I've finally updated the yardage stats. Here are the highlights through last weekend (week seven):
Total Yardage Differential: A team's total offense minus their opponents' total yardage. There's a big debate as to who is #1. By wins and losses, Iowa and Alabama lead the Success ratings; for score margin, Texas, Alabama, and Florida lead the Strength ratings. Yardage per game, adjusted for opposition, is the next derivative down the line.
Rank Team Rec Yards Off Def
1. Florida 6-0 295.8 3 2
2. Alabama 7-0 273.0 15 1
3. TCU 6-0 222.7 6 11
4. Texas 6-0 211.1 20 4
5. Oklahoma 3-3 203.7 11 16
6. Boise St 6-0 200.6 16 15
7. Southern Cal 5-1 170.0 27 12
8. Auburn 5-2 157.7 2 45
9. Tennessee 3-3 156.4 40 10
10. Brigham Young 6-1 154.2 18 28
Not surprisingly, Florida and Alabama are on top. TCU is third here, with Texas and then Oklahoma showing up strong like they do in the Strength ratings. The big surprise may be Tennessee. Only 3-3, they are in the top 25 in Strength and in the top ten in total yardage differential. This is further evidence that they are a better team than advertised.
Total Offense: From a pre-season perspective, it's not a shock that Houston is #1 in total offense as they were among the leaders last season and returned the bulk of that side of the ball. But Auburn being #2 is a real eye-opener. Who would have thought the Tigers would be ahead of the Gators at this point in the season?
Rank Team Rec Total(rank) Rush(rank) Pass(rank)
1. Houston 5-1 541.0[ 1] 122.8[ 88] 418.1[ 1]
2. Auburn 5-2 503.5[ 2] 287.1[ 4] 216.4[ 65]
3. Florida 6-0 488.0[ 3] 283.2[ 5] 204.7[ 77]
4. Texas Tech 5-2 484.3[ 4] 68.8[117] 415.4[ 2]
5. Georgia Tech 6-1 480.6[ 5] 324.7[ 1] 155.9[107]
6. TCU 6-0 475.9[ 6] 242.4[ 8] 233.5[ 48]
7. Fresno St 3-3 475.0[ 7] 291.2[ 3] 183.8[ 92]
8. Florida St 2-4 475.0[ 8] 162.0[ 42] 312.9[ 9]
9. Arkansas 3-3 474.3[ 9] 161.0[ 44] 313.3[ 8]
10. Nevada 3-3 472.3[ 10] 297.6[ 2] 174.6[100]
The rest of the list has some mild surprises. Texas Tech (passing) and Georgia Tech (rushing) aren't out of place, but TCU is more known for their defense, and Arkansas has made some major strides since last year.
Rushing Offense: The usual suspects are in the top ten: option teams Georgia Tech, Navy, and Air Force are #1, 6, and 7, while Florida is strong as expected.
Rank Team Rec Total[rank] Rush[rank] Pass[rank]
1. Georgia Tech 6-1 480.6[ 5] 324.7[ 1] 155.9[107]
2. Nevada 3-3 472.3[ 10] 297.6[ 2] 174.6[100]
3. Fresno St 3-3 475.0[ 7] 291.2[ 3] 183.8[ 92]
4. Auburn 5-2 503.5[ 2] 287.1[ 4] 216.4[ 65]
5. Florida 6-0 488.0[ 3] 283.2[ 5] 204.7[ 77]
6. Navy 5-2 355.6[ 67] 281.2[ 6] 74.4[118]
7. Air Force 4-3 318.5[ 99] 276.4[ 7] 42.1[120]
8. TCU 6-0 475.9[ 6] 242.4[ 8] 233.5[ 48]
9. Alabama 7-0 463.5[ 15] 233.4[ 9] 230.0[ 53]
10. Alabama-Birmingham 2-4 349.2[ 75] 230.8[ 10] 118.4[116]
Nevada's spot at #2 is not unexpected but their imbalance between the run and pass is, to some extent. The key to Auburn's offensive success has been the run, and TCU has improved their ground game. Alabama, of course, had to replace Glen Coffee but Mark Ingram stepped up into one of the year's great backs, and for many he is leading the Heisman race. And look at 2-4 UAB. It's a good thing they can run the ball because their passing output is negligible: quarterback Joe Webb has 42 more passing yards than rushing yards.
Passing Offense: The top teams are pretty obvious: Houston, Texas Tech, Hawaii, and Kansas have been among the top teams the last few years with their pass-centric offenses. Note that none of the teams ranks above #88 in rushing, and Hawaii is dead last.
Rank Team Rec Total[rank] Rush[rank] Pass[rank]
1. Houston 5-1 541.0[ 1] 122.8[ 88] 418.1[ 1]
2. Texas Tech 5-2 484.3[ 4] 68.8[117] 415.4[ 2]
3. Hawaii 2-4 417.5[ 31] 52.3[120] 365.2[ 3]
4. Kansas 5-1 460.0[ 17] 109.7[ 95] 350.2[ 4]
5. Bowling Green 3-4 421.4[ 28] 74.5[115] 346.9[ 5]
6. Duke 3-3 412.9[ 35] 88.5[111] 324.3[ 6]
7. Cincinnati 6-0 464.0[ 14] 140.1[ 69] 323.9[ 7]
8. Arkansas 3-3 474.3[ 9] 161.0[ 44] 313.3[ 8]
9. Florida St 2-4 475.0[ 8] 162.0[ 42] 312.9[ 9]
10. Florida Atlantic 1-4 464.2[ 13] 153.7[ 54] 310.4[ 10]
Bowling Green and Duke have similar one-sidedness, but it's better than last year when they were mediocre or bad in both categories. Cincinnati finally has quarterback consistency, Tony Pike's current health issues notwithstanding, and Arkansas with Ryan Mallett is really getting it done through the air. Florida State and Florida Atlantic both have problems this year but the passing game isn't one of them.
Total Defense: Alabama narrowly edges Florida so far. The Gators returned all their starters, as well as backups, but the Tide edges them with tight rushing defense.
Rank Team Rec Total[rank] Rush[rank] Pass[rank]
1. Alabama 7-0 190.4[ 1] 48.6[ 1] 141.8[ 5]
2. Florida 6-0 192.1[ 2] 90.7[ 16] 101.3[ 1]
3. Nebraska 4-2 232.3[ 3] 113.6[ 35] 118.7[ 3]
4. Texas 6-0 234.5[ 4] 58.7[ 3] 175.7[ 27]
5. South Carolina 5-2 237.6[ 5] 125.0[ 46] 112.5[ 2]
6. Clemson 3-3 238.3[ 6] 89.6[ 15] 148.7[ 8]
7. Iowa 7-0 242.4[ 7] 102.3[ 26] 140.1[ 4]
8. Miami FL 5-1 244.0[ 8] 84.6[ 12] 159.3[ 12]
9. Ohio State 5-2 244.9[ 9] 53.5[ 2] 191.3[ 36]
10. Tennessee 3-3 248.7[ 10] 74.0[ 6] 174.7[ 24]
But the big surprise is Nebraska's re-emergence as a defensive force. Despite last week's problems with Texas Tech the pass defense is doing a great job, and Ndamukong Suh has been touted as the token Heisman candidate on defense. Texas got props for its run-stop against Oklahoma last weekend, while Iowa and Ohio State can attribute most of their success this year to defense.
Rushing Defense: Alabama and Ohio State are #1 and #2, with Texas at #3 after holding Oklahoma to negative yardage last week. USC is no surprise as they've been in the top ten in this category for years.
Rank Team Rec Total[rank] Rush[rank] Pass[rank]
1. Alabama 7-0 190.4[ 1] 48.6[ 1] 141.8[ 5]
2. Ohio State 5-2 244.9[ 9] 53.5[ 2] 191.3[ 36]
3. Texas 6-0 234.5[ 4] 58.7[ 3] 175.7[ 27]
4. West Virginia 5-1 292.7[ 23] 59.3[ 4] 233.3[ 77]
5. Southern Cal 5-1 254.2[ 12] 71.1[ 5] 183.1[ 31]
6. Tennessee 3-3 248.7[ 10] 74.0[ 6] 174.7[ 24]
7. Arizona St 4-2 294.0[ 25] 74.9[ 7] 219.1[ 60]
8. Wisconsin 5-2 340.0[ 43] 74.9[ 8] 265.0[108]
9. Oklahoma 3-3 267.7[ 16] 76.9[ 9] 190.7[ 35]
10. TCU 6-0 253.1[ 11] 80.7[ 10] 172.4[ 21]
Tennessee's problems last season were not on defense, where they were very good and continue to be. Wisconsin is the only team that's strong against the run than has a major problem against the pass, though West Virginia and Arizona State definitely invite teams to throw the ball, too.
Passing Defense: This is the last reliable category of statistics. As it reflects per-game performace, it doesn't take into account how much opponents adjust their offense for a given team. Therefore, the main problem situation occurs when a team is weak against the run and opponents exploit that and don't need to pass the ball. This leaves some teams looking very strong against the pass when they're not. This isn't so much the case with the top ten, though.
Rank Team Rec Total[rank] Rush[rank] Pass[rank]
1. Florida 6-0 192.1[ 2] 90.7[ 16] 101.3[ 1]
2. South Carolina 5-2 237.6[ 5] 125.0[ 46] 112.5[ 2]
3. Nebraska 4-2 232.3[ 3] 113.6[ 35] 118.7[ 3]
4. Iowa 7-0 242.4[ 7] 102.3[ 26] 140.1[ 4]
5. Alabama 7-0 190.4[ 1] 48.6[ 1] 141.8[ 5]
6. Virginia 3-3 285.3[ 19] 138.1[ 61] 147.1[ 6]
7. Kentucky 3-3 283.8[ 18] 135.3[ 58] 148.5[ 7]
8. Clemson 3-3 238.3[ 6] 89.6[ 15] 148.7[ 8]
9. Oregon 5-1 256.1[ 13] 105.4[ 30] 150.6[ 9]
10. Utah 5-1 290.9[ 21] 138.5[ 62] 152.3[ 10]
Since all of these teams are average or above against the run, the passing figures are valid. Florida was expected to be #1 in this category, so no surprise there. South Carolina, Nebraska, and Iowa all owe their success this season to defense. #6 Virginia, #7 Kentucky, and #10 Utah are all better teams to run the ball against.
I've made a new set of stats to reference when judging offense and defense, particularly passing defense, based on per-attempt and per-carry stats. That's for the next post.
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