DELMARVA. -- Thursday, March 21st might be the best day of the year to be a college basketball fan. The March Madness tournament has begun and with it comes plenty of nail-biting excitement.
It's the time of year where bartenders are extra busy, the beer is flowing and a seemingly endless stream of college basketball is on the TV.
"It's Christmas morning for me, the games are on, it's the start of the tournament I can't miss it," said Chad Barcikowski.
It's the time of year where every second counts. Every shot can be the beginning of a Cinderella story, or a brutal end to a hard fought season. It's the time of year where traditions run deep.
Kurt Schuster and his friend make their way to a bar every year as the madness begins.
"We'll we're not young, so maybe 20 years, 30 years," said Schuster when asked how long him and his friend had been doing this.
It's also where full days of work go to die.
"Yeah I'm just taking extended lunch," said Scott Hughes. "I'm ready for the March Madness to get started, I'm ready for the games, man it's going to be so much fun."
It's the time of year to win some money, responsibly of course.
"I'm on the under, 130.5, I got about $50 on the game right now," said Barcikowski. "I start the tournament every year with the under, it hits at a high rate, I'm sticking to what I got and right now it's looking pretty good."
And maybe most importantly of all, it's the time of year when anything can happen.
"I got the Marquette Golden Eagles man," said Barcikowski.
"I got UCONN," said Schuster.
"Enjoy the madness," said Hughes.
March Madness is finally here. Will UCONN repeat? Or will another team step up and make history? Who knows... that's the beauty of March.