STACAS
Single-cell batch correction that learned to use cell labels, then spent three releases chasing Seurat.
Comparison · Analytics
cfbfastr vs ggmapinset
A side-by-side editorial comparison of cfbfastr and ggmapinset — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
cfbfastr vs ggmapinset: at a glance
What is cfbfastr?
College football's open data client hit v2 — and now reports how many API calls you have left.
cfbfastR retrieves college football data — play-by-play, box scores, betting lines, ratings and recruiting — from the CollegeFootballData API, ESPN endpoints and the sportsdataverse data repository. Version 2.0.0 in September 2025 was the first release in over three years and rebuilt the package against CFBD's v2 API. Every load_cfb_*() function changed its underlying source to comply with CFBD's terms, the play-by-play dataset gained team and game identifiers users previously had to join in themselves, and a batch of new endpoints arrived covering opponent-adjusted metrics, FPI ratings and live scoreboard and play data.
What is ggmapinset?
A ggplot2 inset-map extension that is now infrastructure for other packages
ggmapinset adds magnified inset panels to ggplot2 sf maps, handling the coordinate transformation, the inset frame and the sf-related stat layers that have to follow it. The 0.5.0 release is aimed less at end users than at extension authors: coerce_centre() is a new extension point required by sibling package ggautomap, and the inset parameter drops NA in favour of waiver() as its default. It comes from cidm-ph, alongside nswgeo.
cfbfastr vs ggmapinset: editorial side-by-side
cfbfastr
0.0ANALYTICS
College football's open data client hit v2 — and now reports how many API calls you have left.
◆ Current state
cfbfastR retrieves college football data — play-by-play, box scores, betting lines, ratings and recruiting — from the CollegeFootballData API, ESPN endpoints and the sportsdataverse data repository. Version 2.0.0 in September 2025 was the first release in over three years and rebuilt the package against CFBD's v2 API. Every load_cfb_*() function changed its underlying source to comply with CFBD's terms, the play-by-play dataset gained team and game identifiers users previously had to join in themselves, and a batch of new endpoints arrived covering opponent-adjusted metrics, FPI ratings and live scoreboard and play data.
◆ Where it's heading
The package's direction is now set by the data provider rather than by its own plans, and that provider has moved to metered access — the free tier is capped at 1,000 calls a month, with limits tied to membership level. cfbd_api_key_info() reporting a user's tier and usage is the clearest sign of that shift: quota is now something an analysis has to manage. The long gap before 2.0.0 and its arrival largely through a first-time contributor also indicate a package sustained by community effort rather than steady maintenance.
◆ Prediction
The live scoreboard and play endpoints are the natural place for the next work, since they are the ones that benefit from in-season iteration. Given the release notes warn users to check their pipelines, follow-up fixes for the changed loading functions are likely before anything new lands.
ggmapinset
0.0ANALYTICS
A ggplot2 inset-map extension that is now infrastructure for other packages
◆ Current state
ggmapinset adds magnified inset panels to ggplot2 sf maps, handling the coordinate transformation, the inset frame and the sf-related stat layers that have to follow it. The 0.5.0 release is aimed less at end users than at extension authors: coerce_centre() is a new extension point required by sibling package ggautomap, and the inset parameter drops NA in favour of waiver() as its default. It comes from cidm-ph, alongside nswgeo.
◆ Where it's heading
The package has moved steadily from feature to foundation. 0.3.0 replaced confusing parameter names and rebuilt everything on stat_sf_inset() so coordinate limits stayed correct, then exposed transform_to_inset() explicitly for extension developers. 0.4.0 generalised inset shapes beyond circles to rectangles and arbitrary sf geometries. 0.5.0 continues in that direction, changing defaults in ways that require downstream extensions to adapt — the cost of being depended upon.
◆ Prediction
Expect further extension points driven by what ggautomap and the other cidm-ph mapping packages need, with the user-facing inset API staying largely settled after the shape generalisation.
Alternatives to cfbfastr and ggmapinset
Other Analytics products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either cfbfastr or ggmapinset.
ggtrace
A debugger for ggplot2's internals, hardening its grip as the internals it traces keep moving.
kde1d
A univariate density estimator that added zero-inflated data and reopened its C++ API to do it.
svines
Stationary vine copulas for time series, released in lockstep with the rest of Nagler's vine stack.
gghighlight
A single-purpose ggplot2 extension that has spent six years tracking ggplot2 instead of growing.
rtrek
A Star Trek data package that became a Memory Alpha web client and has been patching scrapers ever since.
See all cfbfastr alternatives → · See all ggmapinset alternatives →
Recent activity from cfbfastr and ggmapinset
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 4mo agoggmapinsetNew extension point for ggautomap; waiver() replaces NA
- 11mo agocfbfastrRebuilt on CFBD API v2 with metered access and live endpoints ⚡
- 1y agoggmapinsetRectangular and arbitrary sf inset shapes
- 3y agoggmapinsetRebuilt on stat_sf_inset() with corrected coordinate limits
- 4y agocfbfastrESPN endpoints and repo-backed loaders added
- 4y agocfbfastrAll outputs standardised as tibbles with a custom class
- 4y agocfbfastrCRAN release with option-restoring cleanup
- 4y agocfbfastrMinor fixes to betting and FPI rating functions
- 4y agocfbfastrESPN scoreboard and play-by-play access, with argument cleanup
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between cfbfastr and ggmapinset?
They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. cfbfastr and ggmapinset are shipping at a similar cadence (velocity 0.0 vs 0.0, both within Sparkpulse's "active" band). See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.
Is cfbfastr better than ggmapinset?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. cfbfastr and ggmapinset are shipping at a similar cadence (velocity 0.0 vs 0.0, both within Sparkpulse's "active" band). For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Analytics products to evaluate alongside.
What are the best alternatives to cfbfastr?
Top cfbfastr alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "cfbfastr alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/cfbfastr for the full list with editorial commentary on each.
What are the best alternatives to ggmapinset?
Top ggmapinset alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "ggmapinset alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/ggmapinset for the full list with editorial commentary on each.