Autistic teen still has a perfect bracket after two rounds
One weekend into one of the least predictable NCAA tournaments in recent memory, an autistic teen from the Chicago-area has done something virtually impossible.
He hasn't missed a pick.
Alex Herrman, 17, claims he has correctly predicted all 32 first and second round games. Northern Iowa over Kansas? He had it. Ohio over Georgetown? No problem. Saint Mary's, Cornell and Washington to the Sweet 16? Yep.
I'm good at math," Herrman told NBCChicago.com. "I'm kind of good at math and at stats I see on TV during the game."
Herrman entered his bracket via CBSSports.com's bracket manager, which is designed for private groups and does not include any cash prizes for the winner like other online games do. A CBS representative e-mailed Tuesday evening to say that the person who creates the group is able to alter the brackets after the games have started, so CBS doesn't monitor the results.
You can click here to see Herrman's bracket. As much as you hope that Herrman didn't alter his bracket after the fact, it's certainly understandable if you're skeptical considering the long odds.
According to VegasWatch.com, the chances of picking every game in the first two rounds correctly is about 1 in 3.4 billion, worse odds than the lottery ... or crossing the street without getting hit by a bus. The odds slip to 1 in 7.2 trillion for coming up with the perfect bracket from the opening round to the title game.
"I checked his bracket and it was off the chart," Herrman's brother Andrew said. "I thought it was big deal."
Herrman picked Purdue to win the national title because it's his brother's alma mater. It's a major long shot to most of us, but if the rest of his bracket's legit, who are any of us to argue?
