One thing to keep in mind about the AROTC Scholarship process.
1) A smaller percentage of applicants actually have everything turned in and are board ready for the 1st AROTC Board. The 1st Board selects a very small number in comparison of scholarship winners, so there are many that are rolled over to the 2nd Board.
2) There are a much larger number of applicants that finish everything and are ready for the 2nd Board. So, all the new applicants are thrown in with all the applicants that were rolled over from the 1st Board and a new OML is made. It's not unusual for someone that may have been higher on the OML after the 1st Board to slip farther down the OML because of all the new applicants that have been added from the 2nd Board.
3) There are far fewer new applicants that are only ready and boarded for the 3rd Board, so there are fewer added to the OML that was rolled over from the 2nd Board. This means that those applicants that were rolled over from the 2nd board may not slide down the OML nearly as far due to the fewer number of applicants added.
4) This is why some may be surprised that they did not receive a scholarship on the 2nd board because they felt that they had a competitive packet. The fact is that you probably did have a competitive packet but it's simply a numbers game. With the large number of applicants that are typically added to the 2nd board, all as equally competitive, it's not hard to see how some with good stats fall below the cutoff for the 2nd board. I would imagine that the difference between packet scores are pretty small so just a point or two can drop you down farther then you think.
My main point is this, don't get caught up on comparing stats with others, most here are all close in competitiveness. The next board will have fewer new applicants and they will give out the same if not a few more scholarships then the 2nd Board. Hang in there, the wait is tough but worth it, just make sure you have a Plan B and even a Plan C in place.
This is the first of many OML's you'll go through as an AROTC cadet and as an Officer, and they are all equally hard to wait for the outcome. This is something you'll need to get used to for your own sanity.
Best of luck to you all.