25 Questions on Rubber

Also a low birth rate

What is their body of work?

Terry Bowden came to Akron with a pretty good track record....140-62-2, if you need the actual number.  Akron is in football country, they had a new stadium coming...you had to think he was in the right place.  Well, in his fifth year he's 24-35...last year was his first winning season (8-5) and only bowl game and this year they are 5-5.  The five wins are VMI, Marshall, Kent, Miami (looks pretty good now) and Ball State, and the losses are Wisconsin, App. State (in Akron), WMU, Toledo and Buffalo (at Buffalo).  Akron never quite seems to get there.  Whether they are better than BG this year is another question.  BG has beaten them 7 straight times.

How many seniors and juniors on the two-deep?

First, Bowden's penchant for transfers is well known.  They have 35 players on their roster who started at another college.  As a result, they have 33 Jrs and Srs on their two-deep.

Who are their statistical leaders?

JoJo Natson has 2 PR TDS (#2) and is #3 in PR yards and #7 in receiving TDs.
Jerome Lane is #19 in receiving yards.
Ulysses Gilbert is #7 in total tackles per game.

What is their turnover ratio?

(Most of the stats below are conference only).  They are -3 for the year in conference.

Offense:

 How is their QB play?

Thomas Woodson is a middle of the pack QB in the MAC.  He was injured for 3 games this year and now is back.  He is 7th in the MAC in pass efficiency, with 54% completions, which is not great, but 13.4 yards per completion and 5 TDs over 2 INT.  (only 3 MAC games).

What is their scoring and yards per play?

They are #10 in scoring offense and #8 in yards per play.

Can they run the ball?

Normally a very strong running team, they are #8 in yards per rush.

Do they pass the ball?

They are 9th in pass efficiency. Woodson is an upgrade over his back up, which makes sense since he's the starter.

How is their run/pass balance?

They run on 48% of their plays, which is a pretty typical mix today.

Do they convert on 3rd Down?

They are right at the MAC average at 40%.

Do they score in the red zone?

They are OK at 4.4 per trip.  They have been in the red zone only 14 times, and whiffed on four of those.  Only Buffalo has been to the red zone left.

Do they protect the quarterback?

Not bad, 9 sacks allowed on a decent pass play mix.

Defense:

Topline: Scoring and yards per play.

No, you're a sick puppy

Normally, Akron has a very stout defense.  This year, they are #9 in scoring defense and #11 in yards per play.  BG is 12th and 10th, respectively.

Do they defend the run effectively?

No.  They do not.  They are tied for last at 5.8 yards per carry allowed.  BG is 5.1.

Can they be passed on?

They are average here at #7.  They allow 59% completions, which is about the conference average, with 11.7 yards per completion...which is better than average.  They have allowed 10 TDs to go with 4 INT.

Do they get off the field on 3rd down?

No, they are 10th in the MAC.

Do they defend in the red zone?

They are below average at 5.1 points per trip.  Have allowed 33 red zone trips, only 4 zeros.

Do they pressure the QB?

No,  they have 7 sacks.  Only BG has fewer, with 6.

Special Teams:

Punting?

Poor.  They are 11th in net punting.  One block all year and 7.3 yards per return.

The Rubber Bowl

Punt Return?

As mentioned, Nathan is nationally ranked and gets 17 yards per return.

Placekicking?

All games, he's 7-7 with a 46 long.  4 of 7 were inside 30.

Kickoff?

They are 11th in the MAC, allowing teams to start on the 33.

Kickoff Return?

They start on the 25, all games.

Miscellaneous: Overall atmospherics and intangibles.

Home of abolitionist John Brown

It is senior night in Akron, so sometimes that has an impact.

And yes, this is on the road, but this appears to me to be a game BG can win.  As it stands, they are 10 point underdogs.  If there's a home field advantage, it isn't like to be from the crowd.  They drew under 7K for the game against UT.  Should be a somnolent environment.

Akron has a little more to play for, since they can get bowl eligible with a W.  BG has to be hungry to get a win...though I don't know that was terribly apparent in the NIU game.