BuckeyeDore Bracketology

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Vandy and Ohio St. fan

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Final Results:

For those that prefer the visual ⬇️

68/68 Field
52/68 Exact Seed
68/68 Within 1 seed line

Final Bracket Matrix Score: 376

Committee actually paid attention to the Conference Tournament! Purdue and Arkansas a 4 is well deserved, just unexpected for me!

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@cricket_broken I feel Morocco is a contender and Japan is a dark horse

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Like all World Cups, the host countries got placed in pod 1 regardless of their actual strength. US/Mexico are talent-wise more like strong pod 2 teams and Canada is a weak pod 2/strong por 3 team. After the group stage, yes the US got a bit lucky in their R32/R16 games, but many paths will be easier with the new format. Additionally, the US will likely face Spain in the quarters, which is obviously not a great matchup

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@AlexMartinGreat @RyChiSox_24 @RileyJamesTV @PaulCarr Whoever wins in the Senegal/Iraq game

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@DKSports US is a dark horse not a contender. Colombia, Mexico, and Ivory Coast should be higher, potentially Senegal too despite their first two outcomes. Probably a few other tweaks that could be made (maybe Ghana/Morocco a bit higher and Belgium a bit lower) but those stand out to me

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@JDNalton Can’t disagree here. The top 2 from Groups A, B, and D should have stayed in Mexico, Canada, and the US respectively through the R16 at a minimum.

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@rockleeisms That’s a good thing. It means we won’t have that many inconsequential final group games. While H2H is on paper the “most fair” way to determine tiebreakers, it’s undeniable it took away from group stage excitement

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@UtdMaI Same also applies to Iraq that applies to Senegal, but a -6 GD would be a tough hill to climb

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@UtdMaI France and Norway for sure. Senegal has to beat Iraq to have a shot. Will depend on how the other 3rd place teams finish in terms of points and GD

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@WiktorSZN 32 is the best number. However, if that’s not an option would you prefer 64? The obvious downside is that it dilutes the quality/prestige, but it creates a structure where only the top 2 advance. The groups themselves would be weaker, but it would become tougher to make it out

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@PolymarketSport These “as it stands” graphics are pretty useless when certain future outcomes are significantly more likely than maintaining the status quo. I.e. the US will get the winner of B&H/Qatar if there is one. Graphics that show the highest probability outcome would be way more useful

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@UTDKarra It’s all dependent on whether a team has a path to land in 3rd within their group. Senegal still is yet to play Iraq who also has 0 points. A win against Iraq might be enough depending on how the other 3rd place teams finish both points wise and also in terms of GD

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@findjaredd @ryanhammer09 Had to be given. Would have easily been in on net

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@Creechers21 @davidpollack47 @USMNT I don't think most 10-2 in the ACC/Big 12 teams have a realistic shot (there are exceptions of course like Miami last year). USA is not an SEC/Big 10 10-2

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@m_joke_r @StatisticUrban Same reason UEFA can't host due as Morocco is hosting in 2030 as well

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@kola_wole_ Ah yes, the European giant in Argentina.Please stop stealing our culture in being bad at geography

But in all seriousness, most USA fans know we aren't anywhere close to the top teams.The team is better than in years past though now and making the Quarters would be great for us

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@supaaslacka @davidpollack47 @USMNT 100% agree, 10-13 is exactly where I'd have them too. Funnily enough, I think it was the CFP stuff where I guess we actually disagreed

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@supaaslacka @davidpollack47 @USMNT Hey fair enough, we see it differently. I just see the roster we have compared to previous years and also think Poch has us playing great. I'd be okay with R16 but Quarters would be a massive success

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I claimed we are a Big 12/ACC 10-2 not an SEC/Big 10 10-2. Not all 10-2s are created equally obviously. I don't think a team like Utah or BYU had a realistic shot at the CFP last year. That being said, I think mid-major though is way too disrespectful to the US. Those should be the Qatars, Curacaos, Cape Verdes, etc. And then the .500 CFB P4 teams would be the Czechias, Ecuadors, Algerias, etc.

There's a massive gap between the truly bad teams, the mediocre/okay teams, and the tier the US is in. A good chunk of the American starting 11 plays in the EPL, Serie A, Bundesliga, or La Liga. The US is probably around a top 15 team

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@sokanate @supaaslacka @davidpollack47 @USMNT Feel like that's more so New Zealand since the OFC sends 1 that likely doesn't make it without being in their respective conference/confederation

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Disagree, USA was favored to come out of the group (alongside Turkey but that's a whole other discussion). Not saying the group was that tough, but USA is genuinely a solid team. Probably 4-5 teams out there clearly better and then another let's say 6-8 marginally better that the USA knocks off 3 out of 10 times