March Madness Baby Names 2021: Boys SemiFinals

It’s the part of the tournament where things are getting really exciting!

The boys’ QuarterFinals in March Madness baby names have wrapped. And a few of the contests surprised me.

Let’s take a look at the QuarterFinals results:

Reid took out Hayes.

With a little over 57% of the vote, well-established surname favorite bested rising possibility Hayes. Something tells me Hayes could be back in a future year of competition, but for now? It’s out, and Reid advances.

Emrys sailed past Palmer.

With almost 54% of the total, Welsh import Emrys wins out against surname name Palmer. Emrys is a perpetual Appellation Mountain favorite, but this might be the farthest it’s ever advanced in March Madness! Still, this one surprised me a little, if only because the more mainstream names tend to advance farthest.

Raphael trounced Cove.

Most of these contests were relatively close – much closer than in earlier rounds. But Raphael commanded over 78% of the vote against Cove. It’s possible that Cove fared well in 2020 as a curiosity, with people looking up names that defined the year. Still, it’s tough to compete against an underused classic like Raphael.

Otto won over Wilder.

Wilder is a fast-rising pick, but it fell to traditional, quirky-cool Otto. It wasn’t a runaway victory, but with just over 55% of the total, it’s Otto that advances. We do love those -o enders, so maybe Otto will be the next Leo/Milo/Arlo?

In the prior round, we’d already said good-bye to Phoenix, Huxley, Torin, Arrow, Koa, St John, Deckard, and Endeavour. So much of it depends on the match-ups! They’re all seeded based on number of page views on the site, but – just like in that other March Madness – some of the contests feel tougher than others.

And so … on to the SemiFinals!