Predictions Championship 2015: Curie

[Looking Forward]

TIPS:
While Holland Christian couldn't follow up their two win campaign of 2014 with any more victories in 2015, 107 once again produced a high scoring machine. 107 is a solid HP scoring machine with the potential to start the match off with 20 points in autonomous. It's unlikely that they're a top pick, but they should be playing in the eliminations at Championship for the first time since 2009.

303 surprised many when they captained an alliance to Einstein in 2013, but they failed to reach the Galileo eliminations the following season. If TEST Team can continue with the level of play of their last three events, they shouldn't have much of an issue reaching the playoffs this year. So long as their partners can keep the cans upright, 303 was consistently creating two 6-high stacks for most of the season. As a result they were the top seed in Tech Valley, though they narrowly were ousted in the semis. They followed that up with a #1 seed victory at North Brunswick and reaching the finals with the #2 alliance at MAR Championship.

Seemingly all of the Pacific Northwest is in Curie this season, with seven teams from the district in the subdivision. Among the standouts are 948, 1318, 3663, and 4061. NRG, CPR, and the SciBorgs (who break up the 3 letter acronym PNW theme) are all capable of a pair of full stacks from the human player station, while IRS prefers to work the landfill. 948 also boasts a 20 point autonomous routine that's almost a guarantee at this point, and quick co-op abilities, so they have a chance of ranking in the top 8 for the fourth time this season. IRS may be the best suited for the playoffs of the bunch, but even with an improved can grabber they'll need the right partners.

More may not always be better, but in recent year More Martians has tended to outplay the regular old Martians. While 494 was the 25th pick at MSC, 70 captained the #3 alliance. While their biggest contributions stem from their 20-point autonomous routine and ability to reach for cans from the step, 70 is also capable of putting up a decent stack from the landfill if it suits their strategy. If they're a top ranked team once again this season, they may struggle to put together a winning alliance, but if they're allowed to fall into a support role they could be quite dangerous.

DARK HORSE:
While FIRST doesn't consider them to be a rookie, no team competing in FRC for the first time in 2015 can put up more points in a match than 4613. These Aussies ranked 1st and reached the finals at their home event based on their ability to place three stacks (two 36, one 30) from the human player station after grabbing all three RCs from their zone in autonomous. They have plans to raise their point potential, and a creative method to create a tote set, they hope to implement as they arrive in St. Louis. While they certainly didn't generate the hype of some other young teams, The Red Crusade is set to make a name for themselves on Curie.

SLEEPER:
4143 is not afraid of loading their robot with plenty of degrees of freedom, with a swerve drive and multiple independent lifts for each tote. MARS/WARS' design is ambitious, and they found success in winning Midwest after reaching the Central Illinois finals. Their extendable container hook won't win many races for cans during autonomous, but it does allow them to access those cans in a fashion that gives them full possession. Given their unique design and skill set, they could be a good fit on a collaborative alliance. If they have to run solo, they might not be able to keep up with some of the stronger teams on Curie, however.

LOCKS:
Not since their Championship run in 2008 has 1114 come out of the gate as hot as they did in Recycle Rush. The Simbots blew the doors off of everyone else when they competed at GTRC back in week 2, and have continued to put up stacks from both the landfill and feeder stations with ease. There was a period where their QA at Waterloo was higher than any team in a match not featuring 1114 had scored, anywhere in FRC. Since then, other elite teams have more than closed the gap, with The Cheesy Poofs taking heavy inspiration from Simbotics to improve their results at SVR. The closest thing to a weakness that can be found in 1114's game now is the speed of their canburglars, which while fast enough to beat out most average teams, aren't going to win any races against elite competitors. However, 1114 has never been shy about improving their robot, even to the point of unveiling a goalie post in St. Louis last season, so expect some much faster can grabbing from the Simbots in the future. The nature of the can races and the improvements from other teams certainly could topple 1114, but this may be the time that they can finally reach Einstein on an odd numbered year.

When the Robowranglers dropped their reveal video just before stop build day, they showed just how far the limits can be pushed without size constraints. 148 backed up the hype they generated by putting up massive scores in Dallas during week one, and raised the bar further in Vegas. It's not entirely out of the question that they might drain the feeder station totes on their own in a match, depending on how many recycling containers they have to acquire. The obvious hole in their game is the inability to canburgle, but it would be foolish to think they don't have plans to ensure their partners can acquire cans. The founders of #teamtether are the best bet for a true tether system (not just a ramp on a string) to reach Einstein, even though they may not be the only team there (or even the only tethered Texans).