PMT DB
PMT DB
Jon Rothstein on the Canceled Tournament, March Sadness, and Bachelor Parties
Friday the 13th lived up to its name in the most cursed way possible. Big Cat and PFT started the show in a world where sports have simply ceased to exist. After a week of escalating news, the reality of a bracketless March has finally set in. While the world is figuring out social distancing, the guys are figuring out how to survive in a landscape where Sri Lankan cricket and darts are the only things left on the board.
Big Cat was quick to clarify his stance on our new microscopic enemy.
Big CatI still do not respect the Coronavirus
I still don't respect the virus. It's like a Ravens Steelers thing, like no love lost. I hate it so much. I want to beat the fuck out of it. It doesn't sound serious and I'm encouraging everybody to do everything that they can... but I still don't respect the virus.
The timeline of the sports collapse was surreal, starting with Rudy Gobert's fateful interaction with a group of microphones. While the internet was ready to exile the Jazz center, Big Cat felt a strange sense of kinship with the lapse in judgment.
Big CatRudy Gobert's microphone-touching prank was just a harmless joke that I would have done myself three days ago.
I'm going to defend [Rudy Gobert] a little bit here. That's exactly something I would have done. That's exactly something I would have done three days ago. Now that I've understood the severity and what's going on, I would not do that anymore. But Rudy Gobert, I'm not going to just pile on this guy for doing something he thought was completely innocent; clearly it was not.
The Bracket That Never Was
Before the NCAA officially pulled the plug, Duke decided to take matters into their own hands by suspending all athletic activities. Big Cat wasn't buying the "safety first" narrative, choosing instead to believe it was a tactical retreat to avoid a humiliating early exit.
Big CatDuke canceled their season before the NCAA to upstage everyone like drama queens.
Duke, the biggest fucking prima donnas drama queens of all time, canceled their own season before the NCAA could trying to upstage everyone and be like, 'Look at me, look at us, we're Duke.' Then the tournament gets cancelled and then everyone gets to make the joke that Duke got eliminated first.
Big CatBelmont would have beaten Duke in the 2020 NCAA Tournament.
Duke Belmont. Belmont would have done it. That's probably why Duke did that. That's probably why they eliminated themselves.
With no games to watch, PFT is already looking toward the horizon. While most experts are talking about flattening curves, PFT is projecting the return of the gridiron, even if it's in a biodome or on a remote island.
PFT CommenterSports will return to American soil by mid-May 2020, likely starting with the XFL
The date would be mid-May, early May. I think that Vince McMahon did not want to cancel either the XFL or wrestling WrestleMania because you know how... I think the answer to your question is the XFL. [Big Cat]: Mid-May?
PFT CommenterThe DC Defenders are the official XFL East champions
I'm still absolutely claiming the XFL East for the DC Defenders. First place in the XFL East.
There's a growing sentiment that the leagues might have moved a little too fast, catching a case of the very thing they usually fear most.
PFT CommenterProfessional and collegiate sports leagues got addicted to 'cancel culture' during the initial COVID-19 outbreak
I think they got addicted to cancel culture. It just felt very rash to be like everything's canceled forever. I would have almost rather they did just we're going to delay it two weeks and then two weeks later we're going to delay another two weeks until I get to football season. Let us just me asking it throughout the entire summer and give me the hope.
Jon Rothstein Stays the Course
Our good friend Jon Rothstein joined the show, and surprisingly, he wasn't in a catatonic state. He’s already pivoting to the 2020-21 season because, as he says, "we sleep in May," but apparently, we also work through global pandemics. Rothstein walked through the heartbreak of the last 48 hours but remained the ultimate professional, even when the guys tried to get him to crown a hypothetical champion.
Jon RothsteinKansas was the best team in the country and would have won the 2020 National Championship
I need a John Rothstein certified NCAA champion who won the tournament this year... I would have picked Kansas to win a National Championship. Kansas was the team. In the last month we saw Kansas separate, they were as the best team in the country. They were a cut above everybody else.
In a massive bit of news, Big Cat and PFT have officially been tasked with planning Rothstein's bachelor party. The itinerary already includes a 4:30 AM workout with Buzz Williams and a Rick Pitino-funded dinner at Olive Garden. Rothstein is so dedicated to the craft that even his own wedding is on the bubble if the schedule shifts.
Jon RothsteinI would postpone my wedding if the NCAA Tournament were rescheduled for July.
What happens tomorrow morning? We wake up your wedding is July... Mark Emmert says we're having the tournament July. [Rothstein]: I gotta postpone the wedding. Wow, okay on the wedding and we're not talking about kickball here.
Life in the Lockdown
As the reality of being stuck at home sets in, the guys are pivoting to content that doesn't require live scores. Expect Love is Blind reviews, deep dives into the NFL 100, and a "Mount Flushmore" season to replace the usual summer doldrums. PFT is optimistic that the lack of sports might actually lead to an intellectual renaissance in America.
PFT CommenterThe United States will get exponentially smarter during the COVID-19 crisis because people will finally start reading.
My thought is that the United States is going to get exponentially smarter during this crisis because we're all going to be shut in our homes and people going to start to read. It's gonna be weird.
Big Cat, meanwhile, is mourning the end of the greatest gambling heater in recorded history. He was seeing the board better than ever, only for the board to be set on fire by a virus.
Big CatMy recent gambling hot streak was the best of my life
I have never been hotter as a gambler in my entire life, 20 years of gambling, than I have been in the last three weeks and Coronavirus stopped it all. I honestly have two losing days in the last 21 days.
Even the world of eSports isn't safe, as the 2K league announced a hiatus despite the fact that the players could literally play from their bedrooms. Big Cat found the lack of technological faith disturbing.
Big CatIt is ridiculous to postpone the NBA 2K league since the games can be played remotely.
The NBA 2K league is expected to announce tonight that it's postponing the start of its season... Hopefully video Gamers can figure out how to compete against each other in the privacy of their own homes. I don't know that seems like a pretty big technological step. We're going to have to make, but I have confidence that the people into k-league will figure out a way to let people play video games in their homes.
We're heading into a long, sports-less tunnel, but the show is going to keep rolling. Whether it's Skype shows or watching old games, we're going to get through this together. Wash your hands, keep your distance, and remember that the pile in the office is probably the only thing on earth more resilient than this virus.
Big CatExposure to the office 'pile' of trash has strengthened our immune systems.
I actually think that being around the pile has probably strengthened our immune systems without a doubt. My mom saw that on Twitter and texting me also if and when the pile in your office is cleaned, you will find it as full of niceness.
Stay safe out there, and remember: distance makes the heart grow fonder for the MAC Tournament.
