Odds and Ends 9/16/2020
Welcome Back!
Here at Odds and Ends, I plan to look at some stats, trends, storylines, etc. as they play out. I will also give my opinion on some issues, but you can take that for what it's worth.
LIR
Let's start with the Last Interception Race (LIR). In this space, I will be chronicling who has the most attempts without an interception. This is a lot harder to keep up with with teams playing so sporadically! After week 2, here are the top 5:
1. Chase Brice, Duke- 37
2. Sam Ehlinger, Texas- 33
T3. Jack Abraham, USM- 32
T3. Chance Lovertich, S Ala- 32
5. Frank Harris, UTSA- 31
I think this will be a fun race to watch! I wonder how far we will get into the season until everyone has an interception? This will also be an odd race to watch, as not everyone is starting the season at the same time, and not everyone is playing the same number of games.
Conference Standings
I will also be keeping up with how the conferences are faring in non-conference games. So far, there have been 25 such games. Here is where we stand:
T1) Independents 3-0 1.000
T1) ACC 3-0 1.000
3) AAC 4-1 .800
4) Big 12 4-3 .571
6) CUSA 5-6 .455
7) FCS 0-10 .000
Against FBS competition, here is how the conferences stack up:
1) Independents 3-0 1.000
2) ACC 2-0 1.000
3) AAC 3-1 .750
4) Sun Belt 5-5 .500
5) Big 12 1-3 .250
6) CUSA 1-6 .143
7) FCS 0-10 .000
And now, let's break down some of these numbers.
The Independents are off to a great start, beating an AAC, a CUSA, and an SBC team by a combined 134-10!
CUSA looks great, until you realize that they are 4-0 against the FCS, and 1-6 each against everyone else.
The AAC is 3-0 against the Sun Belt.
The SBC went 3-0 against the Big 12 this past weekend, but are 0-3 vs the AAC.
The Big 12's only FBS win (by Texas) was over UTEP, arguably the worst team in FBS.
Which Division is Best?
The ACC played a few conference games this weekend, but with the addition of Notre Dame for this year, they do not have divisions.
Update on Paul's Playoff Picks:
My four picks are still on track! Clemson and Oklahoma won easily, and Alabama and Georgia have yet to play.
Conference Trends
As promised, I am going to go over how each team in the conference has done over the last 3, 5, and 10 year periods. I will cover one conference each week, starting with the G5 conferences. These will cover only conference games, not overall records, and do not include conference championship game results. Last week I did the Sun Belt Conference.
MAC
Last 10 Years
1. Northern Illinois 65-15 .813
2. Toledo 59-21 .738
3. Ohio 51-29 .638
4. Western Michigan 47-33 .588
T5. Miami 39-41 .488
T5. Central Michigan 39-41 .488
7. Bowling Green 38-42 .475
8. Buffalo 35-44 .443
9. Ball State 34-46 .425
10. Kent State 31-48 .392
T11. Akron 24-56 .300
T11. Eastern Michigan 24-56 .300
Last 5 Years
1. Western Michigan 28-12 .700
T2. Northern Illinois 27-13 .675
T2. Toledo 27-13 .675
T2. Ohio 27-13 .675
5. Miami 24-16 .600
6. Central Michigan 21-19 .525
7. Buffalo 20-20 .500
T8. Bowling Green 16-24 .400
T8. Akron 16-24 .400
10. Eastern Michigan 15-25 .375
11. Kent State 11-29 .275
12. Ball State 10-30 .250
Last 3 Years
T1. Northern Illinois 16-8 .667
T1. Ohio 16-8 .667
T1. Miami 16-8 .667
T1. Buffalo 16-8 .667
5. Toledo 15-9 .625
6. Western Michigan 14-10 .583
7. Central Michigan 12-12 .500
8. Eastern Michigan 11-13 .458
9. Akron 8-16 .333
T10. Kent State 7-17 .292
T10. Ball State 7-17 .292
12. Bowling Green 6-18 .250
The MAC may well have the most parity of any conference...
Games I'm excited about this weekend:
Campbell @ Coastal Carolina- Can the Fighting Camels overcome their disappointment from last week? Will CCU be overconfident?
Louisiana @ Georgia State- Will the Panthers be ready for UL's high powered attack? Will the Ragin' Cajuns overlook GSU (with the other GSU and App St on the horizon) and open the door for an upset?
Appalachian State @ Marshall- Will the Mountaineers win their 8th game in a row, and their 8th straight non-conference game? Can the Thundering Herd slow ASU down?
UCF @ Georgia Tech- Are the Yellow Jackets for real? Will UCF be overconfident based on GT's recent past?
FAU @ Georgia Southern- Will the Owls be able to build on last year's success with a new coach? Were last week's struggles against Campbell just 1st game jitters for GSU?
Miami @ Louisville- Which team will take frontrunner status to challenging Clemson and Notre Dame for the top 2 spots in the ACC?
Texas State @ ULM- Will the Bobcats use their near misses the last 2 weeks to motivate them, or will they fold their tents? IS ULM better than they showed against Army?
That's all for now. Tomorrow, I will have my picks for Week 2. Feel free to leave a comment and to follow me on Twitter: @pbanderson.
Until next time, may you and your loved ones be blessed!
Until next time, may you and your loved ones be blessed!
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