NCAA Tournament: Barack Obama goes chalk with Vols, Lady Vols in brackets
The last time both Tennessee basketball programs made the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament was 2014, when former President Barack Obama was in his sixth year in office. That also happens to be the last time the Democrats held both the Senate and the White House.
Could that be an omen for the Vols and Lady Vols this year? Well, Obama doesn’t think so. He’s only got the women’s basketball team making the Sweet 16 in his bracket before losing to the Baylor Bears, and he’s got the men’s team losing in the second round to the Oklahoma State Cowboys. You can see both brackets here.
Similar to how he basically did with the rest of the teams in the NCAA Tournament, Obama went all chalk with the Vols. He’s got all No. 1 seeds in the Final Four. On the women’s side, he’s got two No. 1 seeds and two No. 2 seeds. Simply put, there are no Cinderella stories.
Obama’s history with UT in the NCAA Tournament is a mixed back. On the men’s side, dating back to his first year as president in office in 2009, he has basically hit par with them. Based on data we collected from White House archives, the only year he picked the men’s program correctly was 2011, when they lost to the Michigan Wolverines in the first round.
He overshot them by two rounds in 2019, when they lost in the Sweet 16 while he had them reaching the Final Four, and by one round in 2018 when they lost in the second round. In 2014 and 2010, he undershot them by two rounds each, as they made the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight respectively, and in 2009, he overshot them by one round, as they lost in the Round of 64.
On the women’s side, he has also basically hit par. We could only compile date back to 2011. He picked them accurately in 2019, 2017 and 2013. Meanwhile, he overshot them by one round in 2018, when they lost in the second round, by two rounds in 2014, when they lost in the Sweet 16, and by one round in 2011, when they lost in the Elite Eight.
Related Story. Five reasons Vol basketball could reach Final Four. light
More from All for Tennessee
- How to Win a GUARANTEED $200 Bonus Betting Just $5 on the Vols vs. Florida!
- Tennessee Football at Florida: Five Keys to a Vols Victory
- Week 3 SEC Power Rankings: Did Tennessee Football’s Win Help At All?
- Week 3 AP Polls: Why Did Tennessee Football Drop in the Polls?
- Tennessee Football: Top Five Performers in 30-13 Win vs. Austin Peay
In their 2016 Elite Eight appearance, he undershot them by two rounds, and in their 2015 and 2012 Elite Eight appearances, he undershot them by one round. The undershoots and overshoots in his NCAA Tournament brackets lead to a net zero on both the men’s and women’s sides.
When it comes to production in the NCAA Tournament, Obama was the first president to preside over the Lady Vols never reaching the Final Four, so he was the worst president for them. Of course, they never reached it under Donald Trump either, but there were only three tournaments under Trump.
It’s a different story on the men’s side. Despite all the turmoil in the early 2010s, the men’s program played in four NCAA Tournaments, made two Sweet 16 appearances and reached one Elite Eight. To be fair, they also made it four times under George W. Bush with two Sweet 16 appearances, but they never made an Elite Eight.
Only Jimmy Carter has a case for presiding over a better overall performance, as the Vols made three NCAA Tournaments in four years under him. However, to be fair, they never reached the Sweet 16. They made it three times under Ronald Reagan, once under George H.W. Bush and three times under Bill Clinton with one Sweet 16 appearance.
Vols AD Danny White's top 10 coaching hires at UCF, Buffalo. dark. Next
How will Tennessee basketball fare under Joe Biden on either side? We’re about to find out. The Vols have a good shot to make a deep run on both sides, and maybe a different president will result in different outcomes for them, good or bad.