25 Questions that are Zipped

No mention of Terry Bowden...or the
NCAA Soccer title

What is their body of work?

Tough situation here.  Akron is rebuilding just like us, and they are starting from as far behind.  They have a young coach who is a proven head coach, but it's a pretty rough situation down there.  They are 0-8...now, they didn't play an FCS team, so take that into account...but their closest loss is 8 points to UMass, a program ranked right down with BG and Akron.  They haven't scored a TD in their last 3 games and have only 3 points over that period.

How many seniors and juniors on the two-deep?

They have 25, which is typical.  Five true FR are on their 2-deep along with 4 r-FR.

Who are their statistical leaders? (Top 20 Nationally)

John Lako is #3 in tackles.

What is their turnover ratio? 

All games...they are -13.  That's a wow.

Offense:

How is their QB play? (MAC Only, from here on)

So here is the thing.  We talk about their scoring for the last 3 games, but two of those games they were without their suspended starting QB, Kato Nelson, who is #7 in the MAC in passing efficiency.  The other guys struggled, to say the least.  Nelson is supposed to be back this week and is at the top of the depth chart this week and with him they are better than they have been the last 3 weeks.

What is their scoring and yards per play

At 6.8 points per game, they are as last as last can be.  Their 3.9 yards per play is 1.1 yards a play behind the next worst team....BG.

Can they run the ball?

No.  Never seen this before.  They average 2.2 yards per rush.  Last in the MAC, last in the nation.

Do they pass the ball?

They are last in passing efficiency, better by a few spots with Nelson.

How is their run/pass balance?

Not surprisingly, they run on 43% of their plays.

Ditto

Do they convert on 3rd Down?

They are #10 at 30%, a little ahead of BG.

Do they score in the red zone?

They average 3.95 points per trip, which is awful (all games)

Do they protect the quarterback?

No they do not.  They give up sacks on 12% of their passing attempts...33 sacks for the whole schedule.

In short, this is among the worst-performing offenses we have seen come our way in some time.

Defense:

Topline: Scoring and yards per play

They are 11th in scoring defense (BG 12th) but only 6th in yards per play allowed (BG last).  I suspect all those turnovers and unconverted 3rd downs is at the heart of that contrast.

Do they defend the run effectively?

They are 8th at 4.8 yards per carry.

Can they be passed on?

They are 10th in pass efficiency D.  They allow 69% completions, have 0 INT...they do hold teams to 10.7 per reception, which is good.

Do they get off the field on 3rd down?

Not really, they allow 46% which is 9th.

Do they defend in the red zone? (all games)

They allow 5 points per trip, which is pretty normal.

Do they pressure the QB?

No.  They get sacks on 3.3% of their pass plays.

Special Teams:

Punting?

They are 10th in net punting.

Punt Return?

They are 11th in punt returns, no threat here.

Placekicking? (all games)

Their lead kicker is 2 of 6 with a long of 42.

Kickoff? (all games)

Opponents start on the 25.

Kickoff Return? (all games)

They start on the 28 which is good.

Miscellaneous: Overall atmospherics and intangibles.

Look, here is the scary thing (for Halloween).  This is a winnable game for BG...probably their best remaining shot to win.  Thing is...it's also Akron's best chance for a win, too.  Our numbers are not good and their's are worse.  If the game is close, you could see Akron play hard due to the chance to break through with a win.  Also, looks like a good chance of rain Saturday, which will dampen the whole environment and keep the crowd very small.  It's a test of who loves football.