International Centre for Special Teams Research

Last year, I founded the International Centre for Special Teams Research.

Without any help from you,  I might add.

Anyway, we completed one year, and now we're ready to start tracking a second year.  To refresh your memory, here is how I introduced it...

So, when I was doing the last special teams review, I developed a theory. That theory was that it isn't the small yardage differences that you are really worried about. If you typically have 35 net yards on a punt, you don't really care if it is 31 or 39. What matters is when it is 20 or 50, or when a game changing play (touchdown, turnover, block) occurs.

On that idea, I hereby found the International Centre for Special Teams Research. I am planning to track special teams this year, based on this method. I will score each play....most plays will be worth no points, meaning that what occurred was in the neighborhood of what should be expected. Plays above that get positive points, plays below that negative.

The basic rule:

Scoring 6
Turnover/Blocked 3
Misc 2
Field position 1

Now for each type of play. (This is a work in progress, by the way!)

Field Goal:
50 FG Made +2
40+ Made +1
40- Missed -1
Blocked -3
Missed XP -2
TD Allowed -6

Punting
TD Allowed -6
Blocked -3
Less than 25 net -1
More than 45 net +1
Inside 10 +2
Inside 20 +1
Turnover +3
Fake Punt work +3
Fake Punt Fails -3

Kickoffs
Inside 20 +1
TD Allowed -6
Outside 35 -1
Over 50 -2
Turnover +3
Rec onside kick +3

Kickoff Return
Inside 20 -1 (Touchbacks excepted)
TD +6
Outside 35 +1
Outside 50 +2
Turnover -3
Losing onside kick -3

Punt Return
TD +6
Blocked +3
Less than 20 net +1 (If return was a factor)
More than 45 net -1 (If return was a factor)
Turnover -3
Fake Punt works -3
Fake Punt Fails +3

FG Defense
Blocked +3
TD +6

So, let's look at his based on our first two games.

The Troy game, BG was +4 and Troy was -4.  For perspective, +5 matched was out second best total, which was against Missouri.  (Our best game was UT, with the blocked punts, where we were +11).  Of course, against Troy we had a TD, which is +6, and pretty much ensures a good score.  As it should.

Of course, that means that BG has had two straight strong games with special teams.

Troy was -4, which is the 5th straight game where or opponents were in negative territory.

Finally, in the Troy game last year, we were -2 and they were +5.

Now, moving on to Tulsa, we find that we did better even without a TD.  BG was +7, their second best score since the ICTSR was founded.  We had some good punting and kickoff returns to lead the way.  And it makes 3 straight strong special team games.

Tulsa was +1, which breaks out string of negative opponent games is at least not a very strong performance, especially given their strong kicking and punting game.

Anyway, that's our first report.  More later...