In this episode, Homer and Bart bond over cheating while Lisa applies to university camps.
Later, Lisa is accepted to the University of Springfield camp's rowing team, which confuses her.
[2] The subplot of Lisa trying to be admitted to a pre-college program is a reference to the Varsity Blues scandal.
[6] Bart is shown teaching at the "Jim Harbaugh Center for Competitive Imbalance," which refers to the head coach of the Michigan Wolverines football team.
A member of Harbaugh's staff was involved with the Michigan Wolverines football sign-stealing scandal.
[7] The university also has a building called Sam Bankman-Fried Hall, referring to his fraud charges.
[8] The episode also refers to the Houston Astros sign stealing scandal, the Lance Armstrong doping allegations, and issues involved with LIV Golf.
[4] Leading out of an NFL doubleheader, the episode earned a preliminary 1.46 18-49 rating with 5.41 million viewers, which was the most-watched show on Fox that night.
He liked how the subplot became intertwined with the main plot, but he was not sure why the episode was airing the day before Christmas.