Archive for the ‘Sports & Athletics’ Category
December 21, 2021
Again, cohort vaccinations meet waning vax effectiveness to create chaos.
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Previously, we demonstrated mathematically that, because of vaccines’ waning effectiveness, a near-100% vaccination rate slows, but doesn’t stop covid spread … we showed how the underlying math largely explains the surge in covid cases on college campuses … and we warned that colleges might be sending infected students home for the holidays.
Well, colleges aren’t alone.
The Hill is among sources reporting that:
Case in point: The NFL
During the first 2 1/2 months of the football season, from early September to late November, there were only about 110 players on (and off) the COVID-19 reserve list.
That number is over 100 again, and some teams are be being hit particularly hard.
The Rams list was 13 last week and continues to grow; the Browns have 15 players and their head coach out.
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According to the league, nearly 95% of NFL players are vaccinated.
But, just like colleges, the contagion spike is largely attributable to the Omicron strain of the virus, “cohorted vaccinations” and waning vaccine effectiveness.
On those latter points, glad to see somebody else has seen the light.
Zachary Binney, a sports epidemiologist at Oxford College of Emory University says:,
One possible explanation for the recent spate of cases is waning immunity from the initial vaccines.
Lots of professional athletes likely got vaccinated around the same time, so their immunity could be wearing off simultaneously.
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The Hill points out: “For the NFL, the timing couldn’t be worse as many teams are playing some of the most meaningful games in the final weeks of the regular season.”
Specifically, teams may have to resort to playing 2nd and 3rd stringers in their most important games in the seasons.
Despite play-off and championship implications, the NFL had hoped to play on without postponements or cancellations.
Already that hope has perished.
Saturday’s scheduled game between the Cleveland Browns and the Las Vegas Raiders was rescheduled for Monday.
23 Browns players — including the team’s starting quarterback –were on Saturday’s covid list.
Sunday’s scheduled game between the Washington Football Team and the Philadelphia Eagles was also postponed until Tuesday.
The Washington Football team had 23 players on the covid list, including its first- and second-string quarterbacks.
Sunday’s game between the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams was also postponed until Tuesday.
As of last Friday, the Rams had a league-leading 29 players on the covid list.
But, the Monday Night Football game between the Bears and the Vikings played on … even though the Bears had 16 players sidelined with covid, including its entire defensive backfield.
The Bears lost.
While there weren’t play-off implications for the Bears, there were for the Vikings
What a mess.
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P.S. And, what about the college bowl games and championship play-offs?
They’re at he intersection of the campus and sports’ covid case surges.
Ouch.
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Posted in COVID - Return to Normalcy, Sports & Athletics | Leave a Comment »
July 23, 2021
Researchers at the German Sport University analyzed 7,263 goals scored in the English Premier League in seven years, starting with the 2012/13 seasons.
Here’s what they found…
> Premier League soccer games games typically have only 2 or 3 combined goals scored goals
> More than 60% of all matches ended either in a draw or with a goal difference of one goal
Accordingly, each goal scored is a very big deal
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Further, almost half (46%) of all scored goals had some form of random influence to them.
The researchers defined “random” as unintentionally deflected shots, defensive mistakes (e.g. “own goals”), rebound shots, etc.
They observed that many of the random scores came off of corner kicks or long-range kicks, especially long distance free-kicks.
In other words, “chance” (i.e. “luck”) plays a significant role in deciding the outcome of a near-majority of matches.
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By implication, the research results suggests that teams have a tendency to play very conservatively … trying to avoid mistakes … rather than relentlessly attacking.
And, the analysis validates some common soccer sense: free-kicks (awarded based on referees’ judgement) often determine the difference between winning and losing.
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Yeah, luck is a factor.
But, keep in mind the famous sports quote attributed to golf-great Arnold Palmer:
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July 10, 2019
That’s the question that I posed to a few friends recently … prompted by the World’s Cup excitement and bruhaha over player pay.
I set the over-under at 1 … and, if you had bet the under, you would have won.
Assuming that I drew a bad, non-projectible sample, I checked out attendance numbers for the U.S. pro soccer leagues.
Some surprised me…
(more…)
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Posted in Sports & Athletics | 1 Comment »
April 9, 2018
The NCAAs are in the books and the NBA is (finally) heading to the playoffs.
Except for some snow challenges, the MLB season is off and running.
Which reminded me of a study re: a common characteristic shared by good baseball players.
Gerald Hall, the director of a youth baseball program in Washington, says:
“Baseball is a game taught by fathers, while basketball and football are more often taught by peers in pickup games.”
So what?
(more…)
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Posted in Sports & Athletics, Sports - Games - Recreation | 1 Comment »
October 30, 2017
Penalized for being a girl … say, what?
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Let’s go to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for this one.
According to reports, Emily Nash, an 8th grader, won a teen boy’s golf tournament.
As allowed by rules, she entered the tournament as part of her high school’s team (since girl’s don’t play fall golf in her school district).
She shot from the same tees as the boys.
And, she shot 75 … which was 4 strokes better than the 2nd place finisher.
Not bad, right?
But, Emily didn’t get the tourney trophy for best individual performance.
Why? You might ask …
(more…)
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Posted in Gender equality, inequality, Gender identity, Sports & Athletics | Leave a Comment »
November 16, 2016
Total net yards gained to determine game winners – not TDs, FGs and PATs.
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You may have missed this last week in the emotional aftermath of the election, but amid a sharp drop in TV ratings …
The NFL rules committee voted to fundamentally change the game’s scoring rules …. the ones that determine the winners and losers of games.
In a nutshell, the team that gains the most yardage during a game will be declared the winner.
All yards gained will be counted – passing, rushing, kick & interception returns.
Penalty yardage will be deducted from a team’s total.
Team’s will get 10 bonus yards for each “classic” point scored … 60 yards for a TD, 30 yards for a FG, etc.
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Here’s how Commissioner Roger Goodell defended the rules change …
(more…)
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Posted in Electoral College, Laughs, Sports & Athletics | Leave a Comment »
November 25, 2015
OK, I.m a control freak.
There, I said it.
Along the way, somebody passed along a memorable observations:
“You can’t control everything that happens to you, but you can always control the the way you respond to it.”
Fast forward.
I’m an Ohio State football fan. Last weekend, I was watching the Buckeyes play Michigan State..
The announcers said that Urban Meyer – OSU’s head coach — preaches the E+R=O principle to his players … even has them wear wristbands.
Say, what?
I ran and googled E+R=O
Answer: Event + Response = Outcome
Hmmmm … sounds familiar.
And, there’s more …
(more…)
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Posted in Lessons for Life, Lifestyle, Philosophy, Sports & Athletics | Leave a Comment »
November 5, 2015
Two coinciding events …
In my Strategic Business Analytics course, we’re dealing with “base rates” — the likelihood of something occurring given prior results in relatively similar situations.
And, a couple of weeks ago, Triple Crown winner American Pharoah won the Breeder’s Cup.
So, I thought it would be a good time to flashback to last May, when American Pharoah was heading into the Belmont as the odds-on favorite to win the Triple Crown … a case study in base rates.
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Originally posted May, 2014
On Saturday, American Pharoah will try to win the Belmont — capping off his Derby & Preakness wins to capture the oft-elusive Triple Crown.
Based on Triple Crown history, what are his chances?
The simple – but very deceiving answer is 35%.
31 horses have won both the Kentucky Derby & the Preakness …
11 of them have won the Belmont and the Triple Crown.
35% … about 1 out of 3.
That’s not bad, right?
Let’s slice the numbers a little finer …
(more…)
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Posted in Cognitive biases, Horse racing, Sports & Athletics | Leave a Comment »
July 14, 2015
Time for a little shameless retro self-promotion.
Here’s the back-story …
The year was 1988.
We were living in Connecticut, so I took my then young sons to the Princeton-Yale basketball game … hoping to hook them on Ivy League colleges.
Walking in, some students were signing up volunteers for the half-time shooting contest.
Urged on by my family, I threw my name into the ring.
They called my name … I beat 2 other contestants … and was invited to the “Finals” to compete for 2 round-trip tickets on American Airlines.
Lay-ups were worth 1 point, free throws were worth 3, and shots from the 3-point line were worth 7.
I figured that 18 points would win it.
My strategy: rapid-fire 8 free throws … and make 6 of them.
I practiced and knew I could do it.
Under game day pressure, i missed 4 of 7 free throws, and had no choice but to head for the 3-point line.
Bottom line: SWOOSH ! 7 points … for a total of 16.
Just enough to win the crown and a trip to Las Vegas.
Best of all: my sons were in the stands to see it all.
Since you probably weren’t there, click the pic or link below to see the most exciting 45 seconds in sports history.
click to view video
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Best part of all: my sons were in the stands to see it all.
Worst part: It’s been downhill since …
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#HomaFiles
Follow on Twitter @KenHoma >> Latest Posts
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Posted in Gona Fides, Ken Memorabilia, Sports & Athletics | 1 Comment »
July 13, 2015
In a CNBC round-up of analyst stock picks, one dude was high on Lulumon because of its product “innovations” like the “Stuff Your Bra”.
That caught my eye, of course.
At first, I thought this post was going to be about false advertising … not by Lulumon, by its customers.
Turns out that Lulumon’s “innovation” isn’t about faux-enhancement… it’s about practicality.
(more…)
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Posted in Clothes - garments, Innovation - Creativity, Sports & Athletics, Yoga | 1 Comment »
June 18, 2015
Moneyball – the Oakland As use of data and metrics to ID undervalued players — was one of the major catalysts for the current rage around big data and data analytics.
The Houston Astro’s were one of the teams to adopt the Moneyball philosophy in a big way.
This week, the NY Times broke the story that the St. Louis Cardinals had hacked into Astro’s proprietary database.
Big news.
In fact, this hack seemed to get more media time than the Chinese jacking the personal info of all government employees.
Hmmm.
Baseball competition aside, here’s why I think there’s a big teaching point in the story …
(more…)
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Posted in Baseball, Big data, Competive Advantage, Data analysis, Sports & Athletics | 2 Comments »
June 8, 2015
There’s a trite sports adage:
“When these teams get together, you can throw out the record book.”
Same holds for American Pharoah … the first horse to win the Triple Crown in 44 years.
The betting odds were in AP’s favor … part wishful excitement, part herd mentality, part “uniqueness bias” that stipulated that this horse is really different from past Triple Crown contenders.
Let’s look back at the pre-race punditry …
(more…)
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Posted in Horse racing, Settled Science, Sports & Athletics, Triple Crown | Leave a Comment »
June 4, 2015
On Saturday, American Pharoah will try to win the Belmont — capping off his Derby & Preakness wins to capture the oft-elusive Triple Crown.
Based on Triple Crown history, what are his chances?
The simple – but very deceiving answer is 35%.
31 horses have won both the Kentucky Derby & the Preakness …
11 of them have won the Belmont and the Triple Crown.
35% … about 1 out of 3.
That’s not bad, right?
Let’s slice the numbers a little finer …
(more…)
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Posted in Cognitive biases, Horse racing, Sports & Athletics | Leave a Comment »
May 14, 2015
Back in the very old days, the Cleveland Browns had a placekicker named Lou “The Toe” Groza.
He didn’t kick soccer-style. He was an overweight “toe kicker” who played tackle when he wasn’t kicking.
Despite all of that, he earned another nickname: “Mr. Automatic” by rarely missing an extra point.
You see, kicking an extra point wasn’t a gimme in those days.
These days, every NFL kicker is Mr. Automatic.
In 2014, NFL kickers converted 99.3% of all extra point attempts.
NFL owners are looking to change that … to put some excitement back into the extra point.
(more…)
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Posted in NFL, Rules, Sports & Athletics | Leave a Comment »
May 13, 2015
Of course, in this case, BYOB means Bring Your Own Balls
Yesterday, I posed the question: Why didn’t the NFL take the deflategate opportunity to ditch its wacky rule that allows each team to bring & use it’s own balls.
My argument, simply stated: The rule is nuts.
MLB pitchers don’t bring their own balls.
NBA shooters don’t call for their favorite balls when they step to the line.
The NFL rule is what nuns call an occasion to sin.
Put mere mortals in those situations, and guess what they’re gonna do.
You got it: SIN.
So, eliminate the temptation, right?
I got curious and searched for some background on the BYOB rule …
(more…)
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Posted in Football, NFL, Rules, Sports & Athletics | 1 Comment »
May 12, 2015
In the words of Yahoo Sports:
The NFL took deflate-gate very seriously, hammering the New England Patriots with unheard of punishment in the matter of deflated footballs.
The league announced Monday that quarterback Tom Brady was suspended four games, the team was fined $1 million and will lose its 2016 first-round draft pick and a fourth-round pick in 2017.
That’s a huge punishment considering there was no evidence Brady was directly involved and the Patriots’ ownership and coach Bill Belichick weren’t involved.
Say, what?
Here’s why I think the punishment fits the crime (or, is maybe a tad on the light side) …
(more…)
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Posted in NFL, Sports & Athletics, Sports Marketing | Leave a Comment »
April 10, 2015
This was a big week: Easter, NCAA Finals, and baseball’s opening day ….
Let’s play off those events and flashback for some yucks.
First, W and O throwing out opening day pitches.
One of them throws a strike, one of them doesn’t.
Guess …
click to view
OK, I know what you’re thinking: “He’s just picking on Obama. Everybody knows that hoops is his game”.
Hmmm.
Remember the Easter eggs festivities at the Whitehouse in 2013?
(more…)
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March 25, 2015
Driving into school yesterday, I was listening to a sportstalk show that was chatting about the tough times these days in college basketball.
Have to admit, that I hadn’t noticed.
But, apparently there is a lot of trash-talk going on.
According to RealClear Sports:
“The doomsayers cite a plodding pace, lower scoring (67.1 points per team per game this season, compared with 77.7 in 1972), and seven consecutive years of decreased Division I attendance.”
Here are the fixes that the pundits propose … and my ideas.
(more…)
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Posted in College Sports, Sports & Athletics | 2 Comments »
March 23, 2015
Watching March Madness games this weekend, an old quote scrolled across the screen and caught my eye.
It was attributed to legendary – albeit controversial old-school basketball coach Bobby Knight …
Kinda sums things up pretty well these days, doesn’t it?
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#HomaFiles
Follow on Twitter @KenHoma >> Latest Posts
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Posted in Quotations, Sports & Athletics | 1 Comment »
March 1, 2015
I thought about this one last nite watching the Hoyas give Kansas a run for their money.
I often say that electricity, the EZ pass, and the 3-point line make my list as the top 3 inventions ever …
You know all about the first two.
Here’s the story behind the third: basketball’s 3-pointer …
(more…)
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Posted in Sports & Athletics, Sports - Games - Recreation | Leave a Comment »
January 26, 2015
Did you watch the Pro Bowl yesterday?
Probably not … but if you did, you probably scratched your head and asked: “What’s up with the goalposts?”
Answer: The NFL is testing narrower goalposts (think, Arena football) and hilking extra points from the 15 yard line.
Why the change?
Bottom line : kickers have gotten too good and taken too much of the uncertainty out of field goals (and extra points).
Here are some interesting stats …
(more…)
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January 13, 2015
Hooray. Bucks 42, Ducks 20
The College Football Playoff Selection Committee took a lot of heat when they seeded OSU in the tourney.
Well, last nite’s game vindicated the committee.
Also vindicated was Rev. Thomas Bayes.
You know, the guy who developed Bayes’ Theorem.
Here’s what I mean …
In my Strategic Business Analytics course we cover Bayesian Inference … applications of Bayes’ Theorem … how to statistically adjust your so-called “prior beliefs” when you get new evidence.
Even I admit that sometimes the subject can get a bit dry …
So let’s bring it to life…
(more…)
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January 12, 2015
An easy question for loyal readers … (who had to know that today’s post was coming).
First, for casual sports fans … who the heck is Cardale Jones/
Answer: the 3rd string quarterback who is leading injury-plagued Ohio State into tonite’s college championship game.
Now, about the wristband.
Last Friday, even the WSJ has finally noticed that …
“Jones, like every other Ohio State player, went through extensive emotional training over the past two years, studying a formula that he wears on a wristband on his throwing arm. ”
It’s simple formula for life.
For an explanation, let’s flashback to a HomaFiles post from September 27, 2013 … more than a year ago!
The post was titled: Life: E + R = O
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OK, I.m a control freak.
There, I said it.
Along the way, somebody passed along a memorable observations:
“You can’t control everything that happens to you, but you can always control the the way you respond to it.”
Fast forward.
A couple of night’s ago, I was watching a replay of an Ohio State football game..
The announcers said that Urban Meyer – OSU’s head coach — preaches the E+R=O principle to his players … even has them wear wristbands.
Say, what?
I ran and googled E+R=O
Answer: Event + Response = Outcome
Hmmmm … sounds familiar.
And, there’s more …
(more…)
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Posted in Lessons for Life, Lifestyle, Philosophy, Sports & Athletics | Leave a Comment »
January 6, 2015
No, we’re not talking about the defensive pass interference penalty flag that was picked up without explanation in the Cowboys-Lions game.
Everybody is all over that one. So, we’ll pass.
What caught my eye was a piece in SBNation headlined: “Lions fans should be a bit mad at the referees for what happened as they tried to seal a win. They should be just as mad at their coach, though.”
The situation:
Late in the game, the Lions had a fourth-and-1 on the Dallas 46.
At first, they lined up to go for it. But they didn’t.
Instead, the Lion’s punter shanked a 10-yarder …
Retrospectively, a bad call, for sure.
But, coach Caldwell was just going with coaches’ conventional wisdom.
Leading to a broader question: how often is NFL coaches’ conventional wisdom right (or wrong)?
I’ve got something on that …
(more…)
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Posted in Cognitive biases, Conventional wisdom, Football, NFL, Sports & Athletics | 1 Comment »
December 16, 2014
AdAge ran an article asking “Is the College Football Playoff the Next Super Bowl?”
Answer: Maybe … and maybe not.
The article had a couple of interesting tidbit’s about the CFP’s economics.
ESPN bought exclusive broadcast rights for 12 years of the semi-final games and national championship game as part of a 12-year media rights deal announced in 2012 that reportedly cost $7.3 billion.
Now, that’s big business!
Buried deep in the article was an incidental piece of info that caught my eye … a sure-fire winner.
(more…)
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Posted in CFP - BCS, College Sports, Football, Sports & Athletics, Sports Marketing | 2 Comments »
December 12, 2014
I thought about this one last nite watching the Hoyas give Kansas a run for their money.
I often say that electricity, the EZ pass, and the 3-point line make my list as the top 3 inventions ever …
You know all about the first two.
Here’s the story behind the third: basketball’s 3-pointer …
(more…)
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Posted in Sports & Athletics, Sports - Games - Recreation | Leave a Comment »
December 8, 2014
The College Football Playoff was supposed to end the collegiate National Championship controversy, right?
For openers, let me disclose that I’m an Ohio State fan … raised in Ohio … big brother played for the legendary Woody Hayes … many relatives only wear scarlet & gray.
And, I’m a big Urban Meyer fan … loyal readers see my E + R = O post every couple of months since it’s one of my favs.
So, I was delighted to see the Buckeyes womp Wisconsin (59-0) behind a 3rd string quarterback in his first collegiate start … strip the nation’s leading running back of his Heisman trophy hopes … and, give the CFP selection committee a heavy dose of heartburn.
For years, college sports fans loved to hate the Bowl Championship Series … the system for designating a so-called “National Champion”.
(more…)
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Posted in CFP - BCS, College Sports, Sports & Athletics, Sports Marketing | 1 Comment »
December 3, 2014
We’re working through predictive analytics in class these days.
So, my eyes are open for articles on the subject.
Predictive analytics.
You know, the stuff that Moneyball got rolling in baseball … and Target popularized by identifying pregnant women before the women knew they were expecting.
Let’s set the stage.
The Washington Redskins have been having (another) rough season.
Veteran sportswriter Tony Kornheiser says advanced analytics could save the Redskins…
(more…)
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Posted in Analytical methods, procedures & protocols, Analytics, Football, Predictive Analytics, Sports & Athletics | 3 Comments »
October 15, 2014
OK, I.m a control freak.
There, I said it.
Along the way, somebody passed along a memorable observations:
“You can’t control everything that happens to you, but you can always control the the way you respond to it.”
Fast forward.
A couple of night’s ago, I was watching a replay of an Ohio State football game..
The announcers said that Urban Meyer – OSU’s head coach — preaches the E+R=O principle to his players … even has them wear wristbands.
Say, what?
I ran and googled E+R=O
Answer: Event + Response = Outcome
Hmmmm … sounds familiar.
And, there’s more …
(more…)
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Posted in Lessons for Life, Lifestyle, Philosophy, Sports & Athletics | Leave a Comment »
August 25, 2014
Since Obama is still blaming Bush for everything, it’s good to see the tide turning and see him get tagged for some losses.
Here’s the scoop according to several sources:
The Cubs were leading the SF Giants 2-0 last week when the game had to stopped due to heavy rain.
The ground crew struggled to get the tarp across the field.
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After a 4-hour rain delay, the field was declared unplayable.
Since the teams had played more than 5 complete innings, the Cubs were declared the winners.
Here’s where things get interesting.
(more…)
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Posted in Baseball, Laughs, ObamaCare, Sports & Athletics, Sports - Games - Recreation, Weird Stuff | Leave a Comment »
February 18, 2014
I wasn’t that into the Olympics until the U.S. Men’s speed skaters started blaming their poor performance on new space-age uniforms supplied by Under Armour.
Here’s my take on the situation:
(more…)
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January 27, 2014
Couple of weird things going on with this year’s Super Bowl.
First, the question of when it’s being played.
The odds-on answer is that Denver and Seattle are scheduled to kick off the Super Bowl in East Rutherford, N.J., at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 2.
Notice the words “are scheduled” … that could change
(more…)
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Posted in Sports & Athletics, Sports - Games - Recreation, Sports Marketing, Weather | Leave a Comment »
January 8, 2014
A couple of week’s ago, I posted Life: E + R = O …
I’ve often told students: “You can’t control everything that happens to you, but you can always control the the way you respond to it.”
I didn’t always walk the talk, so I needed a booster shot.
And, I got one from Urban Meyer – Ohio States’s head football coach – who preaches the E + R = O principle to his players … even has them wear wristbands.
Say, what?
Answer: Event + Response = Outcome
Well, E + R = O was put to a test when Ohio State lost to Clemson in the Orange Bowl
The E was the loss.
The R was …
Ouch.
Not a big deal, but doesn’t exactly advance the cause.
Now, there’s a bigger test for Coach Meyer and the E + R = O philosophy …
(more…)
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Posted in Psychology, Sports & Athletics | 2 Comments »
December 12, 2013
OK, I.m a control freak.
There, I said it.
Along the way, somebody passed along a memorable observations:
“You can’t control everything that happens to you, but you can always control the the way you respond to it.”
Fast forward.
A couple of night’s ago, I was watching a replay of an Ohio State football game..
The announcers said that Urban Meyer – OSU’s head coach — preaches the E+R=O principle to his players … even has them wear wristbands.
Say, what?
I ran and googled E+R=O
Answer: Event + Response = Outcome
Hmmmm … sounds familiar.
And, there’s more …
(more…)
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Posted in Lessons for Life, Lifestyle, Philosophy, Sports & Athletics | Leave a Comment »
October 18, 2013
Let’s think out-of-the-box and resolve the flap over the Washington Redskins name.
It seems that in every odd number year, there’s a controversy … and pressure is get the Redskins to change their name.
Apparently some folks think the name is offensive to native Americans.
No kidding.
Well, I have a creative idea for resolving this bruhaha …
(more…)
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Tags:Mr. Potato Head, Washington Redskins
Posted in Sports & Athletics, Sports Marketing | 3 Comments »
September 27, 2013
OK, I.m a control freak.
There, I said it.
Along the way, somebody passed along a memorable observations:
“You can’t control everything that happens to you, but you can always control the the way you respond to it.”
Fast forward.
A couple of night’s ago, I was watching a replay of the Ohio State Cal game from the prior weekend.
The announcers said that Urban Meyer – OSU’s head coach — preaches the E+R=O principle to his players … even has them wear wristbands.
Say, what?
I ran and googled E+R=O
Answer: Event + Response = Outcome
Hmmmm … sounds familiar.
And, there’s more …
(more…)
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September 23, 2013
You’ve seen some of Bud Light’s commercials showing the strange superstitious stuff that people do to “help” their sports teams.
You know, like sit in the same chair to watch games on TV … or eat the same food before every game … or turn their caps around for a rally.
The tagline for the commercials is “It’s only weird if it doesn’t work”.
If you don’t know what I’m talking about, watch this ad.
click to view
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Well, the Homa family has its own ritual when rooting for our favorites … the Monsters of the Midway … the Chicago Bears.
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August 6, 2013
I used to be a big baseball fan, but my interest has waned.
So, I don’t really care whether A-Rod gets suspended or banned or whatever.
That said, a WSJ op-ed by Fay Vincent – a former MLB commissioner – caught my eye.
Vincent recounted that …
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July 23, 2013
If the answer is less than 366, then Annette Fredskov of Næstved, Denmark might think you’re a slacker.
According to the Copenhagen Post, 41-year-old Fredskov just completed a full year in which she ran a full marathon every single day.
That’s except for the 365th day … when she ran 2 marathons back-to-back … to up her total to 366.
She averaged about 11 minutes per mile for the 9,589 miles.
Here’s the really interesting part of her story …
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Posted in Exercise & fitness, Health & Nutrition, Sports & Athletics | 1 Comment »
July 9, 2013
Short answer: After-taxes … if you’re talking no income Red state (think Texas) and a high tax Blue state (think California).
Just ask former Laker Dwight Howard as he packs to head to the Houston Rockets.
Here’s the skinny and some nums…
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May 29, 2013
I got an email yesterday announcing …
Nice idea, but reminded me of 2011 when we posted:
Georgetown’s “goodwill” basketball game vs. China ends in brawl … no kidding
Flashing back …
According to SI:
A wild brawl broke out between Georgetown and a Chinese men’s basketball team Thursday night, putting an immediate end to a supposed goodwill game that coincided with U.S. Vice President Joe Biden’s visit to the country.
The benches cleared and fights erupted all over the court with about 9½ minutes left in the fourth quarter.
Georgetown is in China on a 10-day trip which has been cited by the U.S. State Department as an example of sports diplomacy that strengthens ties between the two countries.
Full article & video
Question (after viewing the video): With a population of 1.3 Billion (with a “B”), don’t you think the Chinese should be able to fill a high school gym for a game against the Hoyas?
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April 2, 2013
No, I’m not talking about Otto “Where’s Otto?” Porter, Jr.
I’m talking about Andy Enfield, the former head coach at Florida Gulf Coast … aka, “Dunk U.”
The guy who became a national sports sensation when his Eagles embarrassed the Hoyas in the first round of this year’s tournament.
Today, Enfield will be formally introduced as USC’s new head basketball coach.
Here’s the scoop …
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Tags:Enfield, USC
Posted in NCAA, Sports & Athletics, Sports Marketing | 1 Comment »
March 27, 2013
8.15 million amateur bracketologists entered ESPN.com’s Tournament Challenge.
How many of the 8.15 million are perfect up to this point in the tourney?
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March 27, 2013
Oh, really?
Tom Boswell – Washington Post sportswriter wrote an obligatory “what’s up?” column yesterday.
Most of it was pretty soft, in effect, insinuating that very lower seeds have a tourney advantage because they have nothing to lose … so, they can play at full throttle.
And, Boswell says that “exceptional coach JT3” may need to tweak his system a bit, but not too much.
Not exactly what I’d call hard hitting.
But, Boswell did raise a couple of interesting points:
John Thompson III, may have to reevaluate, tweak and adapt the teachings of his Princeton coach and mentor Pete Carril so that Georgetown teams in the future can play up to their ability in the NCAA tournament.
A methodical pace, offensive efficiency and, especially, limiting the number of possessions in a game — all smart Ivy League tricks that Carril conceived to help his team beat more talented foes — may not carry over to the sudden-death March format that’s decimated the Hoyas five times in six years.
At Princeton, Carril conceived a brilliant system that gave him the maximum chance to beat better teams outside the Ivy League and also to defeat teams of roughly equal ability within the league
Carril’s system … has functioned exceptionally well for Thompson at Georgetown in the regular season against Big East teams of roughly equal ability, when the Hoyas’ efficiency, discipline and defense have been decisive.
But there may be a weakness in the Carril method, as adapted by Thompson.
The fewer possessions in a basketball game, the more vulnerable the better team becomes to weaker teams because they have shortened the game.
By reducing the data sample, you introduce more outlier results.
I buy this part of Bowell’s argument: the NCAAs aren’t the Ivy League and a slow-motion offense is problematic against reasonably talented, and lightning fast teams .
As I posted earlier this week, it’s why the Moneyball Oakland As won in the regular season but usually got bounced early from the play-offs.
It’s simple statistics.
But, the problem is more than a few “outliers” …
= = = = =
Like father like son … not
Another point that Boswell raised caught my eye:
Ironically, John Thompson Jr. had just the opposite philosophy to his son’s — end-to-end pressure defense … plus constantly pushing for a faster tempo.
The best Hoyas teams of that era thrived in a chaos that they had created.
John Thompson Jr. believed in the fast break, the spontaneous explosion of talent.
Hmmm.
Sounds like the FCGU coach.
And, sounds much more compelling than the outliers’ argument.
= = = = =
Will Georgetown fire JT3 ?
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Tags:NCAA Tournament
Posted in Georgetown, NCAA, Sports & Athletics | 1 Comment »
March 26, 2013
On Monday, there was an email blast from Lee Reed, Georgetown’s Athletic Director.
I thought it might be a mea culpa for the basketball team’s one-and-done in the NCAA tourney.
Nope.
Maybe another pep talk re: how awesome the CYO League (oops, I meant Big East) is going to be.
Wrongamundo.
Nope.
Lee had his fund-raising hat on and was trying to stir up buying interest for Gtown sports memorabilia.
Sports memorabilia … you know like #33 or #55 jerseys … Final Four t-shirts from 2007.
Lee, you mighta sat on this one for a couple of days.
You know, let the dust settle.
Or, haven’t you heard the news?
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March 25, 2013
I have a couple theories of the case re: the Hoyas string of one-and-done trips to the NCAAs.
And, they’re not the usual “too cocky” or “where was Otto?” kinda stuff.
First, the back story.
All the world knows that the Hoyas were upset by Florida Gulf Coast University.
Poll: Raise your hand if you heard of FGCU before last Sunday’s selection show.
Yahoo Sports cut to the chase Saturday morning:
March Madness: when the Georgetown Hoyas suddenly turn into the Washington Generals.
In five straight trips to the Big Dance, the Hoyas have been busted out by a double-digit seed.
So only one conclusion can be drawn: after going to the Final Four in 2007, Georgetown has simply been an atrocious NCAA team.
JTIII has been JTI and done.
You’ve got to beat somebody eventually, Georgetown. Seriously
Ouch.
Here’s what I think is going on …
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Tags:basketball, FGCU, NCAA
Posted in Sports & Athletics | 1 Comment »
March 20, 2013
Interesting piece on Forbes.com …
Punch line: There’s added pressure for the Hoyas in the Tourney this year.
They have to avoid the unfortunate early losses of past years and go deep into Tournament in order to protect the image of the New Big East (aka. Catholic 7)
Of course, my favorite parts of the article:
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March 12, 2013
Oops. Got the stories crossed.
It’s John Paulson moving to PR.
Flaaco just signed a contract making him the highest paid NFL player ever.
Well, kinda … more on that below.
It’s
being reported that hedge fund legend John Paulson is considering leaving New York to go to Puerto Rico, where a tax loophole would let him reduce taxes on the $9.5 billion he has in his own hedge fund.
Bloomberg reports that several wealthy Americans have already taken advantage of the year-old Puerto Rican law that lets new residents pay no local or U.S. federal taxes on capital gains.
Note: The marginal tax rate for affluent New Yorkers can exceed 50 percent.
Back to the Flacco story … (more…)
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