Probably the most grueling and toughest championship to win in all of sports is the NCAA Final Four tournament or March Madness as it is sometimes called.

Today's March Madness is different from its earlier conception in 1939. Nowadays a "Sweet Sixteen" and "Elite Eight" teams advances and there are four tournaments, a Class A and Class AA version for both men and women. In today's NCAA Final Four contest featuring a three-point shoot out and slam dunk contest, is now a part of these tournaments as well. Starting in 1996, the "March Madness Experience," an exhibition hall full of fun and games; allowing fans to join in the action; much different than it's humble beginnings.

"March Madness" was born in Illinois. At the start of the 20th century. The annual tournament was originally a tournament for a high school boy's basketball team, sponsored by the Illinois High School Association. Originally this tournament was a small invitational affair in 1908 which into grew a statewide competition with over 900 schools competing by the late 1930's.

Soon a certain number of teams known as the "Sweet Sixteen" routinely created sellout crowds to the University of Illinois games. Hence the term Sweet Sixteen was born. The pre Final Four format was starting to take shape in the 30's to what we have today in 2006.

The phrase "March Madness" was coined by Henry V. Porter in 1939…to describe an Illinois high school basketball tourney. In 1982, CBS Sports Commentator Brent Musburger first used the phrase during an NCAA game. Causing a huge legal battle almost as insane and mad as the playoffs the phrase was hotly contested over the legal right to the name. Finally things worked out and the madness was official.

In 1939, The first national championship tournament, was conducted by the National Association of Basketball Coaches and sanctioned by the NCAA.

From 1939 through 1950, only one team was chosen from each of the NCAA's eight districts; 4 from the west and 4 from the eastern tour. The winner of the west would than go on to play for the east for the national championship.

In 1951, the NCAA tournament expanded to 16 teams, with 10 conference champions automatically qualifying and 6 other tram that would be chosen by a committee. The "Final Four" came the next year, when the number of regional tournaments was increased from 2 to 4.

The number of teams grew to 24, with 15 conference champions and 9 committee chosen teams in 1954. In 1975, a 32-team bracket was adopted and the selection committee was allowed to choose a second team from a conference. In 1980 the field grew to 48 teams and than 64 teams in 1998.

The number of conference champions automatically qualifying is subject to change from year to year, but under NCAA rules they can make up no more than half the teams in the tournament. The others are chosen by a committee, with the help of a computer ranking system, which can or can not give the most deserving invites, but that's an on going yearly debate.

The NCAA tournament is now the biggest sporting events on TV every year aside from the Super Bowl. "March Madness," became a reality when CBS agreed to pay $18 million a year for television rights from 1982 through 1984 and ESPN began to televise all of the games that CBS didn't cover.

In 1994, CBS agreed to pay $1.725 billion for rights to the tournament through 2002. No single game draws an audience comparable to that for the Super Bowl, the total package of games, with its built-in regional favorites, rivals the NFL's playoff series, the NBA playoffs, and the World Series in fan interest and television appeal.

Today the tournament it what exactly as it is advertised; Madness.

Basketball Ides of March

The gym lights gleam like a beacon beam
And a million motors hum
In a good will flight on a Friday night;
For basketball beckons, "Come!"
A sharp-shooting mite is king tonight.
The Madness of March is running.
The winged feet fly, the ball sails high
And field goal hunters are gunning.

The colors clash as silk suits flash
And race on a shimmering floor.
Repressions die, and partisans vie
In a goal acclaiming roar.
On a Championship Trail toward a holy grail,
All fans are birds of a feather.
It's fiesta night and cares lie light
When the air is full of leather.

Since time began, the instincts of man
Prove cave and current men kin.
On tournament night the sage and the wight
Are relatives under the skin.
It's festival time, sans reason or rhyme
But with nation-wide appeal.
In a cyclone of hate, our ship of state
Rides high on an even keel.

With war nerves tense, the final defense
Is the courage, strength and will
In a million lives where freedom thrives
And liberty lingers still.
Now eagles fly and heroes die
Beneath some foreign arch
Let their sons tread where hate is dead
In a happy Madness of March.

Author unknown