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Nous présentons d'abord les théorèmes du No Free Lunch en nous basant sur le papier de D.H. Wolpert et W.G. Macready (version IEEE 1997) mais aussi les multiples réactions que ces résultats ont provoquées dans la communauté de l'optimisation. Convaincus dès lors de l'intérêt d'une approche globale des problèmes et de la nécessité de la recherche de propriétés générales - et spécialement des invariances par symétries -, nous tentons ensuite de mettre en oeuvre cette méthode dans le cadre de la coloration de graphes simples et non orientés. Ce champ est retenu en raison de son intérêt propre, mais aussi pour son caractère de modèle fécond dans de multiples problèmes d'optimisation. Nous faisons émerger la notion de décomposition d'un graphe en cliques maximales et celle de suites constructives qui permettent de reconstruire un graphe à partir de ses composants élémentaires (primary cliques), véritables équivalents des nombres premiers pour les entiers naturels. Nous produisons un algorithme principal et en étudions deux cas singuliers; ensemble ils fournissent une partition de l'ensemble des colorations valides du graphe étudié. Par suite nous retrouvons le polynôme chromatique de manière formelle, indépendamment du nombre de couleurs disponibles. Nous établissons une correspondance de Galois entre colorations valides et sous-graphes engendrés par des familles emboîtées de cliques maximales pourvu qu'elles soient des décompositions complètes de sous-graphes croissants du graphe total.

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The use of statistical analysis has been prevalent in the sports gambling industry for years. More recently, we have seen the emergence of "adjusted statistics", a more sophisticated way to examine each play and each result (further explanation below). And while adjusted statistics have become commonplace for professional and recreational bettors alike, little research has been done to justify their use. In this paper the effectiveness of this data is tested on the most heavily wagered sport in the world – the National Football League (NFL). The results are studied with two central questions in mind: Does the market account for the information provided by adjusted statistics? And, can this data be interpreted to create a profitable betting strategy? First, the Efficient Market Hypothesis is introduced and tested using these new variables. Then, a betting model is built and tested.

Throughout the history of the NFL, several head coaches have found significantly more success than their peers. The purpose of this paper is to provide a better understanding of what personal and tactical dimensions have set these coaches apart. This paper will study the most successful coaches of the past, as well as today’s most successful coach, Bill Belichick. Through case studies, this paper identifies possible explanation for Belichick’s current run of success in an NFL that grows more competitive each season. Specifically, this paper looks at the relationship between players and coaches, and how Leader- Member exchange plays a very important role in the success coaches will find. Leader- member exchange (LMX) has not been studied in the NFL, and this paper predicts that future research in this area will find the most important factors of LMX to be trust, respect, and predictability of actions. This paper also looks at the role of the head coach outside of his player relationships, and how vast football knowledge is not enough to lead an NFL team to success. Head coaches that are most successful differentiate themselves from others through the tactical side of the game, in many different aspects, including player acquisition, game preparation and tactics, personnel management and decision- making. Last, this paper examines the coaching career of Bill Belichick, and why he has found immense success in the NFL. Further research in the field of player-coach relationships would provide a clearer answer for successful coaches in the NFL.

Each year millions of dollars are wagered on the NFL during the season. A few people make some money, but most often the only real winner is the sports book. In this project, the effect of data transformation on the paired comparison model of Glickman and Stern (1998) is explored. Usual transformations such as logarithm and square-root are used as well as a transformation involving a threshold. The motivation for each of the transformations if to reduce the influence of blowouts on future predictions. Data from the 2003 and 2004 NFL seasons are examined to see if these transformations aid in improving model fit and prediction rate against a point spread. Strategies for model-based wagering are also explored.

For members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Ten Commandments are very much in effect today. The fourth commandment, to remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy, is heavily emphasized within church doctrine and culture (Exodus 20:8; Deuteronomy 5:12). This command to set apart the Sabbath is observed on Sundays for the LDS Church as well as the majority of the Christian world, rather than the traditional Saturday. Though the Ten Commandments collectively have both individual and societal implications, the spiritual outcome from following them is indeed an introspective pursuit. This thesis seeks to address how members of the Church seek to keep the Sabbath day holy in a profession that is heavily involved in Sunday work. With the universality of sports among Latter-day Saints, and large numbers of youth hoping to play sports professionally, this study is timely because it seeks to elucidate the effects that playing professional sports, particularly in the NFL, have on church activity. Chapter One details the history of the Sabbath from the Old Testament to the present day. It then discusses the doctrine of the Sabbath as taught by the LDS Church. It also discusses what the highest officers in the church, the First Presidency, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and other auxiliary leaders have said about sports and Sunday play. It finishes off with a description of the research methodology and the interview process for thirty Latter-day Saints who played in the NFL. Chapter Two introduces the data and some of the main findings regarding Sabbath day worship in the NFL; it highlights the sacrament, church attendance, and other personal religious habits for these athletes. Chapter Three continues the discussion of the data and more particularly addresses some of the challenges more pertinent to LDS NFL players. It was apparent after the interview process that these participants found it challenging to be in an atmosphere so incompatible to their personal beliefs, including religious criticism from teammates, harsh language, lewdness in and out of the locker room, and many other difficult circumstances. Marriage is addressed and how it was a major factor for these players. It also includes quantitative information about the athletes' backgrounds and faith experiences leading up to their careers in the NFL. Chapter Four summarizes the thesis and draws conclusions upon the data. It also recommends areas for further research. In the Appendix, redacted interviews of all thirty NFL players are included.

This research focuses on college football players from low socioeconomic backgrounds (i.e., attended a Title I High School) and examines whether they are more likely to experience athletic success and influence the performance of the college football programs they attend relative to other student-athletes. The results show that, over the period 2010-2016, Title I players are more likely to be drafted or play in the NFL than other student-athletes. In addition, teams with more Title I players on their roster appear to reap some benefits. On one hand, Title I heavy rosters are associated with better conference records and are more successful in terms of having their players drafted. On the other hand, Title I heavy rosters are not associated with the program's financial performance or ability to produce NFL players. Overall, the evidence supports the notion that socioeconomic background is important for athletic success, especially at the individual level. However, this effect is reversed in the case of student-athletes playing as quarterbacks, which raises interesting questions for future research.

This paper explores the monopsonistic implications of restricting bargaining power through the rookie draft and the concept of countervailing forces. It examines both the legal framework and the empirical outcomes of the court’s policy choices. This paper accomplishes this inquiry by exploiting the fact that players drafted late in the last round tend to be similar to players selected as undrafted free agents in expectation. This allows a natural experiment on the impact of the draft. In order to measure the impact of the draft, this paper examines career outcomes both in terms of compensation and length. I ultimately find little evidence that the draft creates monopsony power, and I provide some evidence suggesting that monopsony power impacts all rookies, as one would expect from an insider-outsider model.