We're now just several hours away from the beginning of an extended sports weekend. Yes, many workers will punch the proverbial clock, but come 12:01pm ET, they'll begin "operation shutdown" for the week.

This weekend marks the first time in six years that I'm not spending this weekend in Las Vegas while on assignment at spring training. I'll admit it. I'll miss the camaraderie amid the wall of televisions as buzzer-beaters bring the ultimate joy or disgust. White slips of paper constituting confidence in a team litter the floor, and you continually hear of how somebody's bracket is still perfect four games into the event.

If you haven't experienced the first weekend of the tournament in Las Vegas, mark that  on your sports calendar as something to do.

This event brings out the best in sports fans. They don't necessarily know the names of players, coaches or even mascots of many of the schools included in the dance. But, they latch onto a great story and catch the fever. Does anybody believe that a No. 16 seed is going to take down a No. 1? Or a No. 15 over a No. 2? No, not really. But there's something about this event that makes everybody like the underdog, if only for a moment.

In the end, you agonize over each pick in the bracket save those first eight picks in the first round (advance all 1's and 2's in ink), and you do multiple re-takes of the form. Creighton or Nevada? Which No. 12 do you like most?

It's a beautiful excercise, to be sure. And, takes you back to your college days and the ritualistic face painting, tailgates and crowding into the student section.

Who says you can't go home?