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How accurate are our predictions?

Every forecast we serve is the model's best guess before a show happens. Once the real scores post, we grade ourselves. This is the honest scorecard for the 2026 season — World Class + Open Class only.

1.70 pts

Average error (MAE)

424 corps-events

67%

Within 2 points

39% within 1 pt

82%

Winner called

60 shows

56%

Exact placement

±1.12 avg places off

Accuracy over the season

Average error per show date. Dashed lines mark model upgrades.

Forecasts sharpen near showtime

Average error grouped by how many days before the show the forecast was made.

Which way do we miss?

Distribution of signed error. On average we under-predict by 0.68 pts.

Accuracy by corps

Best forecast to worst. ▼ = we tend to under-score them, ▲ = over-score. Min 3 shows.

CorpsAvg errorBiasShows
Spartans0.78 0.1813
Golden Empire0.98 0.906
Colt Cadets1.16 0.1211
Santa Clara Vanguard1.21 0.7516
Carolina Crown1.25 0.9313
Bluecoats1.30 0.8515
Gold1.31 0.5018
Phantom Regiment1.32 1.0316
Boston Crusaders1.37 0.2612
Blue Stars1.38 1.2316
Genesis1.40 0.3714
Madison Scouts1.48 1.0215
The Academy1.55 0.6016
Les Stentors1.57 0.7310
Seattle Cascades1.67 1.1316
Spirit of Atlanta1.71 1.0816
Arsenal1.72 1.454
Raiders1.74 1.0510
Pacific Crest1.76 0.6713
River City Rhythm1.77 0.7611
Troopers1.78 1.4116
Blue Knights1.83 1.6816
Crossmen1.84 0.5214
Columbians1.87 0.928
The Battalion1.92 1.6512
Colts1.94 1.3115
The Cavaliers1.95 0.8014
Blue Devils1.97 1.7915
Heat Wave2.05 0.167
Blue Devils B2.28 0.957
Music City2.36 0.7416
Impulse2.40 2.407
Blue Devils C2.66 2.095
7th Regiment4.10 3.0311

Show by show

Most recent first. Tap a show to see the full forecast-vs-actual diff.

ShowAvg errorBiggest miss
DCI World Championship Prelims
Aug 6 · World
1.04Raiders (+3.00)
DCI Open Class World Championship Finals
Aug 4 · Open
1.17The Battalion (-2.53)
DCI Open Class World Championship Prelims
Aug 3 · Open
1.67Blue Devils B (+6.25)
DCI Kentucky
Aug 3 · World
0.69The Cavaliers (-1.61)
Innovations In Brass
Aug 3 · World
0.41Madison Scouts (-1.00)
DCI Pittsburgh
Aug 1 · World
1.31Spirit of Atlanta (-1.47)
DCI Michigan
Jul 31 · Open
1.78River City Rhythm (-4.77)
The Marion Open
Jul 30 · Open
1.74River City Rhythm (-3.42)
DCI East Coast Showcase
Jul 30 · World
0.79Phantom Regiment (-1.74)
DCI Huntington
Jul 29 · World
1.63Seattle Cascades (-3.69)
Summer Music Games of Southwest Virginia
Jul 29 · World
1.19Raiders (+2.29)
Brass at the Beach
Jul 28 · World
0.71The Academy (+1.51)
DCI in Motion
Jul 26 · Open
1.227th Regiment (-1.93)
NightBEAT
Jul 26 · World
3.97Colts (-6.40)
Music on the Mountain
Jul 25 · Open
2.217th Regiment (+4.01)
DCI Southeastern Championship
Jul 25 · World
0.80Colts (-2.46)
Midwestern Championship
Jul 25 · World
0.50Pacific Crest (-1.75)
DCI Syracuse
Jul 24 · Open
2.47Les Stentors (-3.02)
DCI Birmingham
Jul 24 · World
2.19Heat Wave (-6.49)
DCI Middle Tennessee
Jul 24 · World
0.91Music City (-1.36)
Drums on Parade
Jul 24 · World
0.49Pacific Crest (-1.44)
March On!
Jul 22 · Open
1.13Columbians (-3.30)
DCI Southern Mississippi
Jul 22 · World
4.01Crossmen (-5.53)
Drums on the Ohio
Jul 22 · World
3.26Seattle Cascades (-5.70)
DCI St. Louis
Jul 21 · World
3.47Seattle Cascades (-5.06)
DCI McKinney
Jul 20 · World
0.94Blue Stars (-1.61)
DCI Dallas
Jul 19 · World
2.61The Cavaliers (-4.29)
The Buccaneer Classic
Jul 18 · Open
2.56Raiders (+3.05)
DCI Southwestern Championship
Jul 18 · World
1.20Bluecoats (-2.58)
DCI Houston
Jul 17 · World
0.52The Cavaliers (+0.91)
DCI Central Texas
Jul 16 · World
1.27Music City (-2.10)
DCI Denton
Jul 16 · World
0.33Phantom Regiment (+0.63)
DCI Broken Arrow
Jul 14 · World
2.57Carolina Crown (-5.30)
DCI Hutchinson
Jul 14 · World
2.08Troopers (-3.35)
DCI New Mexico
Jul 14 · World
1.17Arsenal (+2.53)
Brass Impact
Jul 13 · World
0.93Crossmen (-1.61)
So Cal Classic: Open Class Pacific Championship Finals
Jul 12 · Open
2.25Blue Devils B (-3.03)
Drum Corps Grand Prix
Jul 11 · Open
5.597th Regiment (+11.97)
Drum Corps at the Rose Bowl
Jul 11 · World
2.39Impulse (-4.68)
The Whitewater Classic
Jul 11 · World
2.52Phantom Regiment (-3.64)
Cavalcade of Brass
Jul 10 · World
1.78Crossmen (+3.82)
Music on the March
Jul 10 · World
2.21Colts (-2.88)
Western Corps Connection
Jul 10 · World
2.15Impulse (-3.91)
DCI Northern Alabama
Jul 9 · World
2.38Spirit of Atlanta (-3.26)
Gold Showcase
Jul 9 · World
1.43Pacific Crest (+3.57)
Drums Across America
Jul 8 · World
2.57Music City (+4.58)
Drums Across the Smokies
Jul 7 · World
3.40Music City (+6.07)
The Kiwanis Thunder of Drums
Jul 7 · World
1.70Blue Knights (-3.27)
DCI West
Jul 5 · World
1.81Blue Devils C (-7.89)
River City Rhapsody
Jul 5 · World
1.62The Cavaliers (+3.91)
DCI Capital Classic
Jul 3 · World
1.57Bluecoats (+3.34)
Drums Across Nebraska
Jul 1 · World
1.81Colts (+3.09)
Northwest Youth Music Games Portland
Jul 1 · World
0.79Seattle Cascades (+1.51)
Northwest Youth Music Games Seattle
Jun 30 · World
1.23Seattle Cascades (+2.16)
Corps Encore
Jun 28 · World
2.27Blue Devils (-4.50)
Barnum Festival: Champions on Parade
Jun 27 · Open
17.577th Regiment (+17.57)
Drums Along the Rockies
Jun 27 · World
1.82Blue Devils (-2.54)

By model version

How each served model era graded out. Newer models cover only the latest shows.

final2 (v9)

1.52 pts

MAE over 349 corps-events · bias -0.34

clean-v11w-shadow

1.36 pts

MAE over 26 corps-events · bias -1.30

v10.5 field-pace + recal

3.24 pts

MAE over 24 corps-events · bias -3.14

v11 field-pace ensemble

3.42 pts

MAE over 15 corps-events · bias -2.88

v10 ensemble

2.61 pts

MAE over 10 corps-events · bias -1.83

Methodology

“What we said going in” is the last forecast saved strictly before each event's start — exactly what was served the night before the show. Because the model never sees the show it's forecasting, these numbers are leakage-safe.

Predictions are joined to the official posted scores per corps. Scope is World Class and Open Class only — the models don't cover all-age, so those shows are excluded. “Error” is predicted total minus actual total; MAE is the average of its absolute value. “Winner called” is how often the predicted first-place corps actually won. The lead-time chart uses every saved run, not just the final one.

The model has changed over the season (final2 → v10.5 → v11 field-pace ensemble); each show is graded against whichever model actually served it. These are AI-generated forecasts — an estimate for fun, not a guarantee.