Home Field Advantage: Do you think it exists? This slide share contains some information we talked about in class from: Sports Illustrated, Jan. 17, 2011 “What’s Really Behind Home Field Advantage?” by Tobias J. Moskowitz and L. Jon Wertheim After discussion, reading and looking at the slide share, what is your opinion of home field advantage? Does it exist? Does it depend on the sport? Do you think there is a certain conference in which fans are louder or more intense? Does the shape and size of the stadium matter? What about NCAA March Madness? Do you think the neutral sites help in 12 vs 5 winning percentage? Does the proximity of a site to the school make a difference? Is there more data or concepts that should be looked at? You must support you reasoning with two ideas from the slide share. Please post your comments to the blog.
Link to 12 over 5 in NCAA tourney: http://www.syracuse.com/axeman/index.ssf/2015/03/2015_ncaa_tournament_how_many_12_seeds_have_defeated_5_seeds.html
SEC football: https://www.saturdaydownsouth.com/sec-football/home-field-advantage-sec-college-football/
Link to 12 over 5 in NCAA tourney: http://www.syracuse.com/axeman/index.ssf/2015/03/2015_ncaa_tournament_how_many_12_seeds_have_defeated_5_seeds.html
SEC football: https://www.saturdaydownsouth.com/sec-football/home-field-advantage-sec-college-football/
In the study done on home field advantage, stats were given based on player performance in home games vs. away games. While some of the stats make sense I almost believe that home field advantage really cannot be measured statistically. There are teams in every sport who are not very good and disappoint the home fans every game (ex. the Suns and the Lakers). However, there are good teams too they may lose at home for a variety of reasons. Looking at the baseball stats for batter and pitcher behavior, these stats do not really seem completely valid because different ballparks cater to different types of players. Thus the terms "hitters ballpark" and "pitchers ballpark." This is why I believe that the stats in baseball stay similar from home to away games. However, the idea that the crowd has an affect on referees and umpires seems to make sense. While competing, athletes either do not hear the crowd or have learned to block it out. The people making the calls though, they hear most of the talking from fans. In sports, even the most blatantly missed calls are forgiven or even applauded when they fall in favor of the team you are cheering for. Home field advantage could very well just be the refs and umpires trying to send the fans home happy.
ReplyDeleteEthan Lajiness
DeleteI totally agree on this, I wrote my post similar to this, about the officiating. The officials seem to be almost scared to make a bad call, which would ruin their reputation as a ref in that ballpark. They just want to please the fans, make them happy. I feel like the fans give the refs more hate than the players do, who have to deal with the call.
DeleteI agree that you cant show the complete argument threw stats but it gives us a good idea and can show trends. But a lot of the stuff you said comes down to human error like referees or umpires everyone makes mistakes and its part of the game and something we have to live with. If we had robots that made every call we'd be complaining that they wont let them "play the game".
DeleteIn my opinion, and personal experience, home field advantage is a real thing. I don't think it matters what sport, but I think its more of an officials game more than anything. In the slide share, they mentioned that more calls have were called in favor of the home team, and when the home team's coach challenged a play, it was most likely to get overturned. Also, to add to that, in the MLB, the slide share shared to us that the away team gets more strikes called on them, and fewer balls called too. I believe other factors help, but the officiating definitely plays a role. To go into perspective of a ref in the NFL, you don't want to call against the home team or else you will be drowned with boos. Another thing that caught my eye about the officiating is the timing. More calls have gone the home teams way during a crucial time in the game.
ReplyDeleteI would say that I agree with your opinion on this. As a player, playing at home on a Friday night has a different sort of feel to it. I also agree with your idea of the refs with the instant replay calls. At every sporting event I've ever been to, when there is a replay on the big screen, the home fans cheer in the direction of their team regardless of what the call actually looks like.
DeleteI agree with this response 100%. I also believe that it is the official's game more than anything. It seems to be one of the main factors deciding on how the game is played. Calls do make or break a team based on where they are playing.
Delete-Ethan Lajiness
DeleteI disagree as I stated in my post "home field disadvantage". I agree when you say it doesn't matter the sport it dwells on skill set and position, the emotions involved ride on these factors in my opinion. when it comes to officials I agree because the numbers don't lie. officials love to root or the home team.
DeleteI agree completely. I especially agree because the crowd for the home team is more than likely to be bigger and louder than the away teams. The crowd could have an impact on a coach or ref at their home field. i do not believe every game is fair.
DeleteI agree with your opinion on home field advantage. It is interesting to think about what truly happens when a coach challenges a call. When watching college football, or the NFL, you notice when the home team's coach challenges a call it is more likely to get overturned. I agree that the officials play a huge role on home field advantage.
DeleteI definitely agree with you on the final few sentences of your statement. I feel like in close games, the refs tend to make crucial calls in favor of the home team. This is likely because they fear what might happen if they make the wrong call to cost that team the game.
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ReplyDeleteI think that the position you play on a team may have positive or adverse effects on ones performance. When I was playing football I started my sophomore year on junior varsity as a defensive linemen and before every game I would feel a great deal of anxiety when I was at a home game, what was different was when we had an away game. when you have an away game it feels like business and you drown out the crowd, you go to get the job done rather than when your at a home game and you feel like you have to put on a show rather than completely cream the opponent. my senior year was a bit different because I was only on kickoff getting no more than 10 min on the field which was a change of pace from jv. whether it was a home or away game I still felt like a ball python was curling up in my stomach even though I was only a special teams player (you don't have much time you want to make it count). different sports give subjects different feelings while playing because we always played on the same court so there wasn't anything special about the games in particular also because we were just out there to have fun. while playing I knew I wasn't the most talented and playing on a court that was in the middle of lambertville Mi made me very insecure about my skill set as i've only been playing for 3 comed seasons and have never fully understood the rules. being surrounded by your peers and their parents is almost a sad feeling knowing you want to be funny and put on a show but you know you simply don't have the skill set. I like to think of it as Home field disadvantage.
-John Ponke
After going through the Scorecasting presentation, I certainly do believe that there is a home field advantage. I believe so strongly in this because it has to do with the referee's that work each and every game. I do not think it is more so the players per say, but more so the psyche of the refs. In the slideshow they point out that not everyone is perfect, which I agree on, then what happens is that the refs end up calling something against the away team majority of the time. Moskowitx and Wertheim say that happens because the refs are socially influenced. With that saying, I do believe that it does exist especially in basketball. Basketball fans seem to be the loudest of them all and seem to have the most influence than any of the other sports. With March Madness, I think the neutral sites are an excellent idea because the refs are not pressured by the crowd to the home team because each crowd is equally wanting to win. I definitely think that home field advantage does exist and that it simply does not mean to exist.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree, I think the refs play a big role in the outcome of the game. I think the refs help with the home field advantage. However, I think that Football tends to be more rowdy but I would say that basketball is up there.
DeleteI believe home field advantage definitely takes a place in each and every sport. Not only are you unfamiliar with where you are, but another teams coaches and refs can be more easily influenced by their crowd. It shows in the slide show above all the proof you need to believe it. I think if a sports home 'field' advantage really has a role in, it is cross country. It is always tough traveling to new race sites for a meet. The 3.1 mile path you take will never be the same as the one you run everyday in your own town. I have ran a fair share different trails and not everyone I have been prepared for. The home advantages to the path at my school is the flat land, lots of shade, and familiarity. At races away from home, some of the disadvantages were the amount and height of some of the hills we don't get to train on as much. A lot of schools had less sheltered paths i.e. less trees/forests, more time running in the sun and heat. The biggest impact to me of home field advantage is how unfamiliar it can be to travel.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your opinion on home field advantage. It depends a lot on the stadium, or where you are competing. If an athlete is unfamiliar with the area and are somewhat intimidated by it, it could play a big role on performance.
DeleteWith the information above it didn't show a ton of data proving this point in the professional level. In basketball free throws were about the same in home and away games so I don't think the home & away is as big of a factor as per say what kind of game it is or its a rival game. But when You look at college basketball its a whole different story they were all over the place when shooting at away game this would make sense consider that the home team wins 53.2% of the time. This is the opposite I feel like for football with how many people they pack into those stadiums and just how loud they get it defiantly plays a role in the games outcome. They talk all the time about how certain stadiums are louder than others like century link field in Seattle the unique shape of the stadium makes it where the crowd echos more than other stadiums and is a factor that team have to consider. This is a big deal for the home team in these cases because most of the fans are there for the home team so they can be silent when there teams on offense. So in short home field advantage is a thing but is exaggerated at different levels and especially in different sports.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree it really just depends on the sport that players are participating in. The shape and size of the stadium definitely plays a factor Since most fans there are cheering for the home team there is definitely increased pressure and difficulty on the referees and maybe the visiting players to to officiate and play their best in a hostile atmosphere.
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ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, home field advantage does exist. Home field advantage can be tied with the referees. During a game, they referees experience massive amounts of social pressure from the crowd. Whenever they make a call, good or bad, there will always be one side of the crowd that is angry with them, or yelling at them. From watching sporting events, in stadiums or at home, I notice how people react when a call is made. The referees are more susceptible to making a call benefiting the home team due to the amount of backlash from fans. Home field advantage can also increase due to the amount of fans that are present, or how big the stadium is. For instance, in the NFL, visitors get more bad overturned calls, especially if it is a big game with a huge turnout of fans in a big stadium. In MLB, there is home batter and pitcher favoritism. In addition, during a crucial time in the game, an umpire will call more strikes on the away team. To prove my point even more, visitors got 516 more strike outs in a season compared to home teams. Home field advantage can be tied to the referees/officials, they do not want to be yelled at by fans the entire time or have a whole stadium full of people angry with them at the end of the game.
ReplyDeleteI really never thought about the refs in March Madness, being unbiased. I wrote my post about the refs and not wanting to upset the home crowd, but maybe neutral sites are the way out of it. I have to agree on the idea that in a tournament like March Madness, where every game is on a neutral site is the best way to keep it even. most people think it's because of the fans, but it's actually the fan's pressure they put on the refs.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with you. Usually during sports events with a large sum of fans, the player don't hear anything once the game starts. Referees making bad calls cannot be ignored, and can actually cost a team the game without it being in their hands to control. Having games on neutral sites usually make the referees neutral to both teams, so it is a good idea.
DeleteI believe home field advantage definitely exists and I'll tell you why. Many people think home field advantage and where you go, when really, the referees are the problem. The referees don't purposely seek to make the home team win, but are socially influenced by the audience to do so, and there is nothing they can do about it. In the slide show presented by Sloan Sport conference, they claimed that the more ambiguous the call, the larger and more vocal the crowd is, which is completely true.It is just human psychology for the referees to do what 90% of the crowd wants you to do. The only true effect the crowd has on both teams pre-game is the adrenaline the players may acquire from seeing the fans go crazy. I do personally think the sport also determines the amount of home field advantage. In wrestling, I can be at my home red out with tons of people in the crowd and the second the referee blows the whistle, it all goes quiet. However, in wrestling the referee plays a much larger role than those of basketball or football. When you only have a 6 minute match against a top opponent, every single point counts. I see college wrestlers everyday lose 2-1 on a bad call from the referee. Whereas in football, you have an entire hour to win. A couple bad penalty calls usually won't decide the games.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your opinion. The referees are a major reason for home field advantage. I agree that the referee has an important role in wrestling and can easily change a match because of a bad call.
DeleteWhile reading it seems that home field advantage does not exist from a players perspective as the change in their statistics for home vs away barely changes or doesn't change at all. While in some sports the affects of home vs away crowds does change performance overall it's usually below a one percent change.While the players themselves don't seem to be effected by the changes in playing field, I do believe that the're are outside factors that can influence the game weather it be the shape of the stadium and size creating more noise Ex Beaver Stadium. Or the referees having more pressure put on them from the home crowd to make a call that goes the home teams way impacting the game in the home teams favor. In terms of the NCAA tournament I don't believe that a neutral site game plays much factor in a 12 seed beating a 5 seed I think its just the other teams determination to win. At the end of the day I really think that home field advantage only exists as a psychological factor of pressure being put on referees to make a call going the home teams way. Assaad Barakat
ReplyDeleteFrom the article and the slideshow I do believe that there is a slight advantage when a team is playing at home. The best evidence to me about home field advantage was when a team has to travel a far distance to play their opponent, I see this in basketball a lot. The distance of travel can also affect players it can upset their sleep schedule and can cause problem with their bloodwork it is very bad for your body to go at a very explosive short bursts of energy and then sit on a flight/bus for 4-5 hours, Just recently Los Angeles Lakers Power Forward Brandon Ingram is in recovery right now with blood clots in his legs from this problem. This scenario was also a main factor that Chris Bosh retired from a medical point of view. We can also see a small percentage increase in a home team free throw percentage as the game goes on compared to the away team staying at a constant percentage with only subtle changes. Also from the slideshow I learned that refs are more likely to favor the home team in challenged calls, this sure does solve a lot of times when I have been frustrated when watching a team play and a bad call is made.
ReplyDeleteI think that travelling long distances is going to be more of a burden and a lot more difficult for college teams than it is for those on professional teams because of the benefits they get. What are your thoughts on travelling for pro teams vs college teams?
DeleteThe slideshow said that HFA exist in all sports and has been around for a very long time and it will always have an influence on the players. One of the things that the slideshow covered was what effect does travelling to different stadiums have on each of the players. The graph says that if a team is travelling long distances to go to play someone else, the team that is playing home has the higher winning percentage because of the home field advantage. Home Field advantage is determined a lot by the crowd and how the referees make calls. If you can have a larger stadium with more fans that are in your favor, than then you will have a stronger home field advantage. If referees make some decisions that some people might consider bad, the crowd can start to have an effect on how they make the calls. In the MLB during crucial situations, the ump was most likely to make a call in favor of the home team. I do think that HFA is a real thing and is always going to be around and the strength of that advantage really depends on how active the crowd is during the game.
ReplyDeleteThis response is very concise and accurate I like how you covered more than just one piece of evidence from the Slideshow. I can also see how the crowd can favor how the refs call the game.
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ReplyDeleteI believe that home field advantage does exist, more so in some sports than others. I think college football has the biggest home field advantage. With crowds as large as 100,000 or more and student sections screaming in the opponents ear, this definitely has an impact on the opponent. I also believe that referees feel more pressure from the home crowd to make calls in favor of their team, even if the referees themselves don't realize it. For 12 vs. 5 matchups in college basketball, I think the neutral site does play a factor in leveling the field. The 12 seed doesn't have to worry about playing in front of the intimidating crowd of the 5 seed. With both teams being unfamiliar to the environment, this allows for the 12 seed to get the neutral crowd in their favor to make a run at the upset.
ReplyDeleteI think this is true. There are many factors that play into the home field advantage. And if you remove some of those factors the 12 seed can beat the 5 seed. Football definitely has more fans and intensity within the crowd.
DeleteIn my opinion I think home field advantage is a huge factor in sports. You will perform at your best when you have fans chanting your name to want you to do better. I don't think that it really depends on the sport because all sports would want fans to cheer for them and scream at the other team to help your performance and hurt other teams. Also when you are home you can be more comfortable with your surroundings. Home advantage has been this way for 100 years. Yes I think that certain teams in the BIG10 are much louder and intense than schools of other conferences. Yes, look at Ohio State's football stadium, one of the loudest and most intense stadiums in college sports and is shaped different from all the rest. In march madness there is not a home field advantage because they play at neutral stadiums so that it is all equal. I think they help because 12 fans aren't going to be as crazy as 5s so when they have a neutral amount of fans then it's not as loud and intimidating as when the 12 plays at the 5s home. I don't think it does because fans will travel a decent distance to watch their teams, example is when me and my dad went down to ohio state to watch them play a couple years ago. I think that the amount of data they have is a good amount. NBA free throws are majorly affected from home and away. As well as pitcher behavior in MLB.
ReplyDeleteThis is Ethan Stadniczuk
DeleteI agree with you the Ohio State University stadium and the echo sound and noise level in the stadium is crazy compared to the Michigan stadium.I think it has to do with the shape and size that amplifies the voices of the screaming fans.
DeleteI think Home Field Advantage is real. I do not think it depends on the sport or the conference, every sport has it. However, certain conferences have a better home field advantage (NBA and NHL) while some conferences could have many field differences but still less advantages(MLB). There is also a scheduling difference between home teams and away/road teams(NBA NFL NHL). The road teams tend to play harder schedules like back-to-back games. Referees also contribute to the home field advantage. The referees tend to side with the home team and so they will call more things against the away team like fouls, turnovers, penalties, and violations. Referees see the way the crowd sees and can make uncertain calls. Referees on the home field also give more time for injuries(Soccer), this has been seen when the home team is behind by one goal. Home Field Advantage exists for several different reasons and will continue to be a factor in many sports games.
ReplyDelete-Mackenzie Goeder
I feel that home field advantage is a major factor in high school and college sports. My freshman year of high school we had a wrestling meet at dcc. We were favored to lose but we still matched up decent so we thought we could keep it close but that's not how it went. We got there weighed in got warmed up then you hear over the pa that the students were being let out of their classes to come and watch the dual. We didn't do so good but i feel that it's not just to scare the opponents but to pump adrenaline into the players. Yes it does exist, I feel that every sport has their own way shape or form of home field advantage. Yes I feel that people are going to go and support their team because its a make or break it situation. If their team loses they are done for the season. Yes the size and shape matters due to the echo in the stadium and amount of people they can fit into the stadium.In the NCAA tournament I don't think there is home field advantage do to the neutral sites and it does help lower teams win more because they have nothing to lose so they can play better. The site does not have a big effect because fans will travel where ever to watch their favorite teams. No I think they covered everything that I could think of like attendance effect and social influence.-Conner Frantz
ReplyDeleteI agree when you said the size of the arena matters. Larger arenas can hold larger amounts of people. Not to mention the shape could amplify the sound. - gunther
DeleteI agree with your statements about home field advantage.The neutral sites I agree with because nobody gets a home place advantage there. Also that the size and shape of the stadium matters for loudness and intensiveness.
DeleteHome field advantage is a real thing and it effects all sports, in all geographies, and it’s not going to change. Human psychology is behind home field advantage because humans conform to group opinion creating social pressure and distracts players. Another key reason for home field advantage is Referees. In soccer, referees gave double the injury time to the home team if they were behind by one goal vs. ahead by one goal. Home field advantage is different for each sport. Some sports are affected more than others such as football vs. tennis. Teams that have to travel long distances can also affect performance which is apparent in March Madness. Also, the closer one school is to the stadium, the more fans of that team will want to go.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion I think a home field advantage exists. Over the years studies have shown that the home team will be in favor of all calls made during the game. No matter the sport home teams will have the advantage because that is the field, court ect, That they play on.The teams will be used to the atmosphere of the arena. Also, fans have a major role in influencing the referee. With more attendance during a game the referee is more likely to call strikes in baseball, penalties in football, and fouls in basketball. When the home teams coach would challenge a call it was more likely to get overturned. This could be from a social influence from the crowd. In conclusion I believe there is a HFA no matter the sport.- Gunther
ReplyDeleteI agree that calls are usually in favor of the home team. It also makes sense that if they practice and are used to the field they will do better on it when playing a game. Also if the I think it is a good point that since there would be a larger crowd the refs would likely give it to the home team to aviod confrontation. Overall I agree with your agruement.
DeleteI think home field advantage is very different for every sport. You have sports such as basketball where the ref will try to please the crowd without even knowing it. During March Madness teams play at neutral sites to even try and get rid of that home field advantage stigma. But then there are sports like baseball where the umpire seems to do whatever he wants. In my opinion umpires are the most inconsistent type of referee when it comes to home-away team calls, no matter if they affect the team positively or negatively. Football is another example where the refs seem to be affected by the crowd. Actually in the recent years it seems the NFL has called more penalties then they ever have and they almost always seem to favor the home team. Players learn to block out the crowd but imagine being a ref and hearing everything the crowd is yelling at you. In almost every sport refs are making positive home team calls without even knowing it.
ReplyDeleteDavid
DeleteI think that home field advantage does exist. I think that it depends on the sport though because of the different crowd sizes. In sports like football the crowd plays a huge role in the game because they can distract the opposing players and influence the refs to make calls that help the home team due to social pressure. In the MLB, umpires call more strikeouts on visiting teams. Over the season, visitors get 516 more strikeouts and 195 fewer walks on the same pitchers. I think that the stadium size matter because the bigger the stadium the more fans there are.
ReplyDeleteI do not believe in home field advantage as I previously stated but you have a point when it comes to the type of sport and size of the arena. while playing football I never had a care for the crowd unless it was a home game. I also think that the bias from the referees are a problem that we must deal with within the politics of the sport.
Delete-john ponke
I feel home field advantage is not all teams have to thank for the win but I do believe it plays apart. Like many things in life attitude is everything even when it comes to sports. I feel that you have a better attitude playing at home and more of a drive to win on your own field. The article and slideshow said that home field advantage does exist. At home you tend to have a larger crowd cheering for you when your playing home which can add positive energy. In my case my team plays harder at home but majority of the time still comes out with a loss. Yes being home helped but it comes down to the skill level of the team. Personally I prefer to play at home but it all comes down to skill. Usually players who are not confident have a different effect. When playing teams with louder fans some players may let them get to their head and that can affect playing ability. Also if your playing home the refs are usually from the area and may call in favor of the home team. In the slides it was mentioned that challenged plays and calls are in favor of home teams majority of the time. I think the shape itself does not affect the player but the pressure from the fans. How close it is to the determines the amount of fans so yes I think it makes a difference. The neutral site helps eliminate the possibility of home field advantage but I think it over all comes down to the skill level and who really wants to win. I think more things need to be looked at. I do not think there is enough stats backing this up. In sports there's many teams with low skill level that disappoint every time even if they are at home ( the Browns). Also there are good teams that loss at home for many reasons.
ReplyDeleteI agree that it is all about skill and the players attitudes going into the event. Poorly skilled players will give a poor performance regardless of the place where the game is taking place at. Then the attitude of the athlete going into the game can change the way you play, like for example if you are nervous you may think like you're going to lose the game so you don't give it your all. -Gabe Legg
DeleteIn my opinion, I really do believe home-field advantage exists. I think home-field advantage is all psychological. The crowd size can play a factor to the players. People booing and yelling at the players can influence the way they act when performing. I also believe that it is the opposite for the opponent and they have fans of the other team booing you and it may get you nervous or distracted. I believe that it also depends on what sport they are playing may also play a factor, like what they said in the Score Casting presentation above (though it's saying that there is a low percentage of wins vs. losses). People who don't have a high enough skill level will change things up regardless if they are at a home game or an away game. - Gabriel Legg
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