By Patrick Harrel With three days left in the MLB season, there is still a lot to settle. The Astros looked strong as they sat atop the AL West for much of the year, but are now just trying to hold onto the second wild card spot. Meanwhile, the Angels have surged in September, and the Twins have also stayed in the race. With three … Continue reading AL Wild Card Live Probability Tracker
The link that follows leads to the full paper Age in the NBA: Do Veteran Teams Outperform Expectations? Full Link. Continue reading Age in the NBA: Full Paper
By Dana Fesjian In the last two weeks of the Buffalo Bills season I have cried, hollered, cheered, pouted, and smiled. The Bills have had such a tumultuous end to 2014 – it is just very emotional. Bottom line, they lost a lot: an owner, a head coach, a quarterback, a game against the 2-12 Raiders, and a chance at a playoff spot. But … Continue reading KO With A Side of Marrone to GO
By Antonio Papa How unlikely was the twenty round shootout between the Capitals and the Panthers? Last Tuesday, the Florida Panthers defeated the Washington Capitals in the longest NHL shootout ever. It was a grueling, twenty-round battle that dwarfed the previous record. The previous record for longest shootout, which only lasted fifteen rounds, took place in 2005 between the New York Rangers and the Capitals. Just … Continue reading Shootout for the Ages
by: Dana Fesjian And we are back. After six weeks of emotional ups and downs, the Bills have reached their first eight-win season in ten years, thanks to a Week 15 upset over the Packers. How long ago was that last eight-win season? Well, for starters, Sammy Watkins was 11 years old in 2004. Fred Jackson was earning $200 a week playing indoor football for … Continue reading A Carpenter and His (De)Fense
By Jeffrey Gleason
Nine weeks into the NFL season, no teams remain unbeaten. This could’ve actually been said after eight weeks, after seven weeks, and after six weeks as well. Week 5 was the last time an unbeaten team remained, when both the Cardinals and Bengals were sitting at 3-0.
However, after these same nine weeks, five teams remain unbeaten at home. The Patriots, Broncos, Eagles, Packers, and Cardinals have yet to lose on their own turf.
Home field advantage is a phenomenon that gets a lot of traction in sports. Experts often use it to justify their predictions and betting lines usually reflect the perceived advantage of the home side. However, people often generalize home field advantage with a “one size fits all” approach, acknowledging its presence, but assuming it displays a constant impact across different situations.
With five unbeaten NFL home teams and the recent impetus of a road team finally winning Game 7 of the World Series (the Giants topped the Royals on October 29th to capture their third championship in five years), I was interested in how home field advantage was quantitatively different in different situations. How does it vary across sports? Do both good teams and bad teams experience the same advantage? Is it magnified in the postseason? What about differences in earlier eras? These are the questions I set out to resolve.
By: Patrick Harrel Tune in to any NBA team’s local broadcast, and you will be sure to hear a litany of clichés from the commentators. Most are quick to praise older players, noting on occasion that “veteran teams just know how to win games.” The San Antonio Spurs, for example, are lauded for their ability to defy expectations, winning another NBA title last year despite … Continue reading Age in the NBA: Do older teams “find ways to win games”?
