My bold predictions + analysis!

Hi all! First of all, I just want to add a little disclaimer here…the following you are about to read does not reflect the feelings or ideas of any of my teams past or present. My predictions in no way are meant to put down any team or division, they are just simply my opinions. In a nutshell, im just trying to have a little fun =)

Ok I have thoroughly reviewed each division and have made some observations due to what I saw. Also for each division I have chosen the team that I think will be most likely to be a division champion. I only pick one because trying to pick alliances is just too goofy. Soooo enjoy, take them as you will, but they are just my opinions.

Archimedes: Definately the ball scoring division of the competition. Teams 45 the Technokats, 47 Chief Delphi, 121 Rhode Warriors, and 224 Piscataway High are just a few of the extremely tough large ball capacity ball scorers. This division will be dominated by these scorers and could very well end up having an alliance of 2 ball scorers winning it all. Should be interesting.
Most Likely to Win - Team 45 Technokats: The Technotank does it all, ball pickup, and a nasty drive train that will serve them well in the finals.

Curie: This division is ruled by a vast majority of two goal grabbers. There are quite a few very powerful and maneuverable two goal grabbers (i.e. 60 Ford Kigman, 237 The Tribe, and 254 the Cheesy Poofs). Add to it, one of the most amazing qualification round robots, team 157 the Aztechs and you have the formula for a division that will be well represented in the final 4.
Most Likely to Win - Team 60 Ford/Kingman: Frankly I have never seen a drivetrain quite like the one these guys have. Not to mention the maneuverability of their arms. They are a force.

Einstein: A division with some solid goal grabbers like teams 192 Gunn Robotics and 312 Baxter Heatwave, and a couple of really solid ball scorers such as team 111 Wildstang and 16 Baxter Bomb Squad. Should be interesting to see who comes out on top in this one as it is very evenly matched.
Team Most Likely to Win - 111 Wildstang: Breat Ball scorer and goal grabber, very powerful and an awsome drive train, they should be tough to beat.

Newton: This division is absolutely stacked! Easily the toughest division to win, and it is gonna be very interesting to see what happens here. With all three goal grabbers in the division the finals could be very different. Dying to see what happens if team 365 MOE and team 71 Beatty cross paths in the elims. Add in some great ball scoring teams like team 175 Buzz and 173 Rage and you have a contender for the national championship.
Team Most Likely to Win - 71 Beatty and Hammond: The way i see it, one of those 3 goal grabbers has got to come out on top, and Beatty is very strong with those nearly immovable legs.

The finals: Out of the 4 teams I picked to win each division I have to go with team 60 Ford and Kingman to take it all. Frankly, I have never seen a robot with such a dominating drive system as these guys have. I would love to see Kingman and Beatty do battle in the finals, either way, this is gonna be an exciting tornement.

Also just a couple more observations…did anyone seem to notice how pretty much the best teams from each big sponsor seemed to get grouped together. Maybe its just coincidence, but it seems kinda odd, especially considering how 5 UTC teams are in the same division. I kinda like it. Also, I find it interesting that all the 3 goal grabbers are in one division, any thoughts on this?

Well I hope you all have fun at nationals, no matter who ends up on top I’m sure its gonna make for alot of excitement.

Good Luck to all teams,
Andy Grady

The way that it looks to me is that the “random picking” wasn’t random at all. They put they teams in numerical order and took the first ten and put them in one division and next ten in the next division and so forth until they ran our of teams. So the reason that the best teams from each sponsor are in the same division is because a few years back they put the teams in alphabetical order by sponsor and numbered them that way. So when they put 65-71 in the same division they put four of the original five GM teams together. Not very random.

Andy,

Thanks for the vote of confidence, but most would consider us an underdog since we did not win in either of the regionals we competed in. I think the Bomb Squad is the favorite in the Einstein division.

You also overlooked a very strong and proven 2-goal robot in the Archemeides division - team 469 easily won both regionals they attended. Whichever one of the many strong ball bots gets to pick 469, will be favored.

*Originally posted by Raul *
**Andy,

Thanks for the vote of confidence, but most would consider us an underdog since we did not win in either of the regionals we competed in. I think the Bomb Squad is the favorite in the Einstein division.

You also overlooked a very strong and proven 2-goal robot in the Archemeides division - team 469 easily won both regionals they attended. Whichever one of the many strong ball bots gets to pick 469, will be favored. **

I really have to agree with Raul here. In the eliminations, team 469 made all of the other robots in their two regionals look like weaklings. And that’s not to say that the other robots were weaklings, becuase the fact is that there were some amazing robots at those regionals.

My best memory of 469 this year came at the Great Lakes Regional. In one match, two great robots with TONS of traction and pushing force squared off in the eliminations (I can’t remember the two robots right off hand). Prior to the match, I had no idea who to pick as the favorite. Then, one of the two teams absolutely dominated the other team to win the elimination round. Then I realized that this team would play 469 in the next round and I thought to myself, “wow, this team appears like it can beat 469. This should be a great match coming up!”

Then in the next round, 469 made this team that I thought would give them a run look like they had no traction or power whatsoever. It was amazing. Here’s this team that had all this traction and power and ability to dominate a great robot in the previous round was made to look totally inept by 469. Believe me – 469 is that good. They are my favorite to win it all.

Frankly you may be right, but I am only basing things on what I have seen. I would love to see this team 469 in action as I am sure they are a very strong team from what you say. Unfortunately the midwest competitions don’t really have many webcasts so I miss some of these gems. But I have seen the Wildstang robot in action as I have seen the Baxter robot in action. And what I saw were 2 very solid robots…this division was a very difficult to single anyone to win it, its a very even division.
My reasoning for this choice is this…sometimes its more than just the bot that wins the competition…smart play and good scouting factor in. I’m not saying that Baxter doesn’t play smart or have good scouting, because they sure do, however in all the years I have been in the competition, Wildstang has been really solid in both those aspects, and having been against them on a few occasions, I know that they have what it takes to pull out the extra stops to take the division.
Of course like i said, this is just my opinion =)
Good Luck Guys,
Andy Grady

I have to agree with the Raul and Chris about 469’s ability. We picked them in the GLR and never lost a match in the elims, against some great experienced teams. 469 played every match, and we swapped out ourselves and 67. I have not seen 60 play, so I cannot compare the two, but I would say that whoever picks 469 will win their division.

Ken
Team 65 (Newton)

Ya know, given the informaton I have recieved from you all about 469, I still don’t think that I’d be able to pick them for that division…my reasoning is this…in that division in particular there is one team who may end up changing the way everyone views the game. This team is team 121. See, at the New England Regional, team 121 proved once and for all in my opinion, that two ball scorers can easily dominate solid 2 goal grabbers. With 2 powerful drive trains, and good ball scoring capabiities it is entirely possible that a team like team 469 or 60 could fall to a ball scorer. This is why I pick the technokats…they are powerful and have a good ball scoring capability…exactly what that strategy calls for in a team. This is how i predict that division to be one, and I stick by it =)
Peace,
Andy Grady

bad spelling…its won, not one…im having an off day

I am not tooting my own horn or anything but i think we may surprise. We have made alot of modifications, working tirelessly those three days after Drexel to get more and more spares, larger feet, and better grippers.

As our team captain’s signature says: “New hands, new feet, new wings, oh my!!”

side note: i am not predicting we will win newton just that we are alot better

Andy…Skrach…you know i love ya and all…but theres going to be some suprises in all divisions…im not saying your completely wrong, but some teams have made a few revisions like perseus said…and that changes things…are you gonna be down there? If you are, can’t wait to see you, if not …be watching the webcasts.

deej

Here’s my predictions, please feel free to ridicule me for my ignorance.

Curie can anyone say upset?
either 343 or 254+157 over 60

team 60 is strong, but everyone knows who they are and they are gunning for them, the cheesy poofs have changed a lot since buckeye and not a lot of people have noticed it. 254 a strong double goal grab plus 157 a good ball robot will take it. metal in motion has the credentials and the robot to do some serious damage in Orlando also.

Archimedes
118, 47

118 has proven to be a strong goal bot and 47 has proven that they are a very strong ball bot together they can win it easy. 469 is obviously a great, but its the same story as team 60.

Einstein
192, 16

GRT and bomb squad are great robots with the right alliance partners and I think they are the right one’s for each other. Wildstang is a quality robot and I think that whoever they ally with they will give the Bomb Squad a run for their money.

Newton
65, 66 vs. 67, 68 in the finals

We’ve seen it before and there’s nothing to say that the GM powerhouses won’t do it again. Why not keep it in the family and pick another GM team. 65 and 67 are two very good qualifiers and I think that they will stick with what they know. over all I see 67 and 68 taking Newton. 71 is another one of those teams that has shown a little too many of their cards and people are starting to figure out their weaknesses.

I am truly sorry if I left anyone out or offended anyone, but this is how i see it.

I think that Curie in the finals easily could be won by 64, 60, 254. If it was played just like the finals in SoCal were (Substituting 254 for 330 b/c 330 is in another division) The ball robots are only good if they can capture a goal. If 60 can get 2 of the goals and 254 or 64 use their speed to push and wedge a goal into the corner like they did at SoCal before the other teams can capture it then they have a chance to win. They might not have an impressive score or an exciting match but it worked at SoCal and it probably could work here.

Anyway, just my opinion.

Hmm you know what I think…I think 238 might just suprise everyone in the Curie Division…I know they aren’t a well known team, and I know their luck hasn’t always been good with robots…but this year, I think they are going to suprise alot of people…so look out for them…

Besides that…I know 60 is going to do great, they always have…they always will…

*Originally posted by Andy Grady *
** This is why I pick the technokats…they are powerful and have a good ball scoring capability…exactly what that strategy calls for in a team. **

Andy,

You are a kind, and I hope that you are also wise. We would sure love it if you turn out to be correct. There are many, many of teams in Archimedes who could pull off a win, and it’s really hard to evaluate who does what and how well they did it at their regionals. Sooo many of these teams don’t even have pictures posted on the web!

One thing that I noticed when studying the Archimedes division is that there are 7 teams who have won the Spirit Award… so… that means that Archimedes is gonna be louder and crazier than any other division! Rock on Archimedes!!

Andy B.

*Originally posted by Andy Grady *
[My reasoning for this choice is this…sometimes its more than just the bot that wins the competition…smart play and good scouting factor in. I’m not saying that Baxter doesn’t play smart or have good scouting, because they sure do, however in all the years I have been in the competition, Wildstang has been really solid in both those aspects, and having been against them on a few occasions, I know that they have what it takes to pull out the extra stops to take the division.

Andy Grady [/b]

I know this is just your opinion, and I have never in my life been one to try to tear away at someone’s opinion.
In a defense to the Bomb Squad, we have a really good scouting system this year. I don’t know about previous years. Our entire team works throughout the competition finding out information about the other teams. How else would we have spotted team 869 in St. Louis.
I respect you opinion completely, but please try to take a little notice at all we actually do! :slight_smile:

Just my two cents, not meant to offend…

please underestimate Archimedes I think you are missing some of the power in the ball-bots & some of the… well you’ll see, I’ve said too much already. We’re loud. We’re proud. We’re Archimedes.

Hi all,

First of all in response to Jessie…believe me, I know that you guys have a great robot, great scouting system, and just a great team overall. I have been in this competition for 8 years (I remember the Bomb Squad’s rookie year in 1996 when they were so amazing that they pounded a 24" ball through the side of a goal with large wooden posts, something I thought impossible!) I have watched you guys closely in my strategy work every year considering your team to be a major threat if we were to cross paths. This year was no different. Though I knew that my team would never have the chance to compete against you, I followed your robot by watching the webcasts and I must say that I was impressed. The same also goes for Wildstang, as I follow them each year for the same reasons and was also very impressed from what video I saw. Like I said, this division is even, Wildstang and the Bomb Squad are even, and either of you has a great chance of taking the division. What makes me say that Wildstang is my favorite to win due to strategy and smarts is the fact that they have a few years more experience than the bomb squad does. Frankly that could mean nothing or it could mean everything…either way it will be a fight…plus…who’s to say that you guys wont be teamed up in the end? :wink: Of course also consider that anything can happen, and there are alot of teams in each division…any one of them can take it…I mean hell…the Patriots won the superbowl didn’t they? :smiley:

Oh and in response to Rees, I am by far not underestimating the Archimedies division, or your robot for that matter. I actually did alot of scouting on your robot and you guys have quite a powerful drive train and a very smart team at that. Fact of the matter is, if there is any division that has a chance to knock off a team like Kingman, Beatty or 469, it is that division. There are alot of powerful ball scorers, alot of powerful goal grabbers, and alot of extremely experienced teams. This division in my opinion is the toughest to win outside of the Newton division. I even think that there might be a major suprise comming out of this division, that may even challenge for and take the title.

One more thing…I would like to see the winners of this competition take on the alliance of teams 95 and 69 at some sort of special post season match just to prove for sure that they are the worthy champions. I know it probably will never happen, but its a shame that two teams who I would have heavily considered to win the whole thing coudln’t make it due to logistics…my hats off to HYPER and LRT for two excelent robots.

Have fun in FL all,
Andy Grady =)

Well once again in order to defend my prediction in archimedes, let me just say this in reply to ricksta…first of all…

"Simplicity usually lets a team make something and then tweek it to perfection (like we did). "

Thats quite a bold statement to make in itself. Nothing is ever guarenteed, and nothing is ever perfect. However I will not deny the fact that you guys probably have the second fastest ball pickup in the competition and have a very solid drive train as it is. However, with the Technotank, the drive train is the main strength of that robot, they do not necessarily have to pick up 30 balls a round to be successful. If they are teamed up with another solid ball scorer, they could be unstoppable, or even more, they could be national champions. Plus if you will notice, I keep stating that I feel that 2 ball scorers are going to win this division…this stems off of the 121 strategy I saw in New England. Maybe, in a way, i do have you guys somewhat picked, and im just not saying it out loud. :wink:

Oh, just one more thing, I just wanted everyone to take notice at a heavy sleeper in this division. Team 224, Piscataway High School. These guys were awsome in Jersey, they have an amazing ball scoring capability, and play the game extremely smart at that. They may suprise alot of teams, check em out, they are fun to watch too!

Have fun all,
Andy Grady

I also think that 224 is a sleeper. I would even go as far as to say that through both regionals (VA and NJ) and all of my scouting, they may be the best ball scorer on the East coast. Go 224!

We have a pic of them on our site (we paired with them and 336 to win NJ)…