gee--to think I started this just trying to justify being in 60th place with a smile on my face! :)
A couple comments related to the specific of your post. PSL1 was unique in a couple ways. Start with the obvious fact that Mr. Sheep had no track record before PSL1. In fact, Mr. Sheep was conceived during PSL1 (I am proud to say I was not a participant in PSL1!). His strong performance clearly led many to research, and buy into, the consensus picks of the group in later contests.
I also think that the horrible market factor should not be discounted on a behavioral level. The negative environment going into PSL8 probably diminished the effort many put in, as many players went into turtle mode. A consequence of this is that contestants find themselves with 4-5 good ideas, and are casting about to fill out their slate of picks. Sheepish stocks are very safe as your "filler" picks--a lot of other people have done the DD for you (don't forget this is a good group--Mr. Sheep has been very successful), and worst case is they allow you to keep pace with the pack. Mathematically, you can't lose big on a relative basis with really sheepish "filler" picks. Many contestants can conclude that stocks like AYSI and ZYNX, which could be predicted to be sheepish picks based on board-buzz and PSL7, look a lot more solid than your 5th best potential non-Sheepish VMC-eligible stock in a rough market.
Market Data 
Markets 
AI
