I must been certifiably insane. Well at least according to the rest of my colleagues at 99.9 FM The Fan and WRAL.

When was the last time Gravley or Medlin got this thing right? John Wooden is not walking (at least not very well these days), through that door. UCLA will once again be the UCLA we've all come to know recently –  Close but no cigar at the end. They'll lose to my national champion Memphis Tigers in the national semi-final.

Out of conference, was there any tougher schedule across the country for a team that is more than prepared for the tough opponents that John Calipari's squad will see the next three weeks? Check this out: they have wins over NCAA tournament entrants Oklahoma, Connecticut, USC, Arizona, Siena and Gonzaga.

I know what you're thinking. Nice added throw in there, Dan. Siena? Well, the Saints did knock off the Cardinal earlier this year by 12, so don't be so quick to discount that. How much did Memphis beat Siena by in their game? Just a breezy 44.

What about the encounter they had with Tennessee. Didn't they lose? Sure, but plenty of other teams lost to the Vols – and I'd submit it was probably Memphis's ugliest game of the season, and they still only lost by four. I call that the learning game for Calipari's squad.

A team can become more tournament-tough by swallowing the bitter pill of defeat and knowing what they'll be up against come tourney time. I had the opportunity when I was a young broadcaster to cover Calipari when he was a young coach at UMass, and believe me, he is a terrific teacher who will make sure his kids understand and are ready to play at a high level consistently.

Teams like Carolina and UCLA are easy picks for our in-house bracketologists. They see the  No. 1 seeds and high-profile players such as Hansbrough and Love on TV more than I see my own family. How many times have you seen Memphis this year. One? Two? Maybe three?

Carolina? 20? UCLA, 10 – 15 if you can stay up late? What you should ask yourself is what team in the tournament has been as battle-tested and will arguably have five of its kids playing in the NBA in the next couple of years? Hint, they're located in Memphis and play in Conference USA.

Look, I'm not naive enough to not know that the Tigers play in an inferior conference compared with the likes of where Carolina and UCLA play. Doesn't talent factor in this time, though?

They're resume is as solid as anybody picked to win it all. The have the inside/outside game to match anyone in the country. You'll know much more in the next three weeks about guys like Chris Douglas-Roberts, Derrick Rose and Robert Dozier – all big time players.

My overall rationale in picking Memphis is that I believe this team has played with a tremendous chip the size of Tennessee on its shoulder all year. Has there ever been a quieter 33-1 team in the history of college basketball that is looked at as tournament fodder? Think about that and their killer schedule, which they handled with ease. Enough already about Conference USA.  hat's irrelevant, given what they did out of conference.

They are battle-tested and highly skilled. With apologies to Mark Thomas, my well-meaning colleague who also picked Memphis to advance to the Final Four, you all got it wrong. Be bold. There's still time, Bob Holliday, Jason Jennings, Mike Maniscalco and all you others who have your blinders on. Make the tough – but correct – choice. The Memphis Tigers, your 2008 NCAA men’s national champions.

Oh, by the way – have I mentioned that I also picked Cornell to beat Stanford in Round 1? Easy stuff, I tell you, easy stuff!