When one of the most anticipated sporting events of the year, March Madness, arrives, millions of people search for expert opinions and dive into statistics, hoping to get a few games right. Most are lucky to hit on a handful of picks. Zach Kellerman (‘28) did far more than that. He built one of the best brackets in the country.
Out of 26,568,127 entries in the ESPN Men’s Tournament Challenge, Kellerman finished ranked 14th overall, putting him ahead of virtually everyone who entered.
What makes the run even more surprising is how it unfolded. His bracket didn’t start perfectly, but it steadily improved as the tournament went on. He went 24 for 32 in the first round and followed it with 15 out of 16 in the Round of 32, immediately putting himself in a strong position. By the time the Sweet 16 ended, he had gone 7 for 8.
Then everything clicked.
From the Elite Eight through the national championship, Kellerman didn’t miss a single game.
“I didn’t even miss a pick after that,” he said.
That kind of streak is what separated him from millions of other brackets that fell apart in later rounds.
One of the defining moments in his bracket came early when he picked Iowa to upset Florida. This was a choice that only five percent of people made according to the ESPN Men’s Tournament challenge. While most brackets played it safe, that risk gave him an edge.
“I believed in Iowa,” Kellerman said.
His approach wasn’t built on deep analytics or hours of research. Instead, it was a mix of instinct, luck and general knowledge of the game.
“It wasn’t really a process,” he said. “I just picked teams I thought had a better chance to win.”
That simplicity is part of what makes March Madness so unpredictable. Even Kellerman admitted that luck plays a major role.
“Most of it is luck,” he said. “You have some knowledge, but you need things to go your way.”
As the bracket climbed higher in the rankings, the moment started to feel real. After one key game pushed him from around 1,000th to the top 300, he realized he had something special.
“I was like, this is insane,” he said.
From that point on, every correct pick only added to the pressure and excitement. By the end, his bracket had reached a level most people never come close to.
What makes the story even more interesting is that this wasn’t even his main bracket. It was his second entry.
His original bracket, which he entered into a friend group, didn’t perform nearly as well. This one, entered into his family league, ended up winning him around $400.
Kellerman is not someone who spends the entire season studying college basketball either. While he watches some of the top teams and follows Rutgers, his favorite team, he doesn’t closely track every matchup.
Instead, his passion for March Madness itself carried him. He watched nearly every game during the tournament, fully invested in each result.
Looking back, Kellerman sees the entire run as something he may never experience again.
“This is number one,” he said. “I’ve never had something like this happen in sports.”
For most people, a bracket is just a fun part of March. For one Cherry Hill East sophomore, it turned into a once-in-a-lifetime run that put him near the top of the entire country.
