Does defense still win championships???

[Hook'Em0608]

Yards per play allowed.

1. Stanford 4.11
2. Penn St 4.20
3. Clemson 4.23
4. Wisconsin 4.32
5. Louisville 4.34
6. Miami 4.37
7. UCF 4.43
8. Alabama 4.45
9. Marshall 4.47
10. Ohio St 4.49
11. Baylor 4.50
12. Missouri 4.55
13. Houston 4.56
14. Texas 4.61
15. Michigan St 4.67
t16. Ole Miss 4.69
t16. Utah St 4.69
18. Michigan 4.76
19. East Carolina 4.78
20. Louisiana Tech 4.79
t21. Nebraska 4.83
t21. TCU 4.83
23. Central Michigan 4.84
24. Iowa 4.87
25. Minnesota 4.88

Not exactly a list of top contenders like it was a few years ago.

 

[HawkeyesRuleURFace]

Nope....all you need is a good QB and someone to throw it to

 

[outofyourmind]

yards per play is nice and all
but it's the scoreboard that counts.


what does the points allowed look like.

 

[Red_Alert]

I am still in that mindset.

Maybe not in every case, but more often than not a good defense increases your chances of winning more than a good offense does.

 

[Red_Alert]

yards per play is nice and all
but it's the scoreboard that counts.


what does the points allowed look like.

Scoring Defense

NCAA® National Rankings

 

[Hook'Em0608]

Offensive yards per play.

1. Marshall 7.91
2. Oregon 7.38
3. Colorado St 7.06
4. Miami 7.01
5. Auburn 6.98
6. Alabama 6.96
7. Wisconsin 6.90
8. Mississippi St 6.85
9. East Carolina 6.84
10. Georgia Tech 6.79
11. Michigan St 6.74
12. Toledo 6.71
13. TCU 6.70
14. Western Michigan 6.69
15. Baylor 6.67
16. Oklahoma 6.66
17. Florida St 6.60
t18. Ohio St 6.58
t18. Nebraska 6.58
20. Cincinnati 6.56
21. Navy 6.53
22. Georgia 6.52
23. Western Kentucky 6.51
24. Texas A&M 6.45
25. South Carolina 6.42

It seems to me that offensive efficiency has passed defense by for predicting wins and losses. That doesn't make me all that happy with my current coaches philosophy but hopefully this year is anomaly.

 

[Hook'Em0608]

I personally believe yards per play is about the only thing a defense can control. I have always argued that. A terrible offense and bad specials teams can clearly change your points allowed per game. That is a total team stat IMO.

 

[Texas Jefe]

Nope....all you need is a good QB and someone to throw it to

This is the number one winning ingredient in college football these days.

It is still a team sport, and all the different phases and elements are tied together, but if you have a PLAYER handling the ball every snap, you got a shot.

 

[Texas Jefe]

but you still need a good defense. If you got a stud QB and score points, a solid defense is the clinching factor in championships.


If you got a stud defense, but no playmaker at QB, will have a hard time winning them all.

 

[outofyourmind]

I personally believe yards per play is about the only thing a defense can control. I have always argued that. A terrible offense and bad specials teams can clearly change your points allowed per game. That is a total team stat IMO.

that sounds reasonable.

 

[Hook'Em0608]

Last season offensive yards per play

1. Florida St 7.67
2. Oregon 7.55
3. Baylor 7.49
4. Texas A&M 7.34
t5. Ohio St 7.15
t5. Alabama 7.15
7. LSU 6.94
8. Auburn 6.92
9. Wisconsin 6.85
10. Northern Illinois 6.78
11. Miami 6.75
12. Louisville 6.70
13. Georgia 6.66
14. Missouri 6.59
15. Indiana 6.58
16. UCF 6.56
17. Fresno St 6.55
18. Bowling Green 6.54
19. New Mexico 6.48
20. Ball St 6.46
21. Marshall 6.41
22. South Carolina 6.39
23. San Jose St 6.38
24. Toledo 6.37
25. Clemson 6.36

 

[Hook'Em0608]

Last season defensive yards per play

1. Michigan St 4.04
2. Florida St 4.09
3. Louisville 4.20
t4. Virginia Tech 4.55
t4. Utah St 4.55
6. Iowa 4.58
7. Oregon 4.62
8. Wisconsin 4.73
9. Baylor 4.75
t10. Oklahoma St 4.77
t10. Cincinnati 4.77
12. BYU 4.79
t13. Alabama 4.83
t13. TCU 4.83
15. Stanford 4.86
16. Florida Atlantic 4.88
t17. Marshall 4.90
t17. East Carolina 4.90
19. Tulane 4.92
t20. USC 4.98
t20. Washington 4.98
22. Wake Forest 5.00
23. Clemson 5.03
24. Bowling Green 5.06
25. Vanderbilt 5.07

 

[podsox]

fsu was slaughtering teams last yr because their defense was so good.

 

[Hook'Em0608]

Well, their offense was also the most efficient in the nation and they had a Heisman winning QB.

 

[Red_Alert]

Good stuff Hook'Em

 

[outofyourmind]

Well, our defense certainly doesn't

 

[Mistaken4193]

Yes, Defense still wins championships. Look at the last 10 years, all but 1 national title winner(2010 Auburn) were known for their great defense. And even that Auburn team had a good run defense. Face it, Offense wins games and sells out stadiums but defense still wins championships

 

[podsox]

auburn is the only team in recent memory to not win a title with a top defense


FOOTBALL OUTSIDERS: Innovative Statistics, Intelligent Analysis | 2008 NCAA S&P+ RATINGS, DEFENSE

 

[tech_iceman]

A lot of those teams have garbidge offenses

 

[SC8806]

As a fan of SC I say defense is definitely the most important group on the field. SC holds a 4-5 record and we average 35 points a game on offense. Not only does defense win championships but it also wins games.