Navy finishes the year with the top rushing average—adjusted for opposition—in 2007. They are far and away the #1 team, well ahead of #2 West Virginia.
The Midshipmen rank #1 based mostly on the fact that they almost never pass, ranking last in passing yards. #3 Air Force ranks second-to-last in passing yards as well. So it's often hard to judge which team is really the best rushing team and which simply has a one-dimensional offense.
The #2 and #4 teams don't pass much either; West Virginia can, but has little reason to most of the time, while Arkansas is definitely better off running with McFadden and Jones.
It isn't until we get to #5 that we see a team, Oregon, that has some semblance of balance on offense but ranks high on the rushing chart. Oklahoma State, Southern Cal, LSU, Texas, and Florida are all examples of teams that have undeniably strong running attacks where the yardage isn't the partly the result of relying solely on the run.
Here are the top 25 teams in average rushing yards, with their unadjusted rank, passing rank, and principal ground gainer(s) [click here for full list]:
# Team rec yds. raw pass rnk rushers in top 100
1. Navy 8-5 340.3 1 120 Kaheaku-Enhada, Kettani
2. West Virginia 11-2 304.1 3 114 White, Slaton
3. Air Force 9-4 298.1 2 119 Hall, Ollis
4. Arkansas 8-5 291.8 4 109 McFadden(#4), Jones
5. Oregon 9-4 289.7 6 59 Stewart(#7)
6. Illinois 9-4 281.2 5 108 Mendenhall(#8)
7. Oklahoma St 7-6 250.7 8 40 Savage, Robinson
8. Washington 4-9 250.7 18 86 Rankin, Locker
9. Louisiana-Lafayette 3-9 246.2 7 117 Desormeaux, Fenroy
10. Southern Cal 11-2 225.6 27 45 Washington, Johnson
11. LSU 12-2 222.2 11 52 Hester
12. Texas A&M 7-6 218.6 13 88 McGee
13. Oregon St 9-4 217.5 40 98 Bernard
14. Michigan St 7-6 214.6 25 65 Ringer, Caulcrick
15. Texas 10-3 213.9 17 35 Charles (#10)
16. Wisconsin 9-4 212.8 21 80 Hill
17. Florida 9-4 209.8 23 24 Harvin, Tebow
18. Central Florida 10-4 208.9 9 111 Smith(#1)
19. Penn State 9-4 207.0 29 70 Kinlaw
20. California 7-6 206.7 45 51 Forsett
21. Ohio State 11-2 206.4 28 97 Wells
22. South Florida 9-4 206.3 32 54 Grothe
23. Western Kentucky 7-5 202.5 6* 118 Hayden
24. Houston 8-5 201.5 10 41 Alridge
25. Fresno St 9-4 199.1 14 73 Mathews, Miller
For most teams a strong running attack—even at the expense of passing—pays dividends, as most of these teams have winning records. But for Louisiana-Lafayette, their ground game doesn't make up for lack of passing ability. Washington, too, found itself in a bad situation, stuck in a league full of teams with great rushing defenses and themselves having a mediocre passing game.
Teams in the major conferences tend to rank higher when adjusted, while non-BCS teams fell. Central Florida, with the nation's leading rusher Kevin Smith, adjusted down to #18 from #9 due to their weaker schedule. Likewise Houston and Fresno State. Western Kentucky, a provisional Division I-A team, would have ranked 6th if counted this year; their schedule was weak enough to drop them to #23, and almost 50 yards less than their raw average.
It's also interesting that half of the top ten gainers did not see their team in the top 25; sometimes a runner makes the top ten because he gets nearly all of his team's carries, which makes the accomplishment of Darren McFadden all the more impressive, as he was in the top five while sharing carries with another top 50 runner.
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