It's been a while since we had a link dump, eh?

Football Stats

The next couple of weeks are going to be full of recruiting pieces at the SBN Mothership, and I'm thinking I'll probably be referencing the below piece from MGoBlog's The Mathlete multiple times. In great detail, it explains the premise we've been working with for quite a while: recruiting rankings aren't everything, but they are rather predictive. (And evidently, it might have a more direct impact on defense than on offense.) The Mathlete has done some wonderful work in the last few months.

• Recruiting
  MGoBlog (The Mathlete): What's a 5 Star Really Worth: Predicting Future Team Success Off of Recruiting Rankings
• A Topic Of Conversation If Ever We Have A Playoff (Actually, No, It's Relevant Already)
  Advanced NFL Stats: Weather Effects on Passing

Football

I've been really, really high on Baylor's Kendall Wright ever since he almost single-handedly destroyed my alma mater in Columbia a couple of years ago, so I was very interested in the piece below. He is fast enough to make a living in a Steve Smith-type of role, I think. What this post proves, though, is that you have to be really good and really fast to become a star with Wright's size.

• 2012 NFL Draft
  Mocking The Draft: Kendall Wright: Does Size Matter?
• We're All Just Quietly Ignoring This And Assuming It Works Out For WVU In 2012
  Big East Coast Bias: Lawyers Expect The Big East And West Virginia To Settle
• A Little Football Porn For You
  Smart Football: Bill Walsh and Joe Montana on the fundamentals of quarterbacking
  Strong Football: TCU 4-2-5 Defense Explained
• Manny Diaz
  Burnt Orange Nation: Manny Diaz -- A Name Worthy Defense
  Austin American-Statesman: UT coordinator Manny Diaz, take a bow

Stats

I'm officially booked for the Sloan Sports Analytics Conference this March in Boston. Huzzah! Below are some highlights from a different sports analytics get-together, one at the Manchester Business School in Britain.

• NERRRRRDS
  The Video Analyst: Sports Analytics Conference -- Part 1
  The Video Analyst: Sports Analytics Conference -- Part 2
• Moneyball
  SB Nation: The Success Of 'Moneyball'