- Loyola-Chicago is back in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in over 30 years.
- Sister Jean is Loyola's 98-year-old team chaplain who seems to also be a bit of a mascot for the team.
- The longtime chaplain likes to fill out tournament brackets, but she says she can't enter them in any March Madness office pools because of NCAA rules.
- Sister Jean says she doesn't mind the rule, but it also seems like she would like a shot to test her basketball knowledge.
Sister Jean is the 98-year-old team chaplain for Loyola-Chicago's men's basketball team. She is also the perfect example of why the NCAA's rulebook makes most people want to pull their hair out.
During the NCAA Tournament, TruTV did a segment on the longtime men's basketball chaplain. According to Loyola-Chicago head coach Porter Moser, she is not only the team's chaplain, but she is also the team comfort blanket, the team scout, and a blessing.
"She's just a blessing, the way she prays for us, the way she smiles," Moser said. "When you walk in a room and see Sister there, you just kinda feel, you feel good."
In other words, Sister Jean is the last person on God's green Earth that the NCAA should be worried about. Unfortunately, the long arm of NCAA law keeps Sister Jean from entering her annual NCAA Tournament brackets into March Madness pools.
"I'm not an expert, but I have been doing brackets for years now," Sister Jean told TruTV. "Sometimes I am really very successful. Sometimes I'm not. I'm not in a pool or anything like that because I am connected with athletics, and that kind of behavior is not permitted by NCAA."
Sister Jean can't show off her basketball knowledge because the NCAA views tournament pools as a form of gambling. From the NCAA:
"NCAA member colleges and universities have defined sports wagering as putting something at risk such as an entry fee with the opportunity to win something in return. Because of this, student athletes, coaches and administrators may not participate in bracket competitions where there is both a required entry fee and an opportunity to win a prize."
It is a lot like the NFL's controversial catch rule. The NFL was so worried about the rare borderline catch causing havoc during a national game that they passed a heavy-handed rule that took the fun of a lot of exciting plays. Likewise, the NCAA is so worried about the occasional $100,000 tournament bracket and its potential for corruption that they decided just make the other 99.9% of brackets illegal also.
To be fair, Sister Jean could enter her bracket electronically at a place like ESPN or Yahoo where there is no entry fee, but any office pools at Loyola are likely illegal. She also says she is not upset about not being able to participate in any pools. She told TruTV that it is okay by her because she "just has a lot of fun doing it." Although to listen to Sister Jean in the video below, you do get a sense she would like a shot to prove her mettle.
She has Loyola going to the Sweet 16 in one bracket and the championship game in her "Cinderella Dream" bracket.
Sister Jean does act at times as a quasi-assistant coach, "scouting" opponents and emailing players after games with tips. She has been with the team for all six of their appearances in the NCAA Tournament, including the 1963 team that won the national championship. So there is a lot of basketball knowledge that goes into her bracket picks.
Sister Jean can't take advantage of the knowledge in a tournament pool. But if you are looking for some advice in filling out your bracket, you could do a lot worse.
You can see Sister Jean talk about her brackets here, via TruTV.
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