2021 FALAFEL Draft Location Madness - The Final

 

Thoughts on The Finals:

• Despite being a father of two, Gutman's authoritarian sway over this league seems to have subsided for the first time since he beat Luke in the Fiji Presidential election of 2007.
• A late vote switch from Weissbard nearly flipped the Right Side to the Jersey Shore, but Reap's vote sealed the deal.
• Esco flip-flopping to the Poconos over Burlington after his Anti-Poc Propaganda a few weeks ago was a highlight of the bracket to me.
• As for the matchup itself, it's basically convenience vs. an objectively better location. I'm never one to ignore the convenience factor, but there are direct flights from NYC to Asheville in less than two hours, so I don't really think that should be the determining factor. Billy's rant was a good one, and I just think the combination of housing, activities, weather, and relatively lax COVID standards makes Asheville the choice this year.

2021 FALAFEL Draft Location Madness - Final 4

 

Final Four Thoughts:

• Down go the 1 seeds! The Right side of the bracket has descended into madness, and the Jersey Shore has made a Cinderella run thanks to an easy road, some Esco propaganda, and the rare Bruno endorsement.
• I honestly don't know what to expect in either matchup here.
• Poconos and Burlington are two sides of the same coin, so I assume that convenience and spite will be the determining factors here. I predict a 9-7 win for the Poconos, but would not be surprised by any results.
• I have to assume that Asheville prevails over the Shore based on people actually wanting to visit the city, but the convenience factor cannot be ignored. A Draft Weekend in Wildwood would either be the best or worst experience we've had, including Ithaca and Baltimore.

2021 FALAFEL Draft Location Madness - Elite 8

 

Elite Eight Thoughts:

• The Esco HiveMind moves on, with Portland and Burlington seemingly on a collision course in the Final Four. 
• Chicago has barely advanced in both rounds, despite being a pretty ideal city to visit in August, so I don't anticipate much of a fight in the Bottom Left.
• Poconos vs. Portland is going to be interesting, as they are the locations with the most combined votes in the first two rounds. I honestly don't see much of a difference between them, with housing likely better in the Poconos, and more of a downtown available in Portland. Convenience is the major differentiator here: Is a five hour drive from NYC or unnecessary flight worth having a downtown for over the 2 hour Poconos commute?
• Austin vs. Asheville is a classic Big Brother/Little Brother matchup. The weather in Asheville is the big Pro in my book, and makes up for the obvious convenience factor with Austin on my end.
• The Bottom Right seems like we'll be going through the motions as I can't see any scenario where the Jersey Shore wins, and this once again doesn't seem like Pittsburgh's year.

2021 FALAFEL Draft Location Madness - Sweet 16

 

First Round Thoughts:

• No real upsets other than some 4/5s, though the Bennett hate was strong and AC put a scare into Chicago.
• The Esco hive-mind seems to give Burlington and Portland, ME some real momentum. Something to monitor if you're betting FALAFEL futures.
• The only real easy path belongs to Pittsburgh, which will be interesting due to the sporting event uncertainty, though I have a feeling that Burlington romps. Let's see if housing becomes an issue.
• Dark horse that has not gotten much chatter yet this year is Asheville, but since Esco apparently jumped off that train we'll need someone else to lead the charge.

2021 FALAFEL Draft Location Madness - Bracket Reveal

 

Quick thoughts/facts on the bracket:

• Loyalty to the Poconos was huge, as it was on half of the ballots and had nearly double the weighted points of any other location.
• Pittsburgh continues its historic run of being a 1 seed without ever being chosen, with Austin probably the second most selected city that we have not actually drafted in.
• Burlington is a shocking #1, and there may have been collusion on the part of Weissbard, Esco, and Reap (Nick had it as his 5th choice but I assume he ignored any attempts at collusion).
• Outside of the top few picks there was not a lot of overlap on the ballots, leading to one-off choices like Lake Tahoe (Esco), Staten Island (Z), Los Angeles (Mejia), and Des Moines (Belfer) getting 5 seeds. Those submissions will definitely need to be defended during the discussion phase.
• I don't think the Poconos will be seriously challenged in their region, so they are the clear leader in the clubhouse.
• Austin tends to get equal amounts of support and hate, so between that and real challengers in Asheville and Minneapolis (on 3 ballots), I don't have a sense of what happens in that region.
• Jackson Hole is objectively a hilarious potential outcome, but I don't see it being a real contender, so Pittsburgh seems to have an easy Final Four path as well.
• The bottom left region is my personal favorite, with multiple cities that could go on a run and take down the Poconos in the Final Four.