Fight On, Forever!

Inside the Mind of Mike Leach - NY Times
“...Third-down conversion rates tie in with first downs and number of plays. Those plays extend drives. While those statistics are important indicators, a coach has to be able to interpret the results.

“Here’s the catch. While those statistics are important to us, every single one of them might be meaningless depending on the type of game we happen to be playing. If you’re in a game where you can score on three-play drives all the time, those statistics don’t really mean very much. As a coach, you have to be flexible about how you interpret them.

“Statistics and analytics have their place in sports. They help to organize data and crystallize tendencies. However, statistics also have their limitations. Football is made up of numerous variables. People who try to define the game through one or two variables underestimate the game’s complexity...