The Boy Who Broke the March Madness Bracket

The probability of completing a perfect NCAA tournament bracket is less than the combined odds of landing a hole-in-one, winning the Powerball and being struck by lightning multiple times. So how did Sam Holtz, the 2015 winner of ESPN's March Madness Bracket Challenge, beat out almost 12 million other entries and score a near-perfect bracket? For one: he didn’t watch any college basketball before the tournament. A Great Big Story told with our friends at Bleacher Report.
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#SamHoltz #MarchMadness #BracketChallenge #GreatBigStory

[@kylek7748]

I've said this for years that the only person who is going to fill out a perfect bracket is someone who knows absolutely nothing about college basketball

[@JinjaOnHere]

Kyle Klimek I watch every game of every season and right now I only have 5 right predictions. 5!!!!!

[@kylek7748]

Case and point

[@JinjaOnHere]

Kyle Klimek Yep

[@peepsyogi]

Kyle Klimek because people will over think... Who knows may I be the next one? Yeah right Im to lazy to make one

[@yourfriendlyneighborhoodsm4708]

Kyle Klimek Shannon said it on Undisputed. The more you know about college basketball, the worse your picks are going to be

[@whipjack13]

This is like passing a test you didn’t study for

[@hastaar2161]

Acing you mean😆

[@CRMdrifter]

@@hastaar2161 well he didnt actually have a perfect bracket he just won the competition.

[@ShaikaShuriken]

Fr getting an A on a test I didn’t even know was happening that day is always the best (unless it’s a free class like literature, because I don’t study for that class either way)

[@helloasroma]

More like getting into Harvard when you never studied your whole life

[@rossgonzales3422]

This is like acing the LSAT with no studying lol

[@migbossChannel]

Producers: Bracketology Prodogy! Sammy: "It's just pick whoever you want to win, there is no science"

[@joshcorbett4787]

Sarcasm.exe not_found

[@idontplay3v3]

@3026 Zi it worked for him

[@micahsmith9024]

Wise words from this guy, "Pick who you think is gonna win." bravo

[@zohaibalam4047]

Micah Smith so obvious

[@eeeesyywuwiz2836]

Micah Smith I mean what was he supposed to say? Its like asking a lottery winner how they won, well by buying the ticket of course

[@micahsmith9024]

@@eeeesyywuwiz2836 yeah I know it's just funny

[@rhysfairall2562]

No way I became the one thousandth like on this comment.

[@micahsmith9024]

@@rhysfairall2562 How does this have 1k likes? Lol

[@charron1]

warren buffet offered 1 billion for this

[@Leglas563Channel]

Here in my garage

[@AdubsYT]

HJMadventures My bwand new bwackets

[@Ryan_11990]

He didn't have a perfect bracket. You needed it to have everything correct.

[@cornbread4535]

Yeah that was for a perfect bracket which has never happened and probably never will

[@futurekickz9740]

charron except it just did

[@SportsKing2000]

8 years later, no one made it past the first round

[@RyanMackenzie1883]

Who’s here in 2022

[@maxdraper21]

Sammy’s mom: I think he was lucky. Everyone watching: No waaaayyyy!!!!

[@jonahschmeltz2007]

Who's here after seeing him on TikTok?

[@reece9228]

Me. He’s not an expert it was luck so idk why people listened to him

[@taterz4502]

lmao fuck tiktok

[@kaushikgattu5036]

This is basically when you ace an exam that you didn't know was today.

[@doggozoggo0]

Carolina Panthers Shirt, Random Basketball in his room, shelves decked with baseball stuff, what?!

[@Amenadiel605]

Anyone else notice that he went to colleges and is flippin 12 Edit:THIS IS THE MOST LIKES I HAVE EVER GOTTEN!!!

[@kameronhill4422]

trap master 50 I went on a college campus tour to washing state university as a freshman. Lots of high schools do stuff like that it’s pretty much a field trip

[@andrewkeating4065]

Kameron Hill yeah but 6th grade is not high school

[@dulbinrosario10]

Kameron Hill he’s in the 6th grade

[@kameronhill4422]

Andrew Keating ok well then it was a middle school field trip Jesus

[@ethanm7059]

He could have a older sibling he was and visited with them

[@TypicalAlex07]

Did anyone else notice the broken backboard at the end?

[@barbraharvey9251]

He probably broke it with his baseball. Lol lol

[@depressedchargersfan8061]

This video just further proves my point that the less you know about college basketball, the more correct picks you will make. The less you know, the more likely you are to pick upsets. The more you know, the more it looks like the better teams on paper can’t be beated

[@alexg3911]

His gut took him from level 1 crook to level 100 boss

[@swishswoosh6556]

This is like me studying for Hours for a test and then failing And then the kid that doesn’t study’s passes

[@GymFreak2099]

Everyone here in 2024 👇

[@MickeyMouse-lm6zj]

these odds assume it's a coin flip 63 times in a row

[@scruffd0g193]

The odds of a perfect NCAA bracket are 1 in 9.2 Quintillion. That's the fun of it. You can know absolutely nothing about college basketball and still fill out a bracket. You can fill out a bracket based off the mascots, favorite color, or an old fashion coin flip

[@maxzerbato6002]

Who’s here after seeing him on tik tok

[@ldpranks2765]

What’s his @

[@randomrandom4842]

Imagine someone winning the bracket In the year Virginia got out first round

[@jasonok1436]

Did he win anything??

[@Omgitssoup]

+Jason ok Espn was going to give him 20k but at the last min they didn't. They pulled back. If you get a perfect bracket you can win up yo 1 billion dollars.

[@AviPars]

OmgItsSoup they p pulled back because he was too young

[@sergiozavaleta4521]

Everything Tech Review that's stupid they could've just gave the money to his parents

[@AviPars]

LagiNaLangAko23 yes. I won a red bull contest , was under 18, but app it was was an iPad so they just had my parents sign. anything bigger, they aren't legally bound to do anything.

[@AviPars]

*Y O U G R E E D Y D I R T B A G* LagiNaLangAko23 yes. I won a red bull contest , was under 18, but app it was was an iPad so they just had my parents sign. anything bigger, they aren't legally bound to do anything.

[@jettlehmann4269]

Let’s be honest, we all watch this every march

[@vincent513]

What I want to know is how close his bracket was to what actually happened. They did say "near-perfect" but not perfect.

[@anthonystella2317]

He got 5 games wrong in the first round but none ended up making the sweet 16 so he only ended up losing 5 points out of 192

[@logsf18]

college basketball experts: I have to pick this team because of their floor spacing, passing, fundamentals, athleticism, rebounding, chemistry, shooting, defense, coaching, scheme, dribbling, footwork, and they have johnny, desean, peter griffin, Michael Jordan in his 50s, obama, the US military etc. this kid: I just pick whoever's gonna win

[@elivandrisse]

i thought this was 2018 i was like NO. FREACKING. WAY. THIS. IS. POSSIBLE.

[@aith7rios]

You know those filler episodes in anime? This video right here. This is one of them.

[@seanwilson5989]

You never know what happens, upsets and so much other stuff can ruin you. It's a game of luck.

[@djdru4159]

yall know this happened again he made it almost but still had a perfect bracket almost the whole way

[@nolanspeckels8573]

Go with who you think is going to win? Cough* 2018 tournament Excuse me

[@frimpleschnips]

I like how this is categorized as "Human Condition." Because i knew little Timmy over here had some mental capabilities by guessing a football bracket.

[@bradtaylor5323]

the fact he didnt get the winnings is so sad i cant imagine

[@SKLZ7]

Update: He didn’t get into UCLA

[@gavinxdesign]

0:50 sums it up perfectly

[@bennybeans3586]

Gavin Aker haha! Yeah .

[@kxobi]

This is a very useful video... sure will use the strat

[@volinderdhesi9500]

He is a bandwagon fan Look the panthers and cubs

[@eliarnold4738]

Volinder Dhesi you can't call everyone a bandwagon just because they like the good team. I've been liking the Cubs since is was a baby

[@Wh0reshoe]

Volinder Dhesi How is he a bandwagon by liking the Panthers, they didn't do so good last season lmao

[@DR-wc5mw]

Eli Arnold thats what all bandwagon fans say

[@volinderdhesi9500]

Awtizum • I agree but this video was posted in march 2016

[@joebago2044]

Lives in Chicago used to live in Carolina

[@roachyflims7891]

I was just happy picking Florida Golf Coast upsetting Georgia

[@conan_chen]

My bracket is called March badness

[@joshualee9540]

My march madness bracket got cooked after 2 days, god damn. Always revisit this video during this time.

[@jonahbarber8596]

‘Bracketology expert’ Dude he got lucky

[@yinan02]

meanwhile im sitting here doing work in computer science... and i didn't even know this existed. im not that into any sports though

[@somecrazyveteran]

As a Duke fan I appreciate this dude

[@wesmol8009]

last year i made 5 brackets and the 3rd one i made i predicted the entire first round and the final four, i got top 100 but sadly it wasnt enough to win. And kind of like Holtz i picked based off of my team. I love michigan and so i picked them to upset louisville but lose to oregon. SC beat michigan earlier in the year so i picked em to go to the final four. gonzaga and NC were always really good so i picked em to go to the championship. I figured it was redemtion time from the year prior so i picked NC to win. and thats all i really needed to get a top 100 bracket

[@wingman0075]

He lives in Indiana but now Texas and goes to Johnson High

[@sharkneishawhalywhale9456]

Wow real good advice bud!

[@Me37368]

2018s tournament was so crazy

[@banditradio]

A Panthers fan AND a Cubs fan??? Yoo I think we might be long lost relatives

[@boltandslim227]

And that’s why my sister picked the umbc upset over Virginia

[@dogwaterl]

U made a video on a kid putting names of colleges on a piece of paper?

[@forloopwhileloop]

Why do they keep bringing up the odds of a perfect bracket when he only turned in a "near-perfect" bracket.

[@michaelmorgan6674]

he aint giving up his secrets

[@coryt93]

- wins March Madness bracket challenge - doesn’t watch Basketball Sounds about right.

[@jckson0127]

that vertical on that 7 foot goal sheeeeeeeeeesh

[@armena.8563]

I visited UMBC and really liked the campus, so I'm picking them to upset Virignia...

[@cantbeatthebay4765]

niiiice 4 inch vert bro!!!

[@Jxvni]

Yeah oral roberts definitely screwed up his bracket this year

[@rickleung90]

He probably has a secret, but if he says it everyone will know and he won't be the only one that wins.

[@justinhill3815]

"i think he was lucky" i lost my shit hahahahahaha

[@nicholaswelty9362]

go with your gut is the biggest factor in picking fr

[@tdubs4930]

Let’s go, he’s also a fan of the panthers!

[@typicalsports1200]

Their is no way this guy picked middle Tennessee winning and Syracuse in the final four

[@fusionmafia6036]

My guy don't watch or play basketball but got a professor hoodie on

[@solobusiness4320]

Lol it’s just so crazy because In the nba the best team wins in college basketball the best team always loses

[@gavinbarnes9184]

Was there a strategy The kids mind: is he high?

[@ryangleason9199]

This man is missing half his backboard

[@mbuckholz]

He got EXTREMELY lucky

[@airplaneawesome6533]

Awesome

[@samihaidar8548]

My name is sami

[@garrett6199]

Top 100! So close I got all right except Villanova

[@gonzolonzo1383]

He lived a perfect series of events that lead him to his bracket.

[@dylankrejci9965]

Slumdog Bracketology

[@rafa57games]

It's like who wants to be a millionaire, the movie

[@kinteyoi]

@@rafa57games slumdog millionaire

[@nickbrian9567]

I play baseball with him. He wasn't lying about not watching basketabll

[@thekingpatb9286]

Do u really?

[@Billybob-om6lu]

Thekingpat B I go to school with him everyday.

[@wallacestine]

Nick Brian WOW GOOD LYING *CLAPS LOUDLY*

[@bmclizzy657]

Nick Brian no one watches basketabll... cuz it's BASKETBALL !!!! Not basketabLL

[@wallacestine]

How am I lying? I am making a statement that I don't believe is true from some kid that supposedly knows this kid 7th grader

[@e8kowala]

LOL IS THIS REAL LIFE SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE

[@Idekatthispointlol]

e8kowala lol

[@kirchscomet5767]

e8kowala 😂😂😂

[@stopreadingthis9956]

Hi

[@aarav5762]

Lol he is a billionaire cuz of Warren Buffett

[@Yodababie]

Calvin Johnson yeah he didn’t have a perfect bracket not a billionaire hahaha

[@unonymous4407]

I love how the only advice he had was “pick you think is gonna win.” Proves how he defiantly doesn’t watch basketball, makes the better.

[@jickleton-5653]

Definitely*

[@unonymous4407]

@@jickleton-5653 Thank you

[@ayyyayay]

I really thought the way he does this is look through articles of each team, look at the stats, of team and player,look at the history between each matchup, look at the advantages and disadvantages, ask people who watch college ball for some more information But hell nah he’s just like, I like this college, therefore they win the match up

[@ThomBjork]

"I'm not going to watch basketball; you can't make me!" he said as he stomped his foot defiantly

[@colinnewton8433]

Who else it watching this because March Madness is coming back?

[@razorblu3107]

Colin Newton yes I went back to watch this to get his advice for the bracket😤

[@bearcsgo3659]

Me

[@bobbymccafferty2361]

Yep

[@alisharider5674]

I am

[@Zolo776]

Me

[@gagebrooker5645]

then they show him dunking on 8 foot rim

[@mpan2258]

Gage Brooker with a sick backboard

[@joshmcgeough6823]

Gage Brooker 6 foot

[@ShnugFlug]

It was higher than 6 foot probably 7 or 7'6

[@Eggs-sy4js]

ShnugFlug if it was 7 foot then he’s easily 5 foot 10 so no

[@braxtonansbaugh182]

Gage Brooker with no back baord

[@Ty-tq2kj]

Mark Cuban: You didn't choose the Mavericks to win, and for that reason I'm out.

[@zbrycey]

Ty 27 lmao

[@igenesisvt8818]

Ty 27 the mavs are in the nba

[@adamk5672]

Xzafex r/whoosh

[@ichiromori536]

Ty 27 shark tank reference

[@charbelkassab6353]

Lol

[@MusicThruHeadphones]

He got lucky

[@trejayratliff2307]

you don't say

[@Billybob-om6lu]

Kenneth Wung he goes to my school. M8.

[@Kkoso]

Kenneth Wung no shit.

[@carlosmatos3241]

Shawn Birkholz 😂😂😂😂

[@CoobCanGame]

No fuckin shit

[@michaelpham2772]

Didn’t know lostnunbound had the winning bracket

[@samjohnson374]

hah tru

[@anshshah8893]

Michael Pham he did?

[@nbalivebeaster8260]

Lol he looks like him

[@matthewstaffordsburner1040]

Eh sorta

[@bignigga2974]

More like TD

[@thewarriormonkey6372]

their coach is Italian and I'm somewhat Italian so they win his logic

[@CTS1661]

TheWarriorMonkey it’s funny cuz his last name isn’t even Italian

[@greenbean5085]

@@CTS1661 his moms side could of been Italian

[@Loafysosa]

I’m crying 🤣

[@RealPatrickWebb]

Literally every College Basketball coach is an Italian Jew 💀💀💀

[@muchduck3754]

@@greenbean5085 what about his dad’s side?

[@tuckerpeterson1576]

This guy's a sixth grader?

[@bwitt7830]

he was at the time, in seventh grade now

[@maia9557]

B Witt big difference.

[@monstarxl77]

Mr. Panda. It is actually

[@MinneapolisLegend28]

david otuwa, lol did somebody just graduate sixth grade

[@cubby6007]

Alexander Ketcham so was I man I gave him the pencil and I was sitting next to him fanning him so he could concentrate

[@blubue]

Or maybe someone from the future told him so.

[@Osiris4181]

Arewhyand Music This isn't Back to the future

[@TheGamer14300]

Cygnus727 or is it

[@georgikens7516]

He stole the almanac!

[@BillBondsHasAPosse]

It’s was the book he stole from Biff.

[@gk4lifearsenal597]

Think about it if he talked to someone from the future wouldn’t he have a perfect bracket

[@MrHam-sk3kr]

This is like the perfect example of how unpredictable march madness is

[@onWardsWeGo]

He knew Michigan state coach is Italian? Makes complete sense he doesn't watch much..

[@ganzaman7322]

he doesn't watch before the tournament.

[@natee157]

saje cowell not much doesn’t mean not at all

[@s1ash1]

Google exisst

[@HC-cz7xl]

Holy fuck why is this a video? "How did you pick the winning number" "I dunno I just picked it" Headline: Boy who solved the lottery

[@adriansadiku19]

Garden Gnome exactly

[@noelvalenzarro]

There’s a lesson to be had from it but it seems you weren’t ready for it yet

[@repoman2115]

why do they keep saying perfect, his bracket wasn't perfect

[@jayviancoulter3609]

Galaxy S7 in the beginning it says “near perfect”

[@shoutzo3074]

This the galaxy I know?

[@zackminoske1922]

Jayvian Coulter in the video it says he filled out a perfect bracket

[@danny7024]

Sports Talk no one has ever filled a perfect bracket, longest lasting bracket was 37 straight picks

[@searchingformyself5319]

first name last name I thought it was 39 straight? Anyway, no one is getting far this year lmao

[@botsnest4933]

some people be trying their whole lives to win this and this kid doesnt even watch college basketball and won LMFAO

[@isaiahmitchell129]

He doesn't seem too excited about this. You know what I think? I think he time travelled.

[@AJ-cy3fs]

Isaiah Mitchell your profile pic is cancer 💀💀

[@ozzieshelmet4928]

Isaiah Mitchell dang it. I tried to wipe it off

[@youtubetroll1083]

I know I'm late, but he wasn't excited because he was too young to get the prize. I know you're joking, just saying. If he did get the prize, he would be stoked.

[@I-do-not-read-replies]

He was too young to get the prize so its a big slap in the face.

[@Speeeedy]

Fucking no. Time travelling isn’t possible u fucking idiot and this doesn’t prove anything. He didn’t ace it, not 100%. He was ”near” perfect score. Moron

[@Kakod4life]

Ok so he said he doesn't watch college basketball but he knew Kentucky won every year...ok cmon Man U must watch a bit...lollllll

[@checkmqte2031]

Mate everyone knows Kentucky always wins.

[@Zach-vk8oz]

He said he doesn't watch before the tournament

[@ratedpending]

You don't need to know ncaamb to know Kentucky wins all the time

[@THELETTERPRODUCTION]

Scottie he said before the tournament. kinda like me , I don't watch NBA games really until the playoffs

[@edinmujanovic6593]

if this is the same guy who was in the news last year for a new perfect bracket, then his dad helped him. there was a kid who had made the news for his bracket and admitted his father was obsessed with basketball and helped him make brackets

[@YUnGYuNI532]

He probably lost his league the next year 💀

[@Wildcardnet]

He ended up getting a trip to Maui (Hawaii) for one week 2 Xbox Ones (which one he donated to Make-A-Wish Foundation) A $20,000 College Scholarship He also predicted Villanova to win it all last year as I read in one of his recent articles

[@tkennedy301]

lol this is like my 7 year old cousin who watches no basketball at all and picked UMBC to upset Virginia last year

[@Cbertram0122]

tkennedy 301 bullshit no one predicted that

[@metsfan7376]

@thatbeast73 _ He’s 7 years old he probably picked the teams based on their logos

[@Moester99]

tkennedy 301 Dylan?

[@howardbaxter2514]

I remember I picked Mercer to upset Duke when I was a freshman in high school. Best part is I picked Mercer by doing a simple random number generator in my computer science class.

[@willseest3732]

So true

[@bonkiozz]

Now I know who’s lunch money to steal

[@kalebw]

Lol I watch your videos btw I'm subbed too

[@cookingwithcarrus]

He has no vids

[@VaanshLakhwara]

i wonder what he does in the SAT's.

[@michellemitchh516]

Vaansh Lakhwara yeah lol

[@robw7856]

He said he guessed everything, why would he do well on the SATs?...

[@conorhouston69]

Vaansh Lakhwara well he picks his favorite answer and aces it

[@vsvp4828]

Go with his guts

[@nfcleast5535]

Don’t study at all, don’t listen to teachers, and fill you’re scantron out in a weird shape and get a perfect score

[@sfjohn5]

Sam, who entered ESPN's tournament challenge with his father's email address and consent, wasn't old enough to qualify for the grand prize of a $20,000 Best Buy gift card and trip to the 2015 Maui Invitational. He needed to be 18 years or older to enter the random drawing that will include the top 1 percent of entrants

[@bee9026]

sfjohn5 can't hus dad be the representative or something?

[@jackwilson9280]

sfjohn5 That's freakin stupid

[@Chorik_Wits]

sfjohn5 u

[@bbl_brynr]

TheGreatestDuck who the fuck says fricken lmao ur probably 8 yrs old

[@jackwilson9280]

Bbl_BrynR Troll alert

[@goosenik2219]

'The man who broke the lottery' "Yeah I picked my favorite numbers I guess I like how 3 looks"

[@GeographyGeek]

Don't let this kid fool you. He's a time traveler.

[@pyzo.]

100%

[@logan15bobob]

Definitely

[@jexgarrett266]

Interviewer: What’s your advice for people filling out their brackets? Him: just pick who you think is gonna win Me: Oh ok I usually choose who I think will lose 🤦‍♂️

[@DameLillardLover]

I mean it’s better than staying silent and making it awkward 🫠

[@isaiahwalsh4587]

Why does this 6th grader have a lower voice then me and I’m 28 lmao

[@wildk5367]

Now u r 30 :) (hopefully)

[@samuraijedi1669]

Time to watch this video once again. Wonder if Sam is filling out a bracket for 2022.

[@dandachliboxing6513]

i got a question can’t you just fill the bracket after each game ends and get a perfect one or do you have to fill out a certain bracket before the ncaa starts online and it shuts off after ncaa tournament starts so no one can cheat

[@pastywhiteninja7798]

@@dandachliboxing6513 It stops allowing you to when it starts