 3-Illinois advanced as expected and both have the potential to go deep.  Some late-night losses (what’s with only two games on Sunday starting before 5PM?) limited their potential win total, but the remaining squads both have a big chance to keep the drive alive. Preach.

Commish suffers through Black Saturday, 1-4 on weekend

Approximately at 9:34 p.m. on Sunday night, I threw up in my mouth.

Roll Tide.

Slayers need to run the table to catch a piece

And then there was one. At least it’s a good one. 2-Iowa State has to win out to get to 9 points, which could be enough for a piece.4

Win-Docs one behind Slayers in 7th

Down to 1-Arizona, one behind the Slayers, they can only max out at 8 wins, which may not be enough to hit the board based on the teams near the top of the leaderboard. Losing two 3-seeds in the second round may have put the nail in the Win-Doc’s coffin.

Counselors riding their big dogs

2-Houston is now the lowest seed left in the South, but the Counselors’ two remaining teams are on the same side of the bracket, which means if they both get out of their respective regions they have an auto-win, but can only max out at 10 wins.

The Elite Eight Sixteen report - Saturday morning.

On to the Sweet Sixteen!

 

Morning line set for 26 Calcutta, Chieftans early favorite

 

AMHERST – The 27th annual kicked off March Madness in fine fashion, concluding with the Yellow Jacket presentation to the Chieftans, winner of the 2025 edition of the William A. Karin Memorial Chalise.

The Chieftans won for a record ninth time in the Calcutta and ended a three-year streak of the Slayers selecting the national champ.

On to 2026.

A wide-open tourney where any of the top 8 teams could vie for the natty.

In Calcutta Land, the top-seeded teams went for 40, 40, 40 and 39, showing how close the top echelon of competitors there are in this year’s NCAAs.

Shout out to the Auction Pro which tendered only one minor glitch all evening (sorry Counselors, UNC stinks anyways).

Seeing old faces, even if once a year is always good for the soul and our group moves forward yet another year without a defection.

Here’s the morning line, the Commish has been a solid morning-line maker over the past few years, eyeing the eventual champion Chieftans last year as the second choice…who will get tabbed as this year’s fav?

Defending champs lukewarm Morning Line Favorites at 3-1

We were leaning a couple of different ways to set the favorite, including yours truly, but landed on the Chiefs to defend their land in 2026. Rock solid top seed Duke-1 headlines Indigent Nation with a solid right half of the bracket in Arkansas-4 in the West and Tennessee-6 and Georgia-8 in the Midwest. The tribe is a proven commodity that’s the one to beat.

Morning Line Odds: 3-1; Longshot: VCU-11; ASR: 8.25

Commish spends early, maneuvers late

Early mover, late shaker. Commish & Assoc. garnered the lowest seed rating on the day and snatched the cheapest top seed in Florida-1. After spending large for Alabama-4 in the Midwest and for dark horse Louisville-6 in the East, the Commish is well balanced in each region, which is poetry in motion in some Calcutta years. A late evening math gaffe by the Win-Docs landed a 9-seed (TCU) for the low, low price of two bucks. Will need some mid-seed magic in the early rounds to put them in the catbird seat.

Morning Line Odds: 4-1; Longshot: Saint Mary’s-7; ASR: 7.0

Amigos chase the blue bloods looking for first title since 2019

Went big with Michigan added the basketball blue bloods Kansas-4, UNC-6 and Kentucky-7, all on off years, but with solid name recognition. You know who else had great name recognition, Abe Lincoln. Seriously, the Mexicanas have some solid mid seeds in Iowa-9 and Utah St-9 (who I love). Last outright championship was in 2013, coming close in 2024 as runner-up to the Elders.

Morning Line Odds: 6-1; Longshot: Utah State-9; ASR: 8.25

The Counselors look to break the drought

It is a year to end droughts in Buffalo, so don’t count out the barristers. I’ll give them a solid left side of the bracket, but they’ll need help on the left side with lone single-digit seed Wisconsin-5.  Two big dogs, UConn-2 and Houston-2 were both in consideration for top seeds over the last two weeks, falling in conference tourney championships. The legal beagles can ride those two to the prom but will need to bring them to the final dance to have a chance.

Morning Line Odds: 8-1; Longshot: Santa Clara-10; ASR: 8.38

Elders strategy unchanged in 27 years; big shot to hit the board

I haven’t had to change this headline in 27 years.  You’d have to do some long, hard research to find the last No. 1 seed this team drafted…they go mid-seed with hopes to cash a ticket. Monday was a little different in that their ASR rating was higher than usual, but they just didn’t overspend. Lowest two seeds however are in the same bracket (whoops) in Michigan State-3 and the Johnnies-5 in the East. Like his West teams, BYU-6 (low NET rating) and High Point-12 as solid win stealers. Give the old fellers their due.

Morning Line Odds: 10-1; Longshot: High Point-12; ASR: 9.13

The Win-Docs unbalanced and vulnerable

The left side of their bracket is a train wreck. Nothing lower than a 12. How does that happen? Right side is murderer’s row with Arizona-1, Gonzaga-3 and Virginia-3 and maybe a Cinderella in Miami of Ohio (Amigo-1’s alma mater). They’ll have to withstand some punches early, but three teams that will need to go long into the tourney to win it all.

Morning Line Odds; 12-1; Longshot: McNeese-12; ASR: 9.13

Catholic Boyz needs Big Ten dominance

Ended up with some bad teams (two 15s and a 16) and ended up with some good teams. Well balanced in each of the brackets (survive and advance is the word for the men of cloth). Purdue-2 will have to duplicate their efforts in the B1G tourney and 3-Illinois has a solid bunch. UCLA-7 rounds out their Big Ten bulk and Texas Tech-5 can surprise. They could’ve landed higher on this list, but four quick losses look imminent.

Morning Line Odds: 15-1; Longshot: South Florida-11; ASR: 9.38

Slayers will play the longshot role

Sometimes this happens when you hold your dough too long. It gets soggy. Will need some big 8-9 and 7-10 game upset wins in the first round if they are going to be a threat. Iowa State-2 is good but has historically faltered early in the tourney. Loved the work during the draft but seems like there’s not much to show for it. Could prove me wrong.

Morning Line Odds: 20-1; Longshot: Pick a 10 seed not named Santa Clara; ASR: 8.38

The results will be posted over the next few days in the google sheet link in the top right corner as usual. Next post - Saturday morning leading into round 2. 

Good luck everyone!

Three teams sit atop Calcutta after Round One

AMHERST – The 2025 Calcutta has a logjam at the top with each team having at least three wins. The Win-Docs, Catholic Boyz and Bunch of Chieftans sit atop the leaderboard with five first-round wins heading into the Round of 32.

After a disastrous 0-fer on day one for the Amigos, they bounced back to garner three straight wins on Friday to avert flirting with the wrong side of the record books (which they hold the coveted 1 first round win in 2018 – a year they’d rather forget).

Three teams are hunkered down in second with four wins and within striking distance and three sit on the bottom, but only two off the leaders.

Parity has struck the 2025 Calcutta; Roger Goodell would be proud of the job I’m doing.

Win-Docs big first day vaults them to top for cut of the lead

The Good Doctors pawned off two big wins by 11-Drake and 12-McNeese, those low seed victories so key to winning the Calcutta, to jump up the leaderboard on Thursday. Solid wins by 3-Wisconsin and 4-Zona have the Win-Docs having a good shot to enter the Sweet Sixteen with eight wins which is a good number to be at heading into next weekend. Yes, their last shared title was in 2018 but seeking their first outright Chalise (sic) since 2016.

Catholic Boyz in the hunt

The Altar Boyz have been quiet since 2018 as well, without hitting the board in the last five Calcuttas. Is this the year for divine intervention? Some solid mid-seed drafting on Tuesday puts them in the hunt on the CBS scoreboard. Will need some help as the waters get deeper for three of their seeds this weekend, but they could also be sitting on eight with an upset win or two.

Bunch of Chieftans circling the wagons

Whose been steadier than the Chieftans over the years and they are right back in the thick of things battling their old nemesis the Win-Docs for the top spot. 1-Florida looks monstrous and could easily run the table giving them nine wins, but will need steady wins from 2-Alabama and another upset or two.  Could be the team to beat.

Counselors in battle to stay alive

With only one outright title in 25 years and nothing since 2012, the solicitors started strong on Thursday, but only mustered a win out of 4-Maryland on Friday to sit one back of the triumvirate above. 2-St. John’s rolled, but a looming matchup with Florida next weekend could spell the demise of the procurators. In second, but in a tedious position.

The Elders

A funny stat that I never realized (and you’ll see in the epilogue of today’s column) is that the Elders have never drafted the national champion. I guess it makes sense based on their vaunted mid-seed draft strategy. While the defending champs sit in second, they usually are sitting on five or six wins at this point, so there is cause for concern for the elderly. They need a sweep to get to eight (my magic number, not yours) and then they’ll be playing Cinderella. Better sharpen up that walker.

Commish in survive and advance mode

The Commish’s title hopes is riding on seeing 5-Oregon win over 4-Zona in Seattle. Hoping the short travel from the nearby state and some home cooking (Pacific Northwest sticks together baby) will push three teams into the Sweet Sixteen.  Of course, that assumes 1-Auburn and 2-Tennessee hold serve today.

The Slayers make good use of morning line favorite jinx

Put the kiss of death on the Slayers (artist formerly known as the Wagon-eers) with the morning line favoritism. But whose been better – drafting last three natty champs and two of last three titles, so could you blame the Greek for tabbing them as the chalk? Should put through all three remaining teams to the next round which means they’ll remain in the hunt.

Fat Lady stuffed on Friday

The Amigos were close to reliving the pain of 2018, but rebounded solidly on Friday with 1-Duke, 6-Ole Miss and 8-UConn advancing. Duke will keep them squarely in the Mix, but the other two teams will be underdogs on a big Sunday for the Chicanos.

Title data revealed

After withstanding the whining about multiple titles and naming rights, the Commish put together a historical view of title runs by each of the eight franchises since 1999. Very interesting to see both the consistency and the mediocrity of the franchises over the last 25 years.

The results will be posted over the next few days in the google sheet link in the top right corner as usual. Sweet Sixteen post - Monday morning. 

Good luck everyone!

 

Slayers slay draft through patience and persistence

 

AMHERST – 2025 marks the 26th documented year of the annual Calcutta and this year’s edition of the William A. Karin Memorial Calcutta surely didn’t disappoint.

The Counselors brought back the old time feuding they used to be so well known for.

The Amigos made sure they spent early on a one seed.

The Commish had no money left by 6 p.m.

The Elders forgot to show up for the yellow jacket celebration due to early onset Alzheimers.

So here we are with a solid start to 2025 in a wide-open tourney with any of 10 teams who could be in the spotlight during the playing of the One ShiningMoment .

One record to keep an eye out for is the Slayers have drafted the last three national champions which tied them with the early Chuck Wagon days (1999-2001) and the Win-Docs run in the late aughts (2008-2010).

Slayers emerge as heavy Morning Line Favorites at 2-1

The Slayers played the waiting game all night long, stuck on 57 for a good 45 minutes. Came away with the Aldi steal of the tournament with Marquette-7 for $2. They’ve hooked their steed to the Midwest Region however with Kentucky-3 and Purdue-4, but have mid-level seeds throughout the left hand side of the bracket, and could potentially threaten the first ever sweep of the first round. The only team not favored in Round 1 is Vanderbilt-10. These guys could lock it up by the weekend.

Morning Line Odds: 2-1; Longshot: N/A (they have none); ASR:6.0

Chieftans crafty draft strategy puts them in fold

Some craftiness shown by the tribe, as they finagled some late round chicanery that got them a 10-seed (New Mexico) for a $1. Well balanced in the brackets with Florida-1 on one side and Alabama-2 on the other makes them dangerous to stack up points. Will need some wins out of Illinois-6 and an upset of two from the bottom five teams to make a run. Hail to the Chiefs (missed the annual visit by the real Chief)

Morning Line Odds: 4-1; Longshot: 12-Liberty; ASR: 8.9

Amigos

I rarely give the Amigos their due, but Duke-1 is playing close to the best basketball in the nation and could run the table on the right side of the bracket. Solid middle seeds can pile up some early wins to assist a big Duke number with Ole Miss-6 and Kansas-7 both programs that can due some damage. Back up the sombrero the Amigos could be dancing late into the tourney.

Morning Line Odds: 6-1; Longshot: 10-Utah State; ASR: 7.9

Elders strategy unchanged in 26 years; big shot to hit the board

I haven’t had to change this headline in 26 years.  You’d have to do some long, hard research to find the last No. 1 seed this team drafted…they go mid-seed and low ASR and try to cash a ticket. Monday was no different as the Elders wrapped up the second lowest ASR, yielding that spot to the Slayers. Fanch played remotely (WFH) which wasn’t the easiest without a view of the big board. Rookie mistake could end up being costly. Iowa State-3 is their lowest seed and their next lowest is in the same bracket (A&M in the South). A run from Clemson-5 to the Sweet Sixteen would make this team very interesting.

Morning Line Odds: 8-1; Longshot: 7-Saint Mary’s (to go deep); ASR: 8.5

The Win-Docs drought should continue

The Win-Docs were up to their old antics with some late bidding and chirping it up throughout the evening. The fact is the drought is up to nine years and only the Counselors (2012) have been trophyless longer. The left side of their bracket is a total disaster with Drake-11 their lowest seeded team. They’ll need to poach a bunch of wins to have a shot and hope Houston-1 doesn’t have a problem getting out of the Midwest and either Arizona-4 or Wisconsin-3 gets to the Elite Eight. They just weren’t on their game.

Morning Line Odds; 10-1; Longshot: 11-Drake; ASR: 9.3

The Bickering Barristers dubious drafting

The legal beagles were at each other at key moments of the night, shades of ole Johnny C giving Baki the biz. Hoping Pitino can find that old magic with St. John’s-2 and that Maryland-4 can get through and knock off Auburn. They’ll need some upsets and BYU-6 (18$!!) and Gonzaga-10 to win a couple games to keep them in contention. Leaning towards a hung jury.

Morning Line Odds: 12-1; Longshot: 12-UC-San Diego; ASR: 8.6

Catholic Boyz need Big East dominance

The Catholic Boyz were active all night, but just seemed to get edged out of a lot of teams. Michigan St.-2 has the fire power to make a sustained run and Texas Tech-3 was a big purchase for an unproven five. UCLA-7 was competitive all year and has solid coaching, but that’s the best they have on the right side of the bracket. Confession is Sunday night at 11.

Morning Line Odds: 15-1; Longshot: 12-Colorado St; ASR: 8.9

Commish all in with two squads

The Commish has hit the board in three of the last four Calcuttas after two seconds and one third in the first 17 years of action. We’ll play longshot as one upset of Auburn-1 or Tennessee-2 blows up their Calcutta. A whopping 10.0 ASR, buoyed by three 15-seeds has the Commish down to three teams by the weekend if all holds. Oregon-5 is their wild card in the East and if they can pull together two-three wins in a different ball game.

Morning Line Odds; 20-1; Longshot: 13-Grand Canyon; ASR: 10.0

The results will be posted over the next few days in the google sheet link in the top right corner as usual. Next post - Saturday morning leading into round 2. 

We'll be a little light on the GIFs this year until we get to the later rounds...so you'll just have to enjoy my eloquence.

Good luck everyone!

Elders enter record books with seven first round wins

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SYRACUSE -- The Elders nearly completed the first sweep of the opening round with a 7-win start to the 2024 Calcutta. They are the fifth franchise to complete the lucky 7 joining the Bunch 7 [2002], Catholic Boyz [2012, 2016], Win-Docs [2018], Tax Slayers [2019, 2021].

The Elders came into the tourney wielding nothing less than a 11-seed based on their time-tested draft strategy and it looks like this year it should pay off. The squad will have three favored squads over the weekend and a seasoned 5-San Diego St. that draws upset-minded 13-Yale. This squad could have double-digit wins heading to the weekend. Step aside and let the gents with the walkers through.

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The Counselors were looking sweet on Thursday night with the big 14-Oakland upset over UK, but they suffered one of their own when highly-regarded 4-Auburn spit the bit and choked on some Ivy. The barristers still managed to post 5 wins to stay in contention and still have big dog 1-UNC to carry the torch for the law guys. Some dubious matchups in round number two will determine the fate of the legal beagles.

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White smoke was seen coming out of the above on Friday morning, when the Chieftans rallied big time to gain a share of second-place with the Counselors heading into the weekend. Perfect on the right side of the bracket buoyed by the frenetic play of the 12-Dukes of Madison (PS, he was the fifth President, you know). A couple double-digit upset wins on Friday put the natives squarely in the hunt. Will need some second round damage from the middle seeds in the Midwest (5-Gonzaga and 7-Texas) to stick around to the Sweet Sixteen.  Good work to date by the Chiefs.

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It was a tale of two days for the Amigos. After garnering headlines in Thursday's Commish's Flash Notes with a solid 4-2 start, they came back to the back with a winless Friday. Chalked up a couple 11-seed wins on Thursday from A-10 Duquesne and the ACC's Wolfpack, the Dos Amigos will need to avoid the Dos Equis (XX) on Saturday to have a shot. With one of the few SEC teams standing, lots of eggs in the Volunteer basket. Not warming up the saying just yet.

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It was a case of the morning line jinx for the Win-Docs. Their South region in shambles from two upsets of 3-Kentucky and 5-Wisconsin both who looked like they've never seen a basketball today. Elimination is not out of the question after today with them facing a 1 and a 2 and 4-Kansas will have to survive 5-Gonzaga. Would be the quickest exit of a morning line favorite in history. The Win-Docs are in the ER and in search of help.

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For the Commish, it's all about survive and advance. First time dissension in the ranks for not going picking NC State. Opted for 7-Florida instead and we see where that got us. There's still hope to catch a piece riding the 1-Boilermakers and 3-Illini through to the Sweet Sixteen. If they can catch Houston on an off day with the 9-Aggies, well you know.....

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The Catholic Boyz are down to the Big East heavies and nothing left to do but pray for a miracle. Only upset suffered was 6-BYU getting torched by Duquesne. Problem is they are on the same side of the bracket - max wins left is 8 which gets them to double digits, but the Elders could be there today.

On to the second round!