[b]Autistic Teen Picks First Two NCAA Rounds Perfectly [/b]

[b]He studied all season for the tourney [/b]

[b]By DICK JOHNSON and ANDREW GREINER [/b]

[b]Updated 3:08 PM CDT, Tue, Mar 23, 2010[/b]


An autistic teenager from the Chicago area has done something almost impossible. Nearly 48 games into an upset-filled NCAA [color="#006699"]tournament[/color], 17-year-old [url="http://media.nbcchicago.com/images/WinningBracket.jpg"][color="#006699"]Alex Herrmann is perfect[/color][/url].

"It's amazing," he says. Truly.

[color="#006699"]The teenager[/color] predicted that [color="#006699"]Northern Iowa[/color] would beat the [color="#006699"]Kansas Jayhawks[/color]. He picked Ohio to knock off [color="#006699"]Georgetown[/color]. And Cornell to knock off Wisconsin.

In fact, he picked every game through the first two rounds correctly. The odds of anybody doing that? One in 13,460,000, [url="http://www.bookofodds.com/Daily-Life-Activities/Sports/Articles/A0151-March-Madness-The-Perfect-Bracket"][color="#006699"]according to BookofOdds.com[/color][/url]. It's easier to win the lottery. Twice.

"I'm good at math," Alex, a Glenbrook South High School student, said. "I'm kind of good at math and at stats I see on TV during the game."

Alex entered the bracket on CBSsports.com's bracket challenge. CBS did not return several phone calls to confirm entries into its game. His 24-year-old brother Andrew, who helped him enter his picks into CBS' bracket manager, also entered the contest -- and ranks behind 500,000 other people.

"My bracket is totally shot," hist 24-year-old brother Andrew said. "So is everyone else I know."

ESPN estimates around [url="http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010/03/22/sports/AP-BKC-NCAA-Tournament.html"][color="#006699"]4.78 million played in their bracket challenge, but no one picked all the games correctly[/color][/url]. The leader at ESPN's bracket [url="http://games.espn.go.com/tcmen/en/entry?entryID=2201927"][color="#006699"]has already missed four games[/color][/url].

But Alex Hermann's miraculous bracket is still a picture of perfection.

Andrew is still shocked --- after looking it over for the umpteenth time, he told his mother to alert the media.

"I checked his bracket and it was off the chart," Andrew said. "I thought it was big deal."

Alex doesn't get anything for perfection. He entered one of three bracket games offered by CBS -- the only one without a prize attached.

Alex's basketball knowledge could have been worth a fortune. One of the other CBS games offers a prize of $5,000 per round. Other sites offer even more money -- Yahoo offers $1 million for a perfect bracket; SportsBook.com offers $13 million.

"If he would have won any money he would have just saved it," his mother Diane said. "He's a big saver."

Of course, everyone wants to know Alex's secret. He says there's none.

"I watched each team this year and saw the size of the player and looked at the stats," Alex said.

There are still four rounds remaining, so it could fall apart -- the odds of a perfect wire to wire bracket is about 1 in 35,360,000 by some measures or 1 in 1,000,000,000,000 by others.

Alex picked Purdue to win the whole thing. That just happens to be his brother's alma mater.

"They're his favorite for that reason," Diane said. Or maybe he knows something no one else does.

[url="http://media.nbcchicago.com/images/WinningBracket.jpg"][color="#006699"]Click here[/color][/url] to see Alex's entire bracket.



Source: [url="http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/sports/Autistic-Teen-Picks-First-Two-NCAA-Rounds-Perfectly-88916437.html#ixzz0j2H5SBfY"]http://www.nbcchicag...l#ixzz0j2H5SBfY[/url]




He picks Purdue to win it all.


[img]http://forum.go-bengals.com/public/style_emoticons/default/17.gif[/img]

I wish was autistic now.

Wait.


You're [b]not[/b]?

Looking at my bracket, obviously not. I might have some sort of mental malfunction though picking New Mexico to win it all.

it would take someone with a deficiency to pick some of these games

[quote name='ThurmanMunster' date='23 March 2010 - 06:15 PM' timestamp='1269382507' post='872562']
it would take someone with a deficiency to pick some of these games
[/quote]


leave it to you to be the asshole.

People with autism aren't retarded they just have poor social and/or behavioral skills.

Good for him, but he got lucky.

There's just NO WAY Purdue wins it all. NO WAY.

Bookmark my post, whatever ya gotta do...it ain't happening.

If it does, well...you decide my punishment. I just can't envision it.

And of course, if his bracket remains perfect throughout the entire tournament, then we have our answer as to when Jesus returns...or the rise of the Anti-Christ...

[quote name='Bunghole' date='23 March 2010 - 09:17 PM' timestamp='1269393476' post='872612']
Good for him, but he got lucky.

There's just NO WAY Purdue wins it all. NO WAY.

Bookmark my post, whatever ya gotta do...it ain't happening.

If it does, well...you decide my punishment. I just can't envision it.

And of course, if his bracket remains perfect throughout the entire tournament, then we have our answer as to when Jesus returns...or the rise of the Anti-Christ...
[/quote]

It will be interesting to see how this plays out...I agree that I dont see Purdue winning it all, and he probably picked them just because his brother went there.

But if everything else happens with or without purdue winning it all its still impressive...hell its impressive already.

[quote name='akiliMVP' date='23 March 2010 - 06:25 PM' timestamp='1269386715' post='872583']
People with autism aren't retarded they just have poor social and/or behavioral skills.
[/quote]

Well i said deficiency not retarded.

NOUN:
pl. de·fi·cien·cies

1. The quality or condition of being deficient; incompleteness or inadequacy.
2. A lack or shortage, especially of something essential to health; an insufficiency


Deficiency would work to describe autism.


Main Entry: au·tism
Pronunciation: \ˈȯ-ˌti-zəm\
Function: noun
Date: 1948

: a variable developmental disorder that appears by age three and is characterized by [b]impairment of the ability[/b] to form normal social relationships, by impairment of the ability to communicate with others, and by stereotyped behavior patterns


impairment of an ability = a deficiency





And to avoid ruining the thread...I was just making a joke and knew it wouldn't offend anyone on the board because we all are capable of making and taking comments like that the way they were meant and not overreacting.

[quote name='ThurmanMunster' date='23 March 2010 - 09:54 PM' timestamp='1269395642' post='872621']
Well i said deficiency not retarded.

NOUN:
pl. de·fi·cien·cies

1. The quality or condition of being deficient; incompleteness or inadequacy.
2. A lack or shortage, especially of something essential to health; an insufficiency


Deficiency would work to describe autism.


Main Entry: au·tism
Pronunciation: \ˈȯ-ˌti-zəm\
Function: noun
Date: 1948

: a variable developmental disorder that appears by age three and is characterized by [b]impairment of the ability[/b] to form normal social relationships, by impairment of the ability to communicate with others, and by stereotyped behavior patterns


impairment of an ability = a deficiency





And to avoid ruining the thread...I was just making a joke and knew it wouldn't offend anyone on the board because we all are capable of making and taking comments like that the way they were meant and not overreacting.
[/quote]
Did I quote you?

[quote name='akiliMVP' date='23 March 2010 - 09:23 PM' timestamp='1269397390' post='872626']
Did I quote you?
[/quote]

seemed like a "shot" at me and i wanted to protect myself.

[quote name='Bunghole' date='23 March 2010 - 06:17 PM' timestamp='1269393476' post='872612']
Good for him, but he got lucky.

There's just NO WAY Purdue wins it all. NO WAY.

Bookmark my post, whatever ya gotta do...it ain't happening.

If it does, well...you decide my punishment. I just can't envision it.

[b]And of course, if his bracket remains perfect throughout the entire tournament, then we have our answer as to when Jesus returns...or the rise of the Anti-Christ...[/b]
[/quote]

Or maybe he found a copy of Gray's Sports Almanac laying around.

[quote name='sois' date='23 March 2010 - 09:07 PM' timestamp='1269403625' post='872644']
Or maybe he found a copy of Gray's Sports Almanac laying around.
[/quote]


The dude from Back to the Future II didn't [b]act [/b]autistic...

[quote name='akiliMVP' date='23 March 2010 - 06:25 PM' timestamp='1269386715' post='872583']
People with autism aren't retarded they just have poor social and/or behavioral skills.
[/quote]


Not at all. One of my twins has autism. He is a genius when it comes to some things.
He has an knack with numbers and has an uncanny sense of direction. And remembers everything.

But yeah, he definitely lacks social skills and has some behavioral issues.

[quote name='oldschooler' date='24 March 2010 - 08:34 AM' timestamp='1269437665' post='872687']
Not at all. One of my twins has autism. He is a genius when it comes to some things.
He has an knack with numbers and [b]has an uncanny sense of direction[/b]. And remembers everything.

But yeah, he definitely lacks social skills and has some behavioral issues.
[/quote]

That is something i completely lack. Thank God for the GPS lol

Ok, the kid sucks. Syracuse lost.

[quote name='steggyD' date='25 March 2010 - 09:18 PM' timestamp='1269566324' post='873142']
Ok, the kid sucks. Syracuse lost.
[/quote]

Don't worry, Purdue will still win it all!

I dont buy it. His group allowed them to change their picks after the games started, and he took a huge dump after the first 2 rounds. My bracket is better than his now, and mine sucks. I would of believed his first 2 rounds if he continued to do good, but as is theres no way i can believe that.

[quote name='oldschooler' date='23 March 2010 - 05:05 PM' timestamp='1269378303' post='872545']

He picks Purdue to win it all.

[/quote]


I guess they forgot to tell him that Hummel was out for the rest of the season.

On the other hand, Duke got some refereeing assistance in their game against the Boilermakers. Specifically with about a minute and a half left in the first half and Purdue up by four. Should have been an offensive foul on Duke's center on the pick(even Clark Kellogg noted this)...instead Duke gets a 3-point play, leading them to a 5-0 finish and a one-point lead at halftime.