The Rambler’s 2025–26 College Football Bowl Mania contest brought excitement to Cathedral Prep as students and staff tested their football knowledge during the college football bowl season. The contest gave participants a chance to predict winners from more than 40 bowl games and College Football Playoff matchups with Amazon gift cards awarded to the top finishers.

Points were awarded based on the difficulty of each correct prediction, with the CFP Championship game worth the most at 16 points. At the end of the contest, freshman Royce Williams finished in first place with 64 total points, earning a $30 Amazon gift card.

“I mostly looked at the spread,” Royce said. “The betting odds determined how I chose my bracket.”

Royce’s strategy paid off, especially when he correctly predicted Indiana to win the College Football Playoff national championship. While some fans were shocked by early playoff losses, Royce said he was not caught off guard by everything that happened.

“I wasn’t very surprised with Ohio State losing first round honestly,” he said. “What surprised me most was Ole Miss beating Georgia.”

Finishing in second place was Mr. Matt Hubert, who earned a $20 Amazon gift card after winning the tiebreaker. Mr. Hubert, a diehard Michigan fan, was unable to root for his Wolverines who did not make the CFP this year, but he still managed to come in clutch.

“[Michigan] didn’t make the playoffs and lost their bowl so that was pretty disappointing,” Mr. Hubert said. “I got Indiana right as the championship winner though.”

Contrary to what Royce said, some of the results throughout the CFP surprised Mr. Hubert, especially when powerhouse teams were eliminated earlier than expected.

“I was very surprised—but excited—by the Ohio State loss first round,” Mr. Hubert said. “Some of the other teams came up as underdogs as well.”

Both top finishers agreed that Indiana’s championship win was well deserved, even though the program is not traditionally known for football success.

“Yeah, they proved to be the number one team,” Mr. Hubert said. “Indiana has never been a football school, so they were very underrated and a well-deserving champion for sure.”

Royce echoed that sentiment, comparing Indiana’s run to another dominant team from recent history.

“They were a great undefeated team,” Royce said. “They reminded me of 2023 Michigan,” who also went undefeated en route to the national championship.