It’s been said that the formula for happiness is H = R/E, where R is reality and E is expectation. Every once in a while I’m reminded of this equation, and it seems to apply to sports fandom particularly well.
Consider Ohio State and Michigan. Entering the season, the Buckeyes were the prohibitive favorite to repeat as national champions. Loaded with talent, no other team looked quite as good on paper. There was some excitement for the Wolverines with a new head coach, a hire that actually felt like they weren’t just settling for a change. But no one really had them pegged for greatness; the roster was still kind of a mess and the Big Ten looked to have more bite than usual following a stellar bowl season.