5-0

[clenz]

You’re right and wrong at the same time. If we’re a -22 favorite then Vegas is putting a line that high because ppl wouldn’t bet on it at -10. Vegas isn’t necessary saying you’re better but they are saying the public knows you’re better so we set it at -22. When it’s closer, like -3 or so then yeah, you could make your argument that they move the line for the bets and they aren’t actually picking who the better team is. When the odds are so high, the reason behind it is clear. If we’re favored by 15 or so (clear indication we’re better) and win by only 1, ppl will walk away worried.

I am apparently alone - but I can't imagine walking away from the game concerned because the spread set by someone designed to make money was off

If I walk away from a game concerned literally the last thing I think about is "how did we do against the spread and how does it impact our rankings/future.

At the very least it's completely ignoring that it's still a game played by humans (in this case 18-22 year old college students) and that **** happens and final scores for a one off game aren't the end all be all to be the better team overall or difference between the two teams.

[unipanther2154]

I am apparently alone - but I can't imagine walking away from the game concerned because the spread set by someone designed to make money was off

If I walk away from a game concerned literally the last thing I think about is "how did we do against the spread and how does it impact our rankings/future.

At the very least it's completely ignoring that it's still a game played by humans (in this case 18-22 year old college students) and that **** happens and final scores for a one off game aren't the end all be all to be the better team overall or difference between the two teams.

It’s not about walking away upset because the spread. If we don’t beat this team tonight by 20 that’s not great. Say we only beat them by 5.....that’s pretty terrible. It’s just because we should kill them. In that situation how you feel we should do and the spread go hand in hand. If we win by 1 against Missouri state and we play well, yet the spread was us -7, then I don’t care. You’re taking ppl out of context and acting like if we only win by the spread we will be happy. If we’re favored by 43 tonight and win by 39, I’ll be pretty happy because that means we probably played well. It’s honestly that simple.

[sivert]

Ok, I'll try. The -18 spread we had with UTM is like Vegas saying, "If we take 18 points off of UNI, it will be a very close game. And you could bet either way without much advantage." Underneath that statement is, "Looking at UNI compared to UTM, we think you THIS good."

And if we turn out to be better than that (beat the spread), that's kinda nice. Would you rather be overestimated or underestimated?

The original statement that has set this off:

We have been favored every game, so really 5-0 shouldn't be a big surprise. Next week, just based on the N Colorado point spread at UNI and at WVU, I'm guessing we'll be about 6 point dogs to WVU. It would be nice to win a game we're not supposed to. If it means anything, we are 4-1 against the spread though.

All he is saying is that some experts have estimated us to lose by 6. But we've been underestimated in most of our games. So hopefully they have underestimated us again and we'll get what we can agree we want:

W

[CyCarp]

Agreed, I want to win more than anything, but it's really nice to exceed expectations while we're at it. Sure, a spread is made up number, but it's not just pulled out of a hat. At the end of the day, I guess I'm thinking more long term when I look at more than just a win or loss. I'll be happy with a win, but I ultimately want to get to the dance and win some games. If we're struggling to beat teams we're supposed to kill, I'm not feeling too good about playing deep into March. I'm not sure a reasonable way to measure what we "should" win by other than the spread.

[achrist70]

Personally I never get too concerned about winning margin, we have a style where we aren't going to win a ton of games by more then 12 points. I get much more concerned when we are up by 15 with 10 to go and only win by 3.

[SteinPizza]

Agreed. 30-0 against the spread isn't 30-0 in general, but all wins and losses aren't equal. To say it has 0 indication/worth is irresponsible.

This is 100% correct.

[clenz]

How did fans determine if their team was any good before sports gambling really took off?


There wasn't a made up line to make money to judge them off of...

[SteinPizza]

How did fans determine if their team was any good before sports gambling really took off?


There wasn't a made up line to make money to judge them off of...

Easy, the eye test and scores, which is still legit today. It’s not the spread per se’, it’s “did you handily beat the teams you should pound the crap out of”, any upset losses, wins against teams you shouldn’t beat, margins of victory and defeat, etc. Basic stuff. The spread doesn’t directly factor in, but it’s one indicator of who you should and shouldn’t beat. The expert consensus on that should align with who the spread favors most of the time. It’s the concept that counts, not the literal use of the spread itself.

[orangetennis]

We're arguing about two different things.
Clenz is talking about results...(wins and loses). Everyone else is talking about future expectations based off those results.

Lets replace "the spread" with "expectations"...

Obviously we all want to win every game, but in addition to that we want to feel confident about future games. The way the team performs vs expectations is what dictates our confidence level moving forward.

It's not really about Vegas and the spread, it's about expectations.

[CyCarp]

How did fans determine if their team was any good before sports gambling really took off?


There wasn't a made up line to make money to judge them off of...

Let's just not count anything other than a final score, huh? Screw tracking rebounds, turnovers, shooting percentage, and such - the only thing that matters is the W or L at the end of the game. Lines are based off public perception, and nobody said it's THE way that determines a successful season. It is nice to see that you're mature enough to mock others opinions not only here, but also on Twitter though. Good for you man.

[clenz]

Let's just not count anything other than a final score, huh? Screw tracking rebounds, turnovers, shooting percentage, and such - the only thing that matters is the W or L at the end of the game. Lines are based off public perception, and nobody said it's THE way that determines a successful season. It is nice to see that you're mature enough to mock others opinions not only here, but also on Twitter though. Good for you man.

Thanks for stopping by.


WGAF what the general public thinks? Why does it matter if Joe Dirtbag betting on UNI when they can't name a single UNI player thinks about the program because we did or didn't cover a spread or beat a team by "enough"


My entire point is the spread doesn't mean dick on the larger picture of the season and to judge how "please" you are the with the team based on a number designed to make casinos money is just silly.

I'm sure there wasn't a line last night (I didn't look) but I'd be shocked if we covered it. Should we be upset that we didn't beat a bad D3 by more than 22?

This the kind of **** people hate NDSU football fans for. "Yeah we won but we aren't winning enough and by enough". Seriously?

[UNIGrainer]

How did fans determine if their team was any good before sports gambling really took off?


There wasn't a made up line to make money to judge them off of...

I think it was determined by whose lance knocked the other guy off his horse. If you were on the guy looking up from the ground you probably weren't as good as the other guy.

[vbfan19]

I think it was determined by whose lance knocked the other guy off his horse. If you were on the guy looking up from the ground you probably weren't as good as the other guy.

I bet there was wagering on those results too

[krusej23]

Wow, this got off the rails really quickly. That was a debate about nothing.

It would be spectacular to come out of Mexico with 2 wins and move to 7-0 then get another win against Luther and go to a currently ranked Colorado. If we come out of Mexico with a win against WVU and a loss in the championship game we will still be 7-1 after the Luther win at the beginning of December. I don't care how "weak" our schedule has been, winning those games is still not easy.