Everyone knows that there are some stadiums that just feel intimidating to walk into. There are few folks around Greater Cincinnati who don’t deny that there isn’t a certain intimidation factor involved when you walk into Elder’s Pit for the first time as the away team. Similarly, there’s little denying that taking the field as the away team at Highlands’ David Cecil Memorial Stadium isn’t something that will stick with you for a good while.

 

So there are lots of teams around the state of Kentucky, and for almost every team, there’s a different stadium and field that they call home come gameday. Are there any of those fields that embrace their home teams so much that the home field advantage actually makes itself evident in the final scores of the games played there? Does it depend on the opponent? Which teams have the greatest amount of home field advantage when they’re playing on their home turf, and what (if any) kind of a point value are we talking when it comes to their advantage?

I don't believe in it at the high school level.

I don't believe in it at the high school level.

 

 

Same here. Even less in basketball than in football.

I don't believe in it at the high school level.

 

Agreed.

Not in the HS level.

Not that it plays a huge role, but coming from coaching, teenage kids are incredibly fickle and creatures of habit. It's not the field itself or the crowd creating a competitive advantage, but the abnormality of riding a bus 30 minutes to 3 hours, getting dressed in weird environments, and other little nuisance we don't generally think of that may create erratic play. Another example I can point to. Our school would sometimes have assemblies the last half hour of the day, and my assumption is other schools do the same. ANYTIME there was an assembly and practiced followed, the kids were always more wild/immature and less productive. There is something to be said about staying on a routine.

Why not at the high school level? Seems like younger people would be more affected by a home field advantage than in college or the pros. And that goes for pumping up the home team and distracting the visiting team.

Tend to agree with most, very little advantage gained by home field in most situations at the high school level.

 

Elder is the obvious exception.

 

I do think a team that plays on a natural surface gains a slight advantage late in the season when the field is usually in bad shape during inclimate weather. (Who would have thought playing on turf would become so much the norm in HS, natural surface would prove foreign to many teams)

 

Also, coincidentally considering thread starter, I think a team that plays their home games on Saturday gains a distinct advantage. It disrupts the oppositions entire week's schedule, including game day prep. Also, the time of day change makes a difference IMO.

 

I think this advantage gets bigger as the season progresses (i.e. it means nothing in week 1, and gets a bit more significant each week after). I'd say it could mean up to six points for CovCath.

Same here. Even less in basketball than in football.

 

Have to disagree with this.

Ashland and Ironton, OH has always been extremely tough when they have a quality product on the field.

I'm not sure of how much of an advantage there is but if you played football around the state in sure we have all played on some interesting fields. Ones were there were huge crowns on the field for example. Teams that keep the grass high on the field. Teams that water down the field. Locker rooms that are questionable. Chain crews that do some questionable stuff.

I don't know about a home field advantage, but, I definitely believe in a not having to travel advantage.

You're not going to convince me that when Trinity takes the field at Marshall Stadium and walks 2 by 2 to the opposite endzone that its doesn't have a psychological effect on smaller teams. The line goes from one end of the field to the other.

 

Places like Highlands can also have an effect because they are so different then other fields it takes teams out of their comfort zone. First, ALL of the fans are behind the visiting team, that's unique. Second, the sidelines are so cramped it's hard to get anything done on the sideline. Football is a game of routine. Having to change routine so significantly when playing at Highlands has to have an effect.

I've got to think that playing at CovCath is a slight advantage to the kids there that are used to playing on Saturday afternoons; not so much for the kids who are used to playing under the Friday night lights.

I'm not sure of how much of an advantage there is but if you played football around the state in sure we have all played on some interesting fields. Ones were there were huge crowns on the field for example. Teams that keep the grass high on the field. Teams that water down the field. Locker rooms that are questionable. Chain crews that do some questionable stuff.

 

My thoughts exactly.