Bracket Fan
Web application for creating and managing college basketball bracket challenges with automated scoring, group management, and live leaderboards.
Type: Web Application – College Basketball Bracket Challenge Platform
Built With: PHP, MySQL
Overview
BracketFan is a web application that allows users to create, manage, and participate in college basketball bracket challenges during tournament season.
The platform was designed to make it simple for users to:
- Create private or public bracket groups
- Invite friends or coworkers
- Submit tournament picks
- Automatically track scores as games progress
- View standings in real time
BracketFan combines game logic, scoring algorithms, and user management into a lightweight, season-driven application.
The Challenge
Running a bracket challenge manually can be cumbersome:
- Tracking picks in spreadsheets
- Calculating scores by hand
- Managing group invites
- Updating standings after each round
The goal was to build a fully automated system that:
- Handles bracket submissions
- Enforces submission deadlines
- Scores picks automatically
- Displays dynamic leaderboards
- Scales during high traffic around tournament time
The Solution
I designed and developed a full-stack PHP application that:
- Allows users to register and authenticate securely
- Enables creation and management of multiple bracket groups
- Stores bracket selections in a structured relational database
- Calculates scores dynamically based on tournament outcomes
- Updates standings automatically after each game result
The system includes both front-end user experience and administrative controls for managing tournament data.
Key Features
User Experience
- Account creation and secure login
- Create or join bracket challenges
- Bracket selection interface
- Automatic scoring based on results
- Live leaderboard updates
- Group-based standings and rankings
Game & Scoring Logic
- Round-based scoring system
- Deadline enforcement for pick submission
- Database-driven matchup structure
- Dynamic recalculation of points as results are entered
Admin Controls
- Tournament structure management
- Game result entry
- Score recalculation tools
- User and group management
Technical Highlights
- PHP-based server-side application
- MySQL relational database
- Session-based authentication
- Timezone-aware deadline enforcement
- Optimized for seasonal traffic spikes
- Deployed via Git-based workflow
Impact
- Eliminated manual bracket tracking
- Enabled automated, real-time scoring
- Supported private group competitions
- Provided a scalable, reusable tournament framework
Lessons & Growth
BracketFan represents an earlier-stage product build that required:
- Designing database relationships for bracket logic
- Implementing deadline-based functionality
- Handling high-traffic seasonal usage patterns
- Balancing simplicity with competitive features
It reflects my ability to design structured logic-heavy systems and translate real-world competition rules into reliable application workflows.