Roger Federer made history today when he defeated Robin Soderling in the French Open final to complete his career Grand Slam. Federer dominated the match. So much so, that the most exciting thing that happened was when a loony fan ran onto the court and tried to put something on Federer’s head (watch below). Having captured his 14th Grand Slam victory, Federer is tied with Pete Sampras for the most Grand Slam titles. Federer is now officially installed in the Pantheon of Tennis greats. It was a great victory for a great champion.

The first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament are now over, and there’s only one relevant question. How’s your bracket? More specifically, how many of the “Sweet Sixteen” did you correctly pick? I didn’t foresee Wake Forest’s first round loss to Cleveland St. (Did anybody?), so I was 15 for 16. Did anybody go 16 for 16? Here’s my updated bracket: Denny’s Picks R Da Bomb.

It’s March Madness time, and I have two items to share on this the first day of the 2009 NCAA tournament. First is my bracket. My final four is Memphis, Louisville, Pittsburg, and North Carolina. And I’m picking Louisville to win the whole shebang. Second is a YouTube of what is perhaps the greatest clutch play in NCAA Tournament history (even though I’m not a Duke fan). Laettner’s performance in this game was off-the-charts. He was 10 for 10 from the field, and scored this last minute game-winning shot. Though it is not remembered with fondness here in Kentucky, this was a game for the ages.

Nate Robinson won the NBA’s slam dunk contest this weekend. At 5’9″, his performance was absolutely Spud-Webbish. The Huffington Post has some video highlights here. Posted above are ESPN’s top ten moments from past contests.

Like I said before, a playoff would be change that I can believe in. Here’s the lede from NBC Sports: “The incoming chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, said he will hold hearings and possibly subpoena NCAA officials, college presidents, players, coaches and athletics directors in an effort to force a playoff in Division 1-A football, USA Today reports.” Also from this story: “Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff is moving forward with an inquiry into whether the BCS system violates antitrust laws.” Yes, that’s the Attorney General of Utah, the state that was perhaps most deleteriously affected by the BCS this year. I for one will…

Before the game, I thought that the Gators would win. After the second quarter, I wasn’t sure anymore. Oklahoma ran the ball at will on Florida, and it looked like the Sooner offense was going to roll over the Gators for the rest of the game. After the half, however, Florida made adjustments and made the plays they needed to make. It was a great game.

John Harwood interviewed President-elect Barack Obama last night and asked him what college football team should be ranked number one right now. Obama reiterated his support for a playoff system in Division 1A college football. That’s change that even I can believe in!

On Sunday night, I was privileged to be in Shreveport, Louisiana to see my alma mater Louisiana Tech University defeat Northern Illinois in the Independence Bowl. Even though Tech’s appearance in this bowl was due to the SEC and Big 12’s inability to produce enough bowl eligible teams, I couldn’t be happier that the Bulldogs put together this win. I have followed many disappointing seasons over the years, and this opportunity and victory have been a long time in coming. Here are some reflections on the game: