2011 Big 10 Toughest Places to play

[JTrain]

I think people mistake loyalty for ferocity. They're definitely very different things, and aside from a few moments when the refs piss us off every game, or a once in a blue moon big revenge game (99 KSU or 10 Texas), I don't think Memorial is really that tough to play at.

NU All-Time record at Memorial:

362-110-13

Since the sellout streak began:

263-41 — which includes a 40-24 record against ranked teams.

I'd say that is a pretty hard place to come and win a football game.

And how many of those games were we supposed to win? Probably almost all of them. The reason we had that 47 game winning streak had a lot more to do with the fact that we were always a top 5 team than the fact that the game was in Lincoln. Yeah, playing at home helps, but being the better football team helps more.

General is right. Our total winning percentage since the sellout streak began is 79.4 (455-118), which is not that far from the home winning percentage of 86.5. Then you consider the fact that we buy, on average, two cupcake wins per year in Lincoln, without having to travel to the cupcake's place for an away game. So that's 47 years times 2 cupcake wins equals 94 free wins, bringing the more legitimate record for comparison down to 169-41, or 80.5%. That means against legit opponents, we have been about one percent more likely to win a home game than a non-home game since the sellout streak started.

If you wanna look at Bo's teams specifically, well, you could even make an argument that they tend to play better away from home. Impressive away from home games included '08 TT (took them to OT when they were ranked 7th), '09 Clemson, '09 VT (should have won), '09 Missouri, '09 Texas, '09 Arizona. Ugly home games included '08 Missouri, '09 Texas Tech and '09 Iowa State.

 

[huKSer]

That tunnel entrance and big screen in your stadium is awesome!

The White Out at PSU still amazes me. It just looks so incredible.

When they do the White Out - does this mean they are surrendering?

 

[In the Deed the Glory]

I think people mistake loyalty for ferocity. They're definitely very different things, and aside from a few moments when the refs piss us off every game, or a once in a blue moon big revenge game (99 KSU or 10 Texas), I don't think Memorial is really that tough to play at.

NU All-Time record at Memorial:

362-110-13

Since the sellout streak began:

263-41 — which includes a 40-24 record against ranked teams.

I'd say that is a pretty hard place to come and win a football game.

And how many of those games were we supposed to win? Probably almost all of them. The reason we had that 47 game winning streak had a lot more to do with the fact that we were always a top 5 team than the fact that the game was in Lincoln. Yeah, playing at home helps, but being the better football team helps more.

General is right. Our total winning percentage since the sellout streak began is 79.4 (455-118), which is not that far from the home winning percentage of 86.5. Then you consider the fact that we buy, on average, two cupcake wins per year in Lincoln, without having to travel to the cupcake's place for an away game. So that's 47 years times 2 cupcake wins equals 94 free wins, bringing the more legitimate record for comparison down to 169-41, or 80.5%. That means against legit opponents, we have been about one percent more likely to win a home game than a non-home game since the sellout streak started.

If you wanna look at Bo's teams specifically, well, you could even make an argument that they tend to play better away from home. Impressive away from home games included '08 TT (took them to OT when they were ranked 7th), '09 Clemson, '09 VT (should have won), '09 Missouri, '09 Texas, '09 Arizona. Ugly home games included '08 Missouri, '09 Texas Tech and '09 Iowa State.

So a good team loses 4 out of 5 times when they come into the stadium to play Nebraska? You see, it can be hard to play somewhere because the team is better than you, still makes it a hard place to get a win.

For cryin' out loud, I'm not saying that NU has to have the game in Lincoln to win. I'm just saying, and the stats prove it, that teams are more likely to lose than win in Memorial Stadium when they play Nebraska.

It doesn't say "Best Home Field Advantage" it says "Toughest Places to Play". I would think if teams lose 4 out of every 5 times they play in your stadium, it makes it a pretty tough place to win and therefore a "Tough place to Play".

 

[JTrain]

I think people mistake loyalty for ferocity. They're definitely very different things, and aside from a few moments when the refs piss us off every game, or a once in a blue moon big revenge game (99 KSU or 10 Texas), I don't think Memorial is really that tough to play at.

NU All-Time record at Memorial:

362-110-13

Since the sellout streak began:

263-41 — which includes a 40-24 record against ranked teams.

I'd say that is a pretty hard place to come and win a football game.

And how many of those games were we supposed to win? Probably almost all of them. The reason we had that 47 game winning streak had a lot more to do with the fact that we were always a top 5 team than the fact that the game was in Lincoln. Yeah, playing at home helps, but being the better football team helps more.

Ok...but wouldn't the talent level of the home team directly influence the difficulty of winning at their stadium? I think you just helped make my point for me.

No because we are talking about the place (fans + architecture), not the team. If there's no distinct advantage between playing at the home stadium and playing at an empty practice field down the road, then the stadium shouldn't be ranked very highly on these lists. Then you might as well just name the list "Toughest Teams to Play".

 

[s.c. husker]

Got hung up on the hottest cheerleader thing at the bottom. The answer is Lincoln.

 

[In the Deed the Glory]

I think people mistake loyalty for ferocity. They're definitely very different things, and aside from a few moments when the refs piss us off every game, or a once in a blue moon big revenge game (99 KSU or 10 Texas), I don't think Memorial is really that tough to play at.

NU All-Time record at Memorial:

362-110-13

Since the sellout streak began:

263-41 — which includes a 40-24 record against ranked teams.

I'd say that is a pretty hard place to come and win a football game.

And how many of those games were we supposed to win? Probably almost all of them. The reason we had that 47 game winning streak had a lot more to do with the fact that we were always a top 5 team than the fact that the game was in Lincoln. Yeah, playing at home helps, but being the better football team helps more.

Ok...but wouldn't the talent level of the home team directly influence the difficulty of winning at their stadium? I think you just helped make my point for me.

No because we are talking about the place (fans + architecture), not the team. If there's no distinct advantage between playing at the home stadium and playing at an empty practice field down the road, then the stadium shouldn't be ranked very highly on these lists. Then you might as well just name the list "Toughest Teams to Play".

So by this reasoning, if Penn State and Ohio State got a bad coach, in turn stopped getting good players to come to the school, and the talent level dropped their stadiums would still be high on this list? Colorado used to be extremely high on this list, so did Doak Cambpell (FSU). Think now that they don't have good teams they are still high up there?

You can't separate the two things. They are interlinked entirely.

 

[JTrain]

I think people mistake loyalty for ferocity. They're definitely very different things, and aside from a few moments when the refs piss us off every game, or a once in a blue moon big revenge game (99 KSU or 10 Texas), I don't think Memorial is really that tough to play at.

NU All-Time record at Memorial:

362-110-13

Since the sellout streak began:

263-41 — which includes a 40-24 record against ranked teams.

I'd say that is a pretty hard place to come and win a football game.

And how many of those games were we supposed to win? Probably almost all of them. The reason we had that 47 game winning streak had a lot more to do with the fact that we were always a top 5 team than the fact that the game was in Lincoln. Yeah, playing at home helps, but being the better football team helps more.

Ok...but wouldn't the talent level of the home team directly influence the difficulty of winning at their stadium? I think you just helped make my point for me.

No because we are talking about the place (fans + architecture), not the team. If there's no distinct advantage between playing at the home stadium and playing at an empty practice field down the road, then the stadium shouldn't be ranked very highly on these lists. Then you might as well just name the list "Toughest Teams to Play".

So by this reasoning, if Penn State and Ohio State got a bad coach, in turn stopped getting good players to come to the school, and the talent level dropped their stadiums would still be high on this list? Colorado used to be extremely high on this list, so did Doak Cambpell (FSU). Think now that they don't have good teams they are still high up there?

You can't separate the two things. They are interlinked entirely.

If PSU or OSU fell off, and their fans remained supportive, then yes, they're stadiums should remain high on the list. A tough place to play is all about the edge (thus the term: home-field advantage) that the place gives the team. Thought experiment: If a juggernaut team was assembled that destroyed every other school by an average score of 222-0, but they played in the middle of a barren corn field with no spectators, would that be considered a tough place to play? No, the juggernaut team destroys everyone anywhere, home or away. So they are getting no edge from playing at home. They are certainly a tough team to play, but there's no reason we should say the cornfield is a tough place to play.

 

[deedsker15]

a tough team to play is integral to the the toughest places to play...they aren't directly linked, but they do play vital roles to each other...

 

[In the Deed the Glory]

I think people mistake loyalty for ferocity. They're definitely very different things, and aside from a few moments when the refs piss us off every game, or a once in a blue moon big revenge game (99 KSU or 10 Texas), I don't think Memorial is really that tough to play at.

NU All-Time record at Memorial:

362-110-13

Since the sellout streak began:

263-41 — which includes a 40-24 record against ranked teams.

I'd say that is a pretty hard place to come and win a football game.

And how many of those games were we supposed to win? Probably almost all of them. The reason we had that 47 game winning streak had a lot more to do with the fact that we were always a top 5 team than the fact that the game was in Lincoln. Yeah, playing at home helps, but being the better football team helps more.

Ok...but wouldn't the talent level of the home team directly influence the difficulty of winning at their stadium? I think you just helped make my point for me.

No because we are talking about the place (fans + architecture), not the team. If there's no distinct advantage between playing at the home stadium and playing at an empty practice field down the road, then the stadium shouldn't be ranked very highly on these lists. Then you might as well just name the list "Toughest Teams to Play".

So by this reasoning, if Penn State and Ohio State got a bad coach, in turn stopped getting good players to come to the school, and the talent level dropped their stadiums would still be high on this list? Colorado used to be extremely high on this list, so did Doak Cambpell (FSU). Think now that they don't have good teams they are still high up there?

You can't separate the two things. They are interlinked entirely.

If PSU or OSU fell off, and their fans remained supportive, then yes, they're stadiums should remain high on the list. A tough place to play is all about the edge that the place gives the team. Thought experiment: If a juggernaut team was assembled that destroyed every other school by an average score of 222-0, but they played in the middle of a barren corn field with no spectators, would that be considered a tough place to play? No, the juggernaut team destroys everyone anywhere, home or away. So they are getting no edge from playing at home. They are certainly a tough team to play, but there's no reason we should say the cornfield is a tough place to play.

Ok, Mr. Thought Experiment (what the hell is with that?). Show me a place that is "tough" to play at where the home team doesn't have good players. I suppose it is only a coincidence that all of the top stadiums on the list have very good records over time at these places.

Here is a neat little stat for you, funny how they tend to win arguments over what we "think".

Nebraska All-time record against ranked teams at home: 44-35 (through 2007)

Nebraska All-time record against ranked teams on the road: 27-54-3 (through 2007)

Now what do we have to say...maybe we play better at home? Maybe against the "best of the best" as measured by the AP poll (which is really the only fair barometer for this discussion) we are better at home than on the road...

linky dinky doo

 

[MGoBlue]

I think people mistake loyalty for ferocity. They're definitely very different things, and aside from a few moments when the refs piss us off every game, or a once in a blue moon big revenge game (99 KSU or 10 Texas), I don't think Memorial is really that tough to play at.

NU All-Time record at Memorial:

362-110-13

Since the sellout streak began:

263-41 — which includes a 40-24 record against ranked teams.

I'd say that is a pretty hard place to come and win a football game.

380-117-15

 

[JTrain]

I think people mistake loyalty for ferocity. They're definitely very different things, and aside from a few moments when the refs piss us off every game, or a once in a blue moon big revenge game (99 KSU or 10 Texas), I don't think Memorial is really that tough to play at.

NU All-Time record at Memorial:

362-110-13

Since the sellout streak began:

263-41 — which includes a 40-24 record against ranked teams.

I'd say that is a pretty hard place to come and win a football game.

And how many of those games were we supposed to win? Probably almost all of them. The reason we had that 47 game winning streak had a lot more to do with the fact that we were always a top 5 team than the fact that the game was in Lincoln. Yeah, playing at home helps, but being the better football team helps more.

Ok...but wouldn't the talent level of the home team directly influence the difficulty of winning at their stadium? I think you just helped make my point for me.

No because we are talking about the place (fans + architecture), not the team. If there's no distinct advantage between playing at the home stadium and playing at an empty practice field down the road, then the stadium shouldn't be ranked very highly on these lists. Then you might as well just name the list "Toughest Teams to Play".

So by this reasoning, if Penn State and Ohio State got a bad coach, in turn stopped getting good players to come to the school, and the talent level dropped their stadiums would still be high on this list? Colorado used to be extremely high on this list, so did Doak Cambpell (FSU). Think now that they don't have good teams they are still high up there?

You can't separate the two things. They are interlinked entirely.

If PSU or OSU fell off, and their fans remained supportive, then yes, they're stadiums should remain high on the list. A tough place to play is all about the edge that the place gives the team. Thought experiment: If a juggernaut team was assembled that destroyed every other school by an average score of 222-0, but they played in the middle of a barren corn field with no spectators, would that be considered a tough place to play? No, the juggernaut team destroys everyone anywhere, home or away. So they are getting no edge from playing at home. They are certainly a tough team to play, but there's no reason we should say the cornfield is a tough place to play.

Ok, Mr. Thought Experiment (what the hell is with that?). Show me a place that is "tough" to play at where the home team doesn't have good players. I suppose it is only a coincidence that all of the top stadiums on the list have very good records over time at these places.

Here is a neat little stat for you, funny how they tend to win arguments over what we "think".

Nebraska All-time record against ranked teams at home: 44-35 (through 2007)

Nebraska All-time record against ranked teams on the road: 27-54-3 (through 2007)

Now what do we have to say...maybe we play better at home? Maybe against the "best of the best" as measured by the AP poll (which is really the only fair barometer for this discussion) we are better at home than on the road...

linky dinky doo

I didn't mean to get you angry. I was just making an argument.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thought_experiment

My point was just that the toughest places have to do with the advantage the home team has when playing at home over playing somewhere else. Yes, these lists usually include good teams, because more fans are more supportive to the bigger programs. That doesn't have to do with my point.

The stat you listed was a good one though. That shows an actual home field advantage, which is what would indicate a tough place to play. Still, Bo's teams have shown somewhat of a home-field disadvantage.

 

[In the Deed the Glory]

I think people mistake loyalty for ferocity. They're definitely very different things, and aside from a few moments when the refs piss us off every game, or a once in a blue moon big revenge game (99 KSU or 10 Texas), I don't think Memorial is really that tough to play at.

NU All-Time record at Memorial:

362-110-13

Since the sellout streak began:

263-41 — which includes a 40-24 record against ranked teams.

I'd say that is a pretty hard place to come and win a football game.

And how many of those games were we supposed to win? Probably almost all of them. The reason we had that 47 game winning streak had a lot more to do with the fact that we were always a top 5 team than the fact that the game was in Lincoln. Yeah, playing at home helps, but being the better football team helps more.

Ok...but wouldn't the talent level of the home team directly influence the difficulty of winning at their stadium? I think you just helped make my point for me.

No because we are talking about the place (fans + architecture), not the team. If there's no distinct advantage between playing at the home stadium and playing at an empty practice field down the road, then the stadium shouldn't be ranked very highly on these lists. Then you might as well just name the list "Toughest Teams to Play".

So by this reasoning, if Penn State and Ohio State got a bad coach, in turn stopped getting good players to come to the school, and the talent level dropped their stadiums would still be high on this list? Colorado used to be extremely high on this list, so did Doak Cambpell (FSU). Think now that they don't have good teams they are still high up there?

You can't separate the two things. They are interlinked entirely.

If PSU or OSU fell off, and their fans remained supportive, then yes, they're stadiums should remain high on the list. A tough place to play is all about the edge that the place gives the team. Thought experiment: If a juggernaut team was assembled that destroyed every other school by an average score of 222-0, but they played in the middle of a barren corn field with no spectators, would that be considered a tough place to play? No, the juggernaut team destroys everyone anywhere, home or away. So they are getting no edge from playing at home. They are certainly a tough team to play, but there's no reason we should say the cornfield is a tough place to play.

Ok, Mr. Thought Experiment (what the hell is with that?). Show me a place that is "tough" to play at where the home team doesn't have good players. I suppose it is only a coincidence that all of the top stadiums on the list have very good records over time at these places.

Here is a neat little stat for you, funny how they tend to win arguments over what we "think".

Nebraska All-time record against ranked teams at home: 44-35 (through 2007)

Nebraska All-time record against ranked teams on the road: 27-54-3 (through 2007)

Now what do we have to say...maybe we play better at home? Maybe against the "best of the best" as measured by the AP poll (which is really the only fair barometer for this discussion) we are better at home than on the road...

linky dinky doo

I didn't mean to get you angry. I was just making an argument.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thought_experiment

My point was just that the toughest places have to do with the advantage the home team has when playing at home over playing somewhere else. Yes, these lists usually include good teams, because more fans are more supportive to the bigger programs. That doesn't have to do with my point.

The stat you listed was a good one though. That shows an actual home field advantage, which is what would indicate a tough place to play. Still, Bo's teams have shown somewhat of a home-field disadvantage.

Oh, don't worry. You didn't get me angry with the thought experiment thing, I googled it before I typed. I really meant what the hell is the story behind that. I read about Maxwell's Demon sounds like somebody liked LSD Mr. Maxwell. I struggle with philosophy, as you can probably tell I am more grounded in facts than hypotheses. Anyway, no worries man. I am just in the mood for some friendly debate today I guess.

No hard feelings, kind sir. :thumbs

 

[Coqui]

WTH? Doesn't anybody in Columbus drink real beer? Miller Lite, Coors Lite?? Sheesh, what's up with the cases of water Lite?

I recall our fans getting pegged by Natty lite in Happy Valley so you guys don't have much room to talk.

 

[cuinknk]

I think Penn St. should be 1, NU 2, OSU 3... but thats just off seeing games on TV, you never know until your there.

wait till you go to columbus and have AAA batteries thrown at you......then u will make them #1

edit: if your curious on what your trip to columbus will look like watch this

I had no issues in Columbus last year. In fact, I haven't had issues while visiting any Big Ten stadiums, and I've been everywhere except PSU and Purdue.

 

[808Husker in KCMO]

I think Penn St. should be 1, NU 2, OSU 3... but thats just off seeing games on TV, you never know until your there.

wait till you go to columbus and have AAA batteries thrown at you......then u will make them #1

edit: if your curious on what your trip to columbus will look like watch this

AAA? Boulder, CO is home of D Cells and piss balloons!