The round of 32 matchups proved to be tough on the top seeds as two #1 seeds and two #2 seeds were eliminated in second round competition. The tourney shifted gears from fact sheets to fakebook pages and technological glitches, lackluster performances sparked upsets reminiscent of the recent NCAA tournament games. Let's get a recap of the action....
In the PRESIDENTS BRACKET:
A technological glitch hampered Abraham Lincoln's performance as students fell in love with the caring conservative and won one for the "Gipper" as #8 seed Ronald Reagan pulled away from #1 seed Abraham Lincoln. The contest was tight throughout but a late in the game tax cut initiative pushed Reagan over the top.
In the battle of the Roosevelts, Teddy outlasted an underperforming Franklin Roosevelt. This contest was not close and it was a runaway win for the Bull Moose on the strength of his conservation reform and work to improve sanitation in factories. Score a W for the progressives over the New Deal Party.
In the other two matchups, the founding fathers found their way to the sweet 16. George Washington thumped the father of the Constitution James Madison in one contest while Thomas Jefferson routed an overwhelmed Harry Truman who failed to mention his work with Civil Rights in the Government. That oversight cost Truman some votes.
In the WILDCARD Bracket:
The best match up of the day was #1 seed Walt Disney vs. #9 seed Steve Jobs in a tightly contested matchup. Both sides were creative in their style and prepared in their defense. Disney was overheard saying that he knew this matchup was going to be a "rollercoaster" with ups and downs. It was indeed as Jobs proved the apple of the eye of the majority. He knocks off #1 seed Disney.
Alexander Hamilton was "money" in his round of 32 matchup vs. Horace Mann. Hamilton came out strong and gave Mann an education! This was no duel as Hamilton won easily.
The ol' houndog Elvis Presley had a nice second round win over Mark Twain. The legend of Hannibal, MO got a late start to the game and Presley's lead was too much to overcome. The #6 seed Presley advances to the Sweet 16.
In the final game of the Wildcard bracket, Steven Spielberg had a victory you only see in the movies as he trumped Thomas Paine. The selection committee was criticized for Paine's high seed and Spielberg proved that to be true as he waxed the author of Common Sense. To voters, it was common sense to go with Spielberg.
In the SOCIAL ACTIVIST BRACKET....
This bracket could be summed up with the phrase "A King, 2 Jocks and a Lady". Weird, huh? MLK laid down a decisive verdict over Earl Warren. King showed the supreme court justice who was the real judge. Muhammad Ali has never hit a woman but he did thump Susan B. Anthony who barely got into the contest before it was over. Ol' #42 showed he has staying power with the younger generation as Jackie Robinson worked over Samuel Gompers like the Union Busters used to to do to striking workers back in the day.
The ladies are represented in the sweet 16 as women's right activist Elizabeth Cady Stanton defeated Ralph Nader in the final contest in that bracket. Afterwards, Nader was quoted as saying "I have lost lots of elections before and I will lose many more. No shame in losing to Lizzie!"
In the INNOVATORS BRACKET....
Seeds held true to form as #1 seed Edison withstood an early charge from Alexander Graham Bell. Andrew Carnegie knocked off Bill Gates in a closely contested contest and #3 seed Henry Ford rolled all over Albert Einstein. The one upset in the bracket saw the Wright Brothers defeat John D. Rockefeller as Rocky failed to show for this one. The Wright Brothers flew to victory via forfeit.
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