USC ends the year well in front of every one else in terms of yards gained vs. yards allowed, adjusted for who they played. BYU, which was #1 or #2 all year, finishes second, while LSU slips to sixth, Oregon falls to tenth, and West Virginia falls to 11th.
Total Yardage Differential (adjusted for opposition):
Rank Team Rec Yards Off Def
1. Southern Cal 10-2 223.0 20 2
2. Brigham Young 10-2 198.5 9 6
3. Texas Tech 8-4 186.4 1 29
4. Missouri 11-2 178.1 3 27
5. Ohio State 11-1 165.6 67 1
6. LSU 11-2 164.1 18 7
7. Kansas 11-1 160.5 14 14
8. Oklahoma 11-2 159.6 23 5
9. Hawaii 12-0 158.2 2 40
10. Oregon 8-4 156.8 5 39
On offense, the two maddest passing teams Texas Tech and Hawaii finish #1 and #2 in total offense. With #7 passer Missouri virtually tied with Hawaii.
Total Offense Yardage Averages (adjusted for opposition):
Rank Team Rec Total (rank) Rush (rank) Pass (rank)
1. Texas Tech 8-4 527.0 [ 1] 57.9 [118] 469.1 [ 1]
2. Hawaii 12-0 516.9 [ 2] 49.9 [120] 467.0 [ 2]
3. Missouri 11-2 516.9 [ 3] 176.9 [ 41] 340.0 [ 7]
4. Tulsa 9-4 514.6 [ 4] 152.3 [ 64] 362.2 [ 4]
5. Oregon 8-4 509.6 [ 5] 278.8 [ 6] 230.8 [ 57]
6. Oklahoma St 6-6 503.6 [ 6] 256.0 [ 7] 247.5 [ 40]
7. Nebraska 5-7 498.9 [ 7] 169.0 [ 49] 329.8 [ 9]
8. Louisville 6-6 494.6 [ 8] 143.7 [ 71] 350.8 [ 5]
9. Brigham Young 10-2 489.4 [ 9] 157.3 [ 59] 332.0 [ 8]
10. Florida 9-3 487.2 [ 10] 209.7 [ 18] 277.4 [ 22]
In fact, the majority of the top ten offenses are made up of teams with huge passing attacks, with Tulsa, Nebraska, Louisville, and BYU also placing high in both charts. But the regular-season award for best passing team, which has switched back and forth every week for over a month, goes to Texas Tech. They were idle last week, but Hawaii played and had "only" 442 yards, bringing their adjusted average down a couple yards below Tech's.
Passing Offense Yardage Averages (adjusted for opposition):
Rank Team Rec Total (rank) Rush (rank) Pass (rank)
1. Texas Tech 8-4 527.0 [ 1] 57.9 [118] 469.1 [ 1]
2. Hawaii 12-0 516.9 [ 2] 49.9 [120] 467.0 [ 2]
3. New Mexico St 4-9 432.0 [ 34] 68.1 [117] 363.8 [ 3]
4. Tulsa 9-4 514.6 [ 4] 152.3 [ 64] 362.2 [ 4]
5. Louisville 6-6 494.6 [ 8] 143.7 [ 71] 350.8 [ 5]
6. Boston College 10-3 459.5 [ 16] 113.0 [ 97] 346.4 [ 6]
7. Missouri 11-2 516.9 [ 3] 176.9 [ 41] 340.0 [ 7]
8. Brigham Young 10-2 489.4 [ 9] 157.3 [ 59] 332.0 [ 8]
9. Nebraska 5-7 498.9 [ 7] 169.0 [ 49] 329.8 [ 9]
10. Washington St 5-7 475.6 [ 12] 146.7 [ 68] 328.9 [ 10]
And on the rushing chart, Navy dominates as they have most of the year, with Arkansas moving back into #2. West Virginia falls to third following a dismal 104 yards vs. Pittsburgh.
Rushing Offense Yardage Averages (adjusted for opposition):
Rank Team Rec Total (rank) Rush (rank) Pass (rank)
1. Navy 8-4 423.7 [ 40] 341.6 [ 1] 82.1 [120]
2. Arkansas 8-4 464.6 [ 15] 301.3 [ 2] 163.2 [108]
3. West Virginia 10-2 446.4 [ 24] 298.6 [ 3] 147.7 [115]
4. Air Force 9-3 437.1 [ 29] 291.9 [ 4] 145.1 [119]
5. Illinois 9-3 434.3 [ 33] 284.8 [ 5] 149.4 [114]
6. Oregon 8-4 509.6 [ 5] 278.8 [ 6] 230.8 [ 57]
7. Oklahoma St 6-6 503.6 [ 6] 256.0 [ 7] 247.5 [ 40]
8. Washington 4-9 450.2 [ 19] 249.4 [ 8] 200.8 [ 84]
9. Louisiana-Lafayette 3-9 394.8 [ 57] 248.4 [ 9] 146.4 [118]
10. LSU 11-2 456.3 [ 18] 222.8 [ 10] 233.5 [ 49]
On defense: The Ohio State Buckeyes finish the year as the best defense in the country in terms of yards yielded, and is #1 both in rush and pass defense. USC is second overall and surprisingly, another Pac-10 team, Oregon State is third, almost solely for their rushing defense.
Total Defense Yardage Averages (adjusted for opposition):
Rank Team Rec Total (rank) Rush (rank) Pass (rank)
1. Ohio State 11-1 214.0 [ 1] 46.4 [ 1] 167.6 [ 1]
2. Southern Cal 10-2 227.0 [ 2] 58.5 [ 3] 168.4 [ 2]
3. Oregon St 8-4 261.2 [ 3] 49.6 [ 2] 211.6 [ 38]
4. Auburn 8-4 274.9 [ 4] 97.7 [ 12] 177.1 [ 4]
5. Oklahoma 11-2 287.0 [ 5] 99.7 [ 13] 187.2 [ 11]
6. Brigham Young 10-2 290.9 [ 6] 87.8 [ 6] 203.1 [ 26]
7. LSU 11-2 292.2 [ 7] 100.9 [ 15] 191.2 [ 14]
8. Pittsburgh 5-7 297.0 [ 8] 111.0 [ 23] 186.0 [ 10]
9. Virginia Tech 11-2 299.8 [ 9] 108.2 [ 19] 191.5 [ 16]
10. West Virginia 10-2 299.8 [ 10] 117.5 [ 26] 182.3 [ 7]
The top two teams in total defense finish the season tops in passing defense as well. Texas Tech has the #1 pass offense and the #3 pass defense—is there a correlation? Is it from the coaches knowing how to defense the pass since they know how to implement it? Or does the pass defense get such a good workout against the offense that their experience pays off? Or do other teams just run more on them, to rest the defense, run time off the clock to slow the game down, or stop Tech's momentum? Or perhaps it's just a fluke—maybe they just have a good pass defense, no explanation needed.
Passing Defense Yardage Averages (adjusted for opposition):
Rank Team Rec Total (rank) Rush (rank) Pass (rank)
1. Ohio State 11-1 214.0 [ 1] 46.4 [ 1] 167.6 [ 1]
2. Southern Cal 10-2 227.0 [ 2] 58.5 [ 3] 168.4 [ 2]
3. Texas Tech 8-4 340.6 [ 29] 170.2 [ 73] 170.4 [ 3]
4. Auburn 8-4 274.9 [ 4] 97.7 [ 12] 177.1 [ 4]
5. Notre Dame 3-9 339.8 [ 28] 160.8 [ 68] 178.9 [ 5]
6. Clemson 9-3 305.1 [ 12] 123.7 [ 34] 181.4 [ 6]
7. West Virginia 10-2 299.8 [ 10] 117.5 [ 26] 182.3 [ 7]
8. UNLV 2-10 361.1 [ 42] 178.0 [ 80] 183.1 [ 8]
9. Utah 8-4 306.1 [ 15] 121.2 [ 30] 184.8 [ 9]
10. Pittsburgh 5-7 297.0 [ 8] 111.0 [ 23] 186.0 [ 10]
Note that Notre Dame finishes the year 5th best in passing defense. Their rushing defense is only 67th, though. Ohio State has the best run defense, followed closely by Oregon State, with Southern Cal a distant third.
Rushing Defense Yardage Averages (adjusted for opposition):
Rank Team Rec Total (rank) Rush (rank) Pass (rank)
1. Ohio State 11-1 214.0 [ 1] 46.4 [ 1] 167.6 [ 1]
2. Oregon St 8-4 261.2 [ 3] 49.6 [ 2] 211.6 [ 38]
3. Southern Cal 10-2 227.0 [ 2] 58.5 [ 3] 168.4 [ 2]
4. Arizona St 10-2 300.0 [ 11] 80.7 [ 4] 219.2 [ 50]
5. Boston College 10-3 390.3 [ 68] 83.7 [ 5] 306.6 [119]
6. Brigham Young 10-2 290.9 [ 6] 87.8 [ 6] 203.1 [ 26]
7. Penn State 8-4 344.5 [ 32] 88.7 [ 7] 255.7 [ 99]
8. Cincinnati 9-3 377.1 [ 56] 89.9 [ 8] 287.1 [114]
9. Florida 9-3 342.1 [ 30] 90.3 [ 9] 251.7 [ 94]
10. UCLA 6-6 310.7 [ 18] 91.0 [ 10] 219.7 [ 51]
We won't get to see the #1 and #2 defenses meet in the Rose Bowl, but we will have #1 defense Ohio State vs. #7 LSU in the national championship game. Instead in the Rose Bowl, #3 rushing defense USC will face the #5 rushing offense, Illinois.
Comments