principalagent

The idea is that while it’s part point-in-time, growth potential also plays a role. Additionally, the formula that creates the rankings also includes prior results (including from the last year when they dominated), which is holding FloMo in the top two as well. And finally, FloMo won prelims by a solid margin, so there’s still an argument that they shouldn’t be ranked lower anyway.

Weiss. They’ll win.

Definitely thinking along the same lines. There are three bands I would say so far that can beat Avon, and I'm convinced we'll add another this weekend, if not two. Then I would even add in another band or two or three as wild cards because we have four weeks left and anything can change. I will say that Avon's show is progressing well, but I don't think they'll win anything this season after the Indy Super. I see them between 2nd and 5th at San Antonio. However, the visual caption is still theirs to lose.

Tuesdays! They’re out now.

I think they’re both contenders for state finals, for sure.

It may actually mean something! Look at this paper: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/258189192_Spatial_Metaphor_and_Real_Estate_North-South_Location_Biases_Housing_Preference

Yep. Lucas Oil Stadium and downtown Indy are perfect for the event - the only downside is the weather, but even that’s mitigated by tons of indoor warmup and performance space. The stadium was also designed for marching arts. Additionally, Indy is within a day’s drive from the vast majority of the continental states. Nowhere comes remotely close logistically. San Antonio’s parking lot can barely hold 60 trailers and 3-7 times as many buses. 90 to 100 would completely block out the stadium. Hotels are also a walk away, and I don’t think can hold that many bands. I wish GN would come closer to Texas too but it just won’t happen until there’s another LOS somewhere else in the nation.

I don’t think this is totally fair. The GN champion only barely/technically won the competition as it stands. And it’s totally reasonable that the best band in the country didn’t even attend (because both potentials didn’t last year).

Got MFA club seats for the second year in a row for Grand Nationals. Very excited. I’ll be “slumming” it in GA for San Antonio, but might find myself in the press box to catch up with the Dans and some other pals throughout the two days.

Gonna go out on a limb here and say I can absolutely see The Woodlands winning this. Their show is stupid good, perfectly designed for them, and the cleanliness at this point reminds me of how clean they were early on in 2013. I’m expecting great things.

Marcus should be performing tonight.

I actually think they’ve done 33 straight years now. And I think they’ll most likely make it 34. For what it’s worth, 2013 and 2016 were both weak years for Marian in which a ton of Texas powerhouses came... and they were fine.

For what it's worth, Ann Richards is a public school. And I think they were ranked about right. Maybe a place lower. I also would not have put Stony Point in dead last. However, it didn't show the promise that last year's show had - one of their most - if not *the* most - impressive showings I've seen in my whole time in the activity.

I would have had them above East View but not Burnet. Just how I saw it.

That was actually their GN score. Well, GN score plus an extra point lol

#TeamPluckersPostGame Can’t wait to do it again for San Antonio

An iconic thread with iconic people

I'll be bold and put it this way: It'll be nice and well-deserved to have a Valley band back in state finals in one of the large classes this year.

If they grow in the same manner they did last year, it's totally possible. I think there's still some fleshing out of their show that's already down that can help too. And recent developments in Ohio give them a possible spot to make it happen. But I'm not sure at this point. Totally open to (and actively watching/hoping for) them making finals.

I watched every band in finals. It was only Leander and CTJ. Vandegrift did not (although you would think they did based on output alone). I'm not thrilled by it, but I think it's going to be the way it is for band and DCI (five of the top six corps this year, plus Phantom) from now on.

Perfectly fine. Two notable bands did this in Austin yesterday, and they both seemed to get the idea from their trip to Indy last year where almost half of finals did the same.

Yep, it is. If you have about 2200 students, like Leander roughly does, and assume that all classes are evenly split, then you get: 9th: 550 10th: 550 11th: 550 12th: 550 UIL's 6A cut off is somewhere around 2150, so Leander comes in just above it. The BOA 3A/4A mark is at 1700 10-12. Leander is right under it here. If you consider that schools generally have fewer students in the higher grades, Leander could even theoretically have 2300 students but still be placed in BOA 3A if there are 601 or more freshmen. Edited to add: Leander's HS #7 is opening in the far northeastern corner of the district. It should only take from Rouse and Vista Ridge. There might be some small shifts to the west to balance those two out, but nothing that'll change Leander's class I don't imagine. HS #8 will relieve Glenn and Leander, as it's in the far west part of the district, but that's at least six or seven years away now.

Vista Ridge and Vandegrift should be 4A. Leander should be barely in 3A again, and CP and Rouse more comfortably in 3A, with Dripping Springs joining them. CTJ 4A. Glenn and Pioneer will duke out 2A, with Weiss and Ann Richards battling out for class champion in A.

This has only been a big question in 2006 and 2015, when TWHS and Hebron were both first in Semis but drew first in finals. Neither won, but were both well set-up to before the draw. Of course, The Woodlands had other issues with that performance, too.

To bring in a concept from economics, I like to think of diminishing marginal returns or a logarithmic graph. Until a certain point, money matters A TON. And then after that certain point, it doesn't get you much more at all. In my mind, schools like Leander sit just past the inflection of the point of the graph where the first derivative starts to be less than 1. And that's why money doesn't matter when they compete with Vandegrift where on the same curve, their first derivative approaches the asymptote. And there are schools like Duncanville and North Shore that may have a first order derivative > 1 but still beat competition with higher means; this gets to the points made about Adair and about the schools Takigan mentioned. However, those are increasingly rare cases, just because the benefits of additional money as well as socioeconomic status bring an assortment of positive benefits to a band program. Always a good day when you can bring out your calculus.