Ok who hasn't been sitting on the couch with your beverage and junk food of choice getting ready to watch a game only to hear the following...."When the temperature is less than 65 degrees by the start of the game the home team wins 74% of the time"? Who is the loser that has the job of pulling up this useless information? Just yesterday on ESPN radio I heard that someone (don't know who or care who it was) got his first NHL overtime playoff goal. Does anyone really care about these statistics? Do the odds makers in Vegas take these stats into account when they are setting the line? How many of you consider these stats when you are getting in office pools for the NCAA tournament or the Super Bowl? Its almost as bad as when John Madden gives us the "excellent" (insert sarcasim here) commentary of "the team that scores more is going to win this game". So what are some of the other stupid statistics you have heard and do you place any stock in them.
I guess I need to pay more attention then and maybe I might finally win an office pool.
So I guess the nest time a sports analyst says...
"When the game starts with the temperature less than 65 degrees but more than 60 degrees, the home team has a losing record, the visiting team calls heads and loses the coin toss, the game is a night game on astro turf, the kickoff return is less than 15 yards, Madden has already made a Brett Farve reference 5 times before the first play after the kickoff - then the home team wins 57% of the time
I should bet the mortgage on the home team.
Last edited by wgillenh2o on April 15th at 6:01 AM.
I agree Reverend. But wins and loses could be a pointless stat as well. Take last year's Super Bowl as an example. We can argue that Brady had a better QB rating and a better win loss record going into the game, but Eli got the ring and the MVP trophy when the game was over.
and I am in complete agreement with you. Given the wins and losses previous to the Super Bowl I would have taken Brady in a heartbeat. But who would you rather have at QB: one that year after year wins you 18 games in a season but never wins the big game (not that Brady hasn't won champianships) or a QB that only averages 11 wins a season but wins championships? But just looking at wins and losses with all games being equal I'll take the one with the better win loss stat any day of the week.
Last edited by wgillenh2o on April 15th at 10:42 AM.
" Just yesterday on ESPN radio I heard that someone (don't know who or care who it was) got his first NHL overtime playoff goal"
But wait! What was the average temperature at that moment, and what colour were his girlfriends socks?
Those will be important when we mention this stat next time!
And don't forget the stats dug up out of the archives (when t he rules and the equipment if not the playing field were different)
Every sport does it and I have to laugh when they use this useless drivel as filler. It changes NOTHING . And has never helped me predict the outcome.
Mum - after an exhaustive search I have found the answers....
1. she was not wearing any socks because she had on sandals.
2. at that moment the average temperature for the entire world was 76 degrees
wgillenh2o I tend to look at the Dow Jones Industrial Average and stock market listings than I would care about NHL statistics. These are things that tend to matter to me. The NHL is about as relevant to most as to the next time we hear about Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan either being involved in head on collision with a paparazzo's vehicle or them running over a photog's foot. Either way I just don't give a damn !
they dont say them to inform you they tell you to entertain you. i for one like these stats, its breaks up the tension of the game and makes you think, wow thats interesting.
Walleye (sorry, I can't make the font big enough on my browser to read...)
I think it starts with that Bill James guy who did the sabermetrics stuff. He had valid views on statistics that were already being collected by the majors.
Now, I think people just collect 'observations', call them statistics, and that the collection or the act of collecting will provide the insight. Sorry, phortspans, it doesn't work that way.
I guessing that individuals, like the "65 degrees...74% home team" speaker, lack the mathematical or logical background to separate independent events from dependent events, and then come to a logical, MEANINGFUL conclusion.
I also think it may come from people who may not have gotten enough attention as a child and can't let an moment of silence pass without filling it in, even with crapola.
The only real statistics that are usually pertinent are as folows 36-24-36. Dependent upon what you like to see in a woman as far as that's concerned ?
64 percent of all the world's statistics are made up right there on the spot
82.4 percent of people believe 'em whether they're accurate statistics or not...
Nothing like coming back onto the FOX Sports blogs and reading the thoughts of people who have no idea what they're talking about when it comes to statistics...
Ultra Mega Are these the same people who state that we're not in the presence of a recession ? Basically statistics as you very well know can be made to show whatever you want 'em to show and not much more beyond that.
Basically statistics as you very well know can be made to show whatever you want 'em to show and not much more beyond that.
That's not true at all. Statistics are logged observations about reality. How people manipulate them is not a reflection on the malleability of statistics; it's a reflection on human gullibility. If you understand statistics, you can never be betrayed by them.
People who don't trust statistics are people who don't understand them.
Gotta love the attitude of "all people who do not 100% believe in statistics, as do I, have no idea what they're talking about." Hence everyone gets painted (with a broad brush) as a fallen nut from the #### tree for having a different opinion. Such angry attack rants are humorous, especially given the lightheartedness of the post, and the nonshalant flow of comments.
In 2007, Ice cream sales went up 20% in the month of August.
In 2007, More people died of drowning in the month of August
Conclusion: Ice cream, in summer months, causes drowning?
So here come the crazies, right out of the woodwork, with a 2 inch binder full of research that shows the statistics (from 17 states), proving that for the greater good of Americans, ice cream should be banned from June 1st thru September 15th every year - to save us all from drowning. Statistics don't lie.
This same type of logic is used daily by a multitude of wackos ranging anti-gun activists to driving age limit arguments to political arguments to any field of topics.
(Disclaimer: "People who hold an opinion differing from mine will not in any way, shape, form or fashion draw upon my wrath or ire. If, in fact, you do hold a different opinion, at the end of the day... I can live with it.")
Last edited by MidniteCowboy on May 4th at 2:53 PM.
"When the temperature is less than 65 degrees by the start of the game the home team wins 74% of the time"?
Statistics like this are useful because temperature, as much as you might like to deny it, does have a tangible effect on the way games are played. Teams that play their home games in cold-weather cities have an advantage on colder nights than their opponents because they're used to it. That's why Lambeau Field has been such an advantage for the Green Bay Packers.
In baseball, colder weather means that it's harder for the pitchers and fielders to grip the baseball, and fly balls carries much less; therefore, teams that hit grounders and line drives are more likely to win these types of games.
I heard that someone [...] got his first NHL overtime playoff goal. Does anyone really care about these statistics?
These types of statistics don't tell you anything but they're interesting to some people -- presumably fans of that player and the team he plays for.
Do the odds makers in Vegas take these stats into account when they are setting the line?
They take into account a lot of factors. You'd be surprised.
You know it's Sunday, right? I guess not. I shouldn't expect someone with your lack of understanding of basic units of time to pay attention to these things.
By the way, referring to your previous comment, why would you trust a politician ever? :o
Ultra Mega Statistics aren't necessarily proven facts that are borne out information gleaned. If that's the case how does one explain the changes we see foresee with regard to economic data ? We're always being told that they're taken from varying data that's up to the minute and on target. In the end it's what you one gains from that's used to persuade the argument in terms of the pros and cons.
And in the case as with all of the information it's how it's presented that really makes the difference wouldn't you agree ?
I am just your average sports fan who believes the following: 1 - Div. 1 college football needs a playoff. 2 - The SEC is the toughest conference. 3 - Ohio State, Michigan, Notre Dame, and USC are the most over-rated teams in college football. 4 - An attractive woman who knows sports is every man's fantasy. 5 - The MLB season is too long. 6 - The DH in baseball needs to be done away with. 7 - The government needs to stay out of sports because they mess up everything they get involved in.
