Obama Goes with Favorites in Final Four, Picks Kansas to Win It All

(NewsCore) - Chalk and the Jayhawks.

That's how President Obama sees the NCAA Tournament playing out, and for the second straight year he's riding with Kansas to win the national title.

In the Final Four, Obama did not forecast any surprises, writing in the other three 1-seeds Ohio State, Pittsburgh and Duke. The commander-in-chief likes Kansas to defeat Ohio State in the final.

"I'm giving them (KU) a chance at redemption," Obama told ESPN's Andy Katz during his third annual bracket picks from the White House. Last year the Jayhawks were upset by Northern Iowa in the second round, busting the president's bracket.

After two more "First Four" games Wednesday night in Dayton, Ohio, the field will be narrowed to 64 teams, with 16 second round games to be played on both Thursday and Friday. The tournament culminates Monday night April 4 at Reliant Stadium in Houston.

Obama used his rare ESPN appearance to call on people to donate to Japan relief by visiting USAID.gov.

"They're going to list a whole change of range of charities," Obama said. "That would be a great gesture as you fill out your brackets."

Obama has had past success with his NCAA Tournament picks, correctly predicting North Carolina as the national champion in 2009.