I miss it dearly. Really svcks having to sheathe a two-handed weapon just to cast one spell. Feels very clunky. Would it be so hard to add a quick cast button to Skyrim? Could a mod do this with the CK you think?

I definitely miss being able to cast spells at the same time as having a weapon in hand. Was a sprint button really such a necessity? >_>

was having an actual statistic that monitors and dictates player movement speed really such a necessity?

I'd call it an annoyance, really.

After being infuriated with Morrowind due to my initial character moving with all the warrior-like speed and grace of a pensioner on stilts I'd like to say no, but I do miss the stat progression from Oblivion to a degree. It was irritating to efficient level but I liked seeing my character steadily gain a higher running speed overtime.