This month we had college football smack talk legend and data viz enthusiast Kyle Umlang as our guest host. His online presence was an essential boost for our monthly data challenge this time around. We want to thank Kyle both for the data and his involvement in #SportsVizSunday!
With the return of college football, we had a lot of great vizzes submitted. Here is a recap of some of those vizzes, and if I missed you I greatly apologize. We get so many great submissions every month it’s hard to keep track!
College Football Scoring Differential –
Bo McCready (@boknowsdata)
By showing the Top and Bottom 10 for cumulative scoring differentials Bo shows which programs have been successful or struggled over the long run.
All American Football Players –
Daniel Ling (@DanielLing13)
This viz might have been my personal favorite for this month’s challenge. The Ivy League schools were dominate in the early years of college football, but big names such as Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Alabama have dominated the scene since.
Recruiting and Winning in College Football –
Mark Connolly (@MarkConnolly2)
Interesting finding in this analysis that recruiting affects regular season outcomes but it doesn’t necessarily mean success during Bowl season.
CFB All Americans –
Brian Moore (@BMooreWasTaken)
This viz is so good. Exploring this viz was made simple by the design and full of fun facts. Never would have guess BYU lead all schools in All Americans at the QB position!
Avg ATS vs Covering% finish since 2014 –
Joe Berry
I’m not a gambling man, but this analysis by Joe is in depth and tells a good story. For those into the sports betting scene, this viz is sure to be full of interesting takeaways.
Nebraska Coach Performance –
Alex Elfering (@ANElfering)
I’ll always remember my wife (whose father played at Nebraska) telling me about the newspaper headline that read something like, “Another Nebraska Fired for Not Being Tom Osborne.” Really enjoyed this Alex!
ESPN’s Football Power Index | Projected 2019 Wins – Kyle Umlang (@KyleUmlang)
Our guest host Kyle tweeted out this viz and I instantly liked the use of team logos. There is definitely an attachment to your favorite team’s logo in sports and this viz definitely plays on that.
Whose been HOT and whose been NOT – Simon Beaumont (@SimonBeaumont04)
Although the line chart to the right grabs the eye, the analysis on the left is very insightful and a great example of data viz best practice.
The Rose Bowl –
Simon Beaumont (@SimonBeaumont04)
Not bad for a Brit, Simon 😉 The Rose Bowl is an iconic American sporting event and although I may have had to DM Simon an explanation of bowl games, he definitely did it justice.
Past 25 of the Top 25 –
Kevin Flerlage (@FlerlageKev)
There aren’t a lot of words that will properly describe the works of Kevin Flerlage, but I’ll try. This viz is simply fantastic. Although Kevin warns viewers to use caution when implementing radial charts, this is an example of when unique design can draw eyes, which can then inform.
NCAA football dashboard –
Kim Tricker (@KimTricker)
I really like this viz by Kim that uses several different chart types and gives many different data points about difference NCAA programs. In the example below, you can easily see the Meyer/Tebow years as a positive outlier in the wins/losses chart. Also, if you know anything about Gator football the heavy recruitment of Miami makes sense as well.
NCAA football 2018 –
Kim Tricker (@KimTricker)
Kim submitted content twice this month which must mean she is totally ready for college football season to come around. This viz displays this year’s Top 20 preseason AP Poll with last year’s conference wins and losses. I really like the simplicity and limited color scheme.
College Football Conference History –
Bo McCready (@boknowsdata)
This viz shows the ebb and flow of college football conference alignment. I love this topic as I think most of the realignment as of late has made zero sense. West Virginia is in the Big 12 but Nebraska isn’t. Missouri is in the SEC but Florida St isn’t. And my UC Bearcats are in a conference all the AAC? #confused
