March Madness Feels Different This Year… Here’s Why

The crew breaks down the discourse around March Madness this year, with many fans pointing out the lack of upsets, buzzer beaters, and overall chaos that typically defines the tournament. With favorites dominating early, the panel dives into whether something feels off and explores the growing belief that NIL has fundamentally changed the landscape of college basketball and the tournament’s unpredictability. Later, the conversation shifts to the controversy surrounding MLB’s new partnership with Polymarket and what it could mean for the future of sports betting and league involvement. To close things out, the crew lightens things up by sharing and reacting to some of their all-time favorite tweets, bringing a different energy to end the show. Hosted by Jacob Gramegna, this episode features professional sports bettor and CEO of The Hammer Rob Pizzola, basketball originator Kirk Evans, and special guest Jason Cooper of The Hammer Daily filling in. 📅 New episodes of Circle Back every Monday at 1pm ET and Friday at 8am ET. Plus, watch for additional content every Wednesday, ranging from interviews with industry experts to instructional videos! 📊 Building in prediction markets? Get your trial API key for unified prediction market and sportsbook data: https://bit.ly/4blx5BR 🔵 Get Betstamp PRO’s New Live Betting Screen → https://bit.ly/4lsovnG LINKS 🎮 Join The Hammer's Discord: https://discord.gg/hammer ✉️ Sign up for our newsletter: https://kirknewsletter.thehammer.bet/ 🔨 The Hammer Betting Network: https://thehammer.bet/ SOCIALS 🔵 Circles Off on Twitter - https://x.com/CirclesOffHQ ⬛️ Circles Off on TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@circlesoffhq 🟪 Circles Off on Insta - https://www.instagram.com/circlesoffhq/ FOLLOW 🔵 Follow Rob - https://x.com/robpizzola 🔵 Follow Kirk- https://x.com/KirkEvans0 🔵 Follow Jason - https://x.com/TakesByJ 🔵 Follow Jacob - https://x.com/jacob_gramegna OUR OTHER CHANNELS 🔨 https://www.youtube.com/@TheHammerHQ 🏈 https://www.youtube.com/@FwdProgressHQ 📚 https://www.youtube.com/@HitTheBooksHQ SHOW INDEX 0:00 - Circle Back w/ Rob Pizzola, Jason Cooper, Kirk Evans and Jacob Gramegna 3:27 - Does March Madness suck now? 38:09 - MLB forms partnership with Polymarket 46:45 - Should these cappers have a 100% win rate 50:55 - NFL vs. Flag Football 1:05:41 - Reading your comments 1:15:45 - Chopping block 1:13:25 - Best tweets of all time Disclaimer: The content presented in this show is intended for entertainment purposes only. All opinions expressed are those of the hosts and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of any individuals or organizations mentioned. Statements made about public figures or entities are based on publicly available information and are not intended to harm or defame any person or business. This show relies on the fair use of social media posts, which are presented in good faith for the purpose of commentary and criticism. Viewers are advised to form their own opinions. Circles Off podcast is an entertainment podcast. The opinions expressed in the podcast are for the purpose of discussion in the area of sports betting, online gaming and other like markets. Circles Off podcast does not condone unlawful or illegal activity, and if you are unsure of the laws in your jurisdiction surrounding these markets, please seek the appropriate legal advice about strategies that you intend to implement. Please gamble responsibly. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices