Apparently, Taylor Swift does want to date me, Hogwarts does exist and in 25 years I will be President of the United States.

No, I’m not crazy. Just look at this year’s NCAA men’s basketball Final Four. Obviously dreams do come true.

Thanks to Virginia Commonwealth and Butler, someone is laughing all the way to the bank. Oh, yeah, Shaka Smart and Brad Stevens. One of them will be going to the national championship to face either John Calipari or Jim Calhoun. Congratulations, gentleman. I’m sure it will be a dream come true.

If anything has been consistent in the 2011 NCAA Tournament, it’s been inconsistency. Someone should have told Bill Self that the No.1 in front of his Kansas Jayhawks meant nothing to anyone but the record book. And Smart’s VCU Rams saw to it that Self’s season was sent to the books after the Elite Eight. Rock chalk busted brackets and busted dreams.

Before we continue, let’s talk about Shaka Smart and the VCU Rams. I even mocked the Rams, as did most of the country, until about 3 p.m. Sunday. How could this squad, which, may I remind you, tipped off against our Billikens last year in the College Basketball Invitational, make it all the way to the national championship? The 2010-11 Rams are almost a mirror image of the 2009-10 Rams the Bills faced; they beat SLU twice to win the title and then lost their best player to the NBA. Folks, this is the stuff of dreams.

Now, Shaka Smart is set to receive a nice pay raise at a bigger program. It may even be a dream job.

Of course, a Final Four match-up of Butler and VCU isn’t exactly a dream game for executives at CBS who want big ratings, but then again, Cinderella didn’t wear tennis shoes, now did she? As the saying goes, “This is why you play the game.”

And play the No. 8 Butler Bulldogs did. They knocked off No. 1 Pittsburgh with less than a second on the clock, beat No. 4 Wisconsin to advance to No. 2 Florida and take on No. 11 VCU on Saturday, April 1, in Houston.

Butler head coach Brad Stevens, 34, is going to his second Final Four. That’s one more than SLU’s head coach Rick Majerus, who has almost 500 career victories. Stevens was just four when Majerus began coaching at Marquette. Now he’s headed to his second consecutive Final Four and has a chance to win it all after last year’s heartbreaking loss against Duke in Detroit.

I had a dream that all the No. 1 seeds would advance to the Final Four. It was called my bracket. It was published for all to see last week. Not a single one remains. I guess March Madness made me an April fool.

For UConn head coach Jim Calhoun, this, his fourth Final Four (say that four-times fast) erases the nightmare of sanctions casted by the NCAA earlier this season after the governing body found Calhoun in violation of recruiting rules. After missing the Dance altogether last year, the Fighting Kemba Walkers, I mean, Huskies, have returned to what must feel like a dream.

And let’s not forget John Calipari. On second thought, keep dreaming Coach Cal. Just wait 36 months, and this Final Four will be just a dream, too.

The reality is the 2011 Final Four is open for any team’s taking. Regardless of the outcomes of the games this weekend, it will be legend versus newborn. Connecticut and Kentucky represent two of the finest and most historical programs in all of collegiate basketball, while up-and-comers Butler and VCU give us all a reminder that, even in the face of the highest odds, dreams do persevere.

So Ms. Swift, you belong with me. Baby, just say yes.

Professor Dumbledore, I’ll be waiting for my owl. And I promise not to tell my Muggle friends.

And Mr. Obama, sir, take care of the House. I believe the St. Louis Cardinals will be coming to visiting you in a few months. Albert Pujols needs a desk to sign his new contract on.

Hey, a guy can dream, right?