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Superbowl Prediction

Effect

The magician writes a prediction of who will win the upcoming Superbowl. The prediction is written in code and left out where everyone can see. After the game ends, the magician produces the key to the code, the message is unencrypted, and it is shown that the magician was correct.

Secret

Even if, like me, you know nothing about football, you can accurately predict the winner of the Superbowl every time by following these simple steps.

1) Create a code. This is easy -- just make sure that it's a code nobody can crack before game time or it will ruin the effect's climax. I like to use 1=A, 2=B, 3=C, 4=D, etc. (it's so obvious that nobody ever thinks of it). Famed mentalist the Fabulous Fibonacci liked to use a code that followed the pattern 1=A or B, 2=C, 3=D, 5=E, etc. (ending with 121393=Z), but use whatever best fits your style.

2) Find out who is playing in the Superbowl. If you don't know much about football, you may have to look this up. For the sake of example, let's say that the Trojans and the Lakers are playing.

3) Using your code, write the name of one team on a piece of paper, then encrypt the name of the other team on another piece of paper. That's right -- you're going to guess both teams!

4) Bring the first prediction to someplace that a bunch of your friends will be gathering to watch the game. Make a big show of posting your prediction somewhere highly visible. Maybe you can have your friends sign it, just to "be safe."

5) Go to a place where another group of your friends will be watching the game. Post the second prediction there.

6) If you want to be really careful, find where a third group of friends will be and post a coded message reading, "It's a tie!"

7) On game day, join your friends in one of the places that your prediction is posted. If the game starts to go in favor of the other team, excuse yourself and go join the other group of friends. The idea is to be in the room with the correct prediction when the game ends. If the game is really close, get in your car and park somewhere equidistant between your predictions and speed to the appropriate place as soon as the outcome has been decided, then go in and pretend like you've been there for an hour.

8) When everyone is done celebrating the end of the match, suggest that they decode your prediction to see how you did.

9) After they decode it and see you were correct, gloat for a bit and then call your friends at the other location(s). Tell them that you decoded another copy of your prediction so they don't have to bother. You have a room full of witnesses that you were correct, so they won't even think of asking to decode "their" prediction.

You've worked a miracle!

Note: If you want to really look like a psychic, try predicting not only the winning team but the winning scores. Note that, because of the number of possibilities, you will have to have a lot of friends meeting in different places to make this work.