Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Tuesday Trivia: Biggest One-Year Changes, Part I

Welcome to the third edition of our Tuesday Trivia feature. So far we've examined the state of parity in college football and the most improbable winning streaks. Today's edition is the first part of a two-part look at the biggest swings in team strength over the course of consecutive seasons. This week we'll examine the depths of failure. Which teams went from meteoric heights and plummeted to the depths of mediocrity (or, even worse, plummeted from mediocrity to outright garbage)? As always, we confine our search to seasons that span two consecutive years in the 2003-2004 to 2011-2012 span.

With that, let the countdown begin after the jump.

#5: Kansas Jayhawks
Year WinPct SoS Off. Def. Pace
2009 0.562 48 0.605 17 21.8 34 19.8 66 173.0 17
2010 0.232 99 0.538 54 15.3 97 24.7 101 167.3 51


Date Away Team       Home Team Odds
2009/09/12  29 Kansas 34 at  80 UTEP 7 27.2%
2009/09/19  79 Duke 16 at  24 Kansas 44 88.8%
2009/09/26  57 Southern Miss. 28 at  23 Kansas 35 81.0%
2009/10/10  84 Iowa St. 36 at  19 Kansas 41 90.4%
2009/10/17  22 Kansas 30 at  66 Colorado 34 33.2%
2009/10/24   3 Oklahoma 35 at  29 Kansas 13 75.7%
2009/10/31  32 Kansas 21 at  16 Texas Tech 42 25.9%
2009/11/07  37 Kansas 10 at  57 Kansas St. 17 42.4%
2009/11/14  15 Nebraska 31 at  44 Kansas 17 67.0%
2009/11/21  45 Kansas 20 at   3 Texas 51 9.4%
2009/11/28  34 Missouri 41 vs  47 Kansas 39 58.4%


Date Away Team       Home Team Odds
2010/09/11  20 Georgia Tech 25 at  48 Kansas 28 54.7%
2010/09/17  50 Kansas 16 at  72 Southern Miss. 31 44.5%
2010/09/25 120 New Mexico St. 16 at  57 Kansas 42 96.0%
2010/10/02  63 Kansas 7 at  75 Baylor 55 49.9%
2010/10/14  62 Kansas St. 59 at  81 Kansas 7 52.6%
2010/10/23  51 Texas A&M 45 at  87 Kansas 10 63.2%
2010/10/30  95 Kansas 16 at  74 Iowa St. 28 22.7%
2010/11/06  77 Colorado 45 at  96 Kansas 52 62.1%
2010/11/13  95 Kansas 3 at  12 Nebraska 20 7.4%
2010/11/20  21 Oklahoma St. 48 at  95 Kansas 14 88.5%
2010/11/27  18 Missouri 35 vs  95 Kansas 7 90.0%

The first stop on our countdown is a basketball school that tried briefly to masquerade as a football school during the Mark Mangino experiment. The Jayhawks peaked in 2007, going 12-1 and winning the 2008 Orange Bowl against Virginia Tech. It was downhill from there.

Year WinPct SoS Off. Def. Pace
2007 0.805 11 0.474 71 22.9 26 13.0 7 172.4 26
2008 0.683 27 0.576 39 22.0 27 16.2 37 172.3 16
2009 0.562 48 0.605 17 21.8 34 19.8 66 173.0 17
2010 0.232 99 0.538 54 15.3 97 24.7 101 167.3 51

TFG ranked Kansas at 11th by the end of the year, mostly thanks to their 7th-ranked defense that only allowed 12.0 points per hundred (PPH) plays; a 22.9 PPH offense is respectable, but nothing amazing. Their defense slipped slightly in 2009 to 16.2 PPH, while the offense remained pretty steady. The bottom started to drop out in earnest the next year, as the defense slipped to a below-average 19.8 PPH; the Jayhawks started with 4 wins against FBS opponents, but then the real slide started. Losses to Colorado, Kansas State, and Missouri effectively ended Mangino's career at Kansas (nto to mention the harsh treatments of players). After that the bottom dropped out of the defense, and the offense finally suffered, too, putting the nail in the Jayhawk coffin.


#4: Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Year WinPct SoS Off. Def. Pace
2006 0.753 24 0.574 42 25.1 12 16.1 40 170.9 34
2007 0.418 73 0.584 30 15.8 89 18.0 50 169.2 53


Date Away Team       Home Team Odds
2006/09/02  18 Notre Dame 14 at  40 Georgia Tech 10 46.5%
2006/09/09  10 Penn State 17 at  22 Notre Dame 41 50.1%
2006/09/16  11 Michigan 47 at  14 Notre Dame 21 57.1%
2006/09/23  20 Notre Dame 40 at  34 Michigan St. 37 48.3%
2006/09/30  39 Purdue 21 at  23 Notre Dame 35 72.8%
2006/10/07  92 Stanford 10 at  21 Notre Dame 31 93.8%
2006/10/21  34 UCLA 17 at  23 Notre Dame 20 72.1%
2006/10/28  56 Navy 14 vs  23 Notre Dame 38 74.4%
2006/11/04  95 North Carolina 26 at  22 Notre Dame 45 91.5%
2006/11/11  25 Notre Dame 39 at  49 Air Force 17 34.6%
2006/11/18 108 Army 9 at  23 Notre Dame 41 94.4%
2006/11/25  22 Notre Dame 24 at   3 USC 44 25.2%
2007/01/03  24 Notre Dame 14 vs   4 LSU 41 26.9%


Date Away Team       Home Team Odds
2007/09/01  31 Georgia Tech 33 at  26 Notre Dame 3 69.5%
2007/09/08  36 Notre Dame 10 at   8 Penn State 31 14.3%
2007/09/15  41 Notre Dame 0 at  14 Michigan 38 18.1%
2007/09/22  48 Michigan St. 31 at  58 Notre Dame 14 51.9%
2007/09/29  61 Notre Dame 19 at  50 Purdue 33 29.0%
2007/10/06  71 Notre Dame 20 at  42 UCLA 6 22.6%
2007/10/13  16 Boston College 27 at  62 Notre Dame 14 71.8%
2007/10/20  10 USC 38 at  63 Notre Dame 0 74.7%
2007/11/03  63 Navy 46 at  76 Notre Dame 44 51.3%
2007/11/10  57 Air Force 41 at  76 Notre Dame 24 56.9%
2007/11/17  97 Duke 7 at  76 Notre Dame 28 67.5%
2007/11/24  74 Notre Dame 21 at  84 Stanford 14 40.2%

I know Notre Dame is a regular whipping boy here (and many other places), but in this case it's deserved. The Golden Domers had snuck into the bottom of the 2006 - 2007 top 25 at season's end, in large part thanks to an explosive offense that was good for 25.1 PPH and 12th-best in college ball. That offense vanished several months later, replace by one that could barely muster 15.8 PPH. Given that their defense stayed pretty common -- at 16.4 PPH -- this was is all on the offense. And in 2006, it worked. Most games were 30+ point affairs, even against respectable competition like (49) Air Force, (10) Penn State, (39) Purdue, and (34) Michigan State.

In 2007, though, Brady Quinn and two other offensive starters were taken in the 2007 draft. This lead to a staggering 9.3 PPH drop in offensive efficiency, taking Notre Dame from 12th to 89th in scoring efficiency. The defense also saw a mild drop -- 1.9 PPH -- but without the offensive firepower of the previous seasons the Fighting Irish simply couldn't keep up with their opponents. Excluding a 44 point showing in a losing effort to (57) Air Force, Notre Dame only scored 153 points all season; this was only two points ahead of their scoring total from September of the previous year. This lackluster offense dropped Notre Dame from 24th to 73rd in less than 12 months.

#3: Bowling Green Falcons
Year WinPct SoS Off. Def. Pace
2005 0.562 46 0.320 110 21.8 29 19.8 66 174.3 24
2006 0.220 102 0.299 111 15.1 85 25.0 107 170.7 37


Date Away Team       Home Team Odds
2005/09/03  25 Bowling Green 42 at  24 Wisconsin 56 36.4%
2005/09/10  39 Bowling Green 40 at 116 Ball St. 31 7.9%
2005/09/21  44 Bowling Green 20 at  35 Boise St. 48 31.3%
2005/10/01 107 Temple 7 at  50 Bowling Green 70 92.2%
2005/10/08  97 Ohio 14 at  45 Bowling Green 38 90.3%
2005/10/15  44 Bowling Green 27 at 117 Buffalo 7 4.6%
2005/10/22 103 Western Michigan 45 at  44 Bowling Green 14 93.0%
2005/10/29  92 Akron 24 at  54 Bowling Green 14 85.5%
2005/11/05  58 Bowling Green 24 at 100 Kent St. 14 20.6%
2005/11/15  61 Bowling Green 42 at  45 Miami-OH 14 40.8%
2005/11/22  63 Toledo 44 at  47 Bowling Green 41 56.7%


Date Away Team       Home Team Odds
2006/09/02  22 Wisconsin 35 vs  46 Bowling Green 14 67.3%
2006/09/09 116 Buffalo 40 at  58 Bowling Green 48 96.3%
2006/09/16  66 Bowling Green 33 at NA FIU 28 32.7%
2006/09/23 107 Kent St. 38 at  71 Bowling Green 3 88.7%
2006/09/30  85 Bowling Green 21 at  99 Ohio 9 43.9%
2006/10/07  83 Bowling Green 7 at   2 Ohio St. 35 2.1%
2006/10/14 106 Eastern Michigan 21 at  80 Bowling Green 24 80.2%
2006/10/19  80 Bowling Green 14 at  75 Central Michigan 31 33.8%
2006/10/28  82 Bowling Green 14 at 117 Temple 28 13.2%
2006/11/04  97 Bowling Green 28 at  82 Akron 35 38.0%
2006/11/15  90 Miami-OH 9 at  97 Bowling Green 7 51.8%
2006/11/21  97 Bowling Green 21 at  92 Toledo 31 45.2%

We've covered "plummeting to the depths of mediocrity"; now it's time to examine "plummeting from mediocrity to outright garbage." First up: 2005 - 2006 Bowling Green. The Falcons were already decidedly "middle of the pack" in 2005 when they went 6-5 against FBS competition and ended the season ranked 46th. Their offense was respectable at 21.8 PPH, but their defense was thoroughly mediocre at 19.8 PPH. Having  a 2.0 PPH advantage means that in an average game you've got about a field goal's worth of wiggle room.

Well in 2007 that wiggle room disappeared. Both offense and defense disappeared to the tune of about six PPH, flipping that 2.0 PPH advantage to a 9.9 PPH disadvantage; that's around a two touchdown per game deficit. Those shortcomings really showed on the field, where the Falcons went 4-8. Their four wins came by a combined 28 points, including a 3-point victory against Eastern Michigan and a 5-point squeaker against Florida International.


#2: Washington Huskies
Year WinPct SoS Off. Def. Pace
2007 0.541 55 0.634 12 21.5 34 20.1 68 171.9 29
2008 0.194 106 0.636 7 13.8 107 24.4 100 166.6 73



Date Away Team       Home Team Odds
2007/08/31  65 Washington 42 at  82 Syracuse 12 34.1%
2007/09/08  20 Boise St. 10 at  54 Washington 24 65.5%
2007/09/15   2 Ohio St. 33 at  47 Washington 14 85.6%
2007/09/22  45 Washington 31 at  47 UCLA 44 41.0%
2007/09/29   4 USC 27 at  48 Washington 24 79.5%
2007/10/13  40 Washington 20 at  15 Arizona St. 44 25.4%
2007/10/20  14 Oregon 55 at  47 Washington 34 62.7%
2007/10/27  65 Arizona 48 at  49 Washington 41 71.6%
2007/11/03  54 Washington 27 at  80 Stanford 9 34.7%
2007/11/10  50 Washington 23 at  46 Oregon St. 29 41.7%
2007/11/17  29 California 23 at  53 Washington 37 66.9%
2007/11/24  70 Washington St. 42 at  49 Washington 35 64.8%
2007/12/01  53 Washington 28 at  38 Hawaii 35 40.2%



Date Away Team       Home Team Odds
2008/08/30  56 Washington 10 at  17 Oregon 44 26.3%
2008/09/06  17 BYU 28 at  62 Washington 27 68.9%
2008/09/13   5 Oklahoma 55 at  56 Washington 14 78.4%
2008/09/27  72 Stanford 35 at  62 Washington 28 67.3%
2008/10/04  61 Washington 14 at  37 Arizona 48 24.8%
2008/10/18  23 Oregon St. 34 at  74 Washington 13 69.5%
2008/10/25  58 Notre Dame 33 at  76 Washington 7 52.0%
2008/11/01  82 Washington 0 at   1 USC 56 2.0%
2008/11/08  48 Arizona St. 39 at  93 Washington 19 73.5%
2008/11/15  71 UCLA 27 at  95 Washington 7 60.7%
2008/11/22  97 Washington 13 at 118 Washington St. 16 20.8%
2008/12/06 103 Washington 7 at  25 California 48 10.3%

The theme for the last two entries here are "sucky teams in Washington during 2008." And given that this is a college football blog, we're clearly not talking about the Redskins. No, the next-to-last team on our countdown is the 2008 Washington Huskies. The 2007 Huskies were actually a somewhat respectable mid-pack team that suffered a few bad bounces -- hello Arizona, Washington State, and Hawaii -- that prevented them from having a better season. This was Jake Locker's freshman year, and there was a lot of potential for growth.

Unfortunately for the Husky faithful, Locker broke his thumb in the fourth game of the 2008 season. The effects were immediate, as the Huskies dropped 7.7 PPH on offense from the previous year; it didn't help that they also went 4.3 PPH in the wrong direction of defense, too. The only winnable game the Huskies had the remainder of the year was against fellow Pac-10 basement-dweller Washington State, but they lost that one in double overtime. A loss the next week against Cal completed the perfect 0-12 season.


#1: Washington State Cougars
Year WinPct SoS Off. Def. Pace
2007 0.444 70 0.572 41 17.8 72 19.4 61 176.9 7
2008 0.082 118 0.585 37 10.5 119 27.5 110 166.7 70



Date Away Team       Home Team Odds
2007/09/01  54 Washington St. 21 at  13 Wisconsin 42 12.4%
2007/09/08  94 SDSU 17 at  52 Washington St. 45 86.3%
2007/09/15 111 Idaho 28 at  49 Washington St. 45 94.4%
2007/09/22  53 Washington St. 14 at   4 USC 47 8.7%
2007/09/29  54 Washington St. 20 at  60 Arizona 48 46.6%
2007/10/06  12 Arizona St. 23 at  66 Washington St. 20 75.2%
2007/10/13  65 Washington St. 7 at  21 Oregon 53 16.2%
2007/10/27  39 UCLA 7 at  75 Washington St. 27 61.4%
2007/11/03  66 Washington St. 17 at  25 California 20 21.9%
2007/11/10  80 Stanford 17 at  67 Washington St. 33 67.3%
2007/11/17  43 Oregon St. 52 at  62 Washington St. 17 62.7%
2007/11/24  70 Washington St. 42 at  49 Washington 35 35.2%



Date Away Team       Home Team Odds
2008/08/30  69 Washington St. 13 vs  34 Oklahoma St. 39 30.7%
2008/09/06  34 California 66 at  76 Washington St. 3 65.0%
2008/09/12  88 Washington St. 17 at 103 Baylor 45 48.0%
2008/09/27  18 Oregon 63 at 103 Washington St. 14 89.6%
2008/10/04 104 Washington St. 3 at  66 UCLA 28 16.6%
2008/10/11 112 Washington St. 13 at  33 Oregon St. 66 5.4%
2008/10/18   1 USC 69 at 114 Washington St. 0 98.5%
2008/11/01 117 Washington St. 0 at  66 Stanford 58 10.1%
2008/11/08  25 Arizona 59 at 119 Washington St. 28 96.4%
2008/11/15 117 Washington St. 0 at  50 Arizona St. 31 6.2%
2008/11/22  97 Washington 13 at 118 Washington St. 16 79.2%
2008/11/29 118 Washington St. 10 at  72 Hawaii 24 10.8%

And the "winner" of the Tuesday Trivia countdown of "biggest nosedive" is .... the 2008 Washington State Cougars! While their cross-state rivals were busy undergoing a 0.347-point dive, the Cougars were one-upping that with a 0.362-point flop. 2007 was a 5-7 season with no effective offense and the definition of a mediocre defense. The only thing the Cougars had going for them was speed; they might have been average, but they were amazingly quick at being average -- 7th fastest in FBS, at nearly 177 plays per game.

In 2008, though, the pace slowed down significantly, and so did the offense. The Cougar offense went from "anemic" to "in cardiac arrest", managing a mere 10.5 PPH against average competition. The defense didn't fare much better, yielding 27.5 PPH to average competition. Unfortunately the Cougars had to play an above-average schedule, and managed to limp their way to a 1-11 record against FBS competition. Their only win was against previously-mentioned fellow nosedivers Washington, in the 2008 "Somebody Has to Win" Bowl. All-in-all the 2007-2008 seasons represented a 15.4 PPH shift in the wrong direction and landed the Cougars at 118th spot in the 120-team TFG rankings for 2008.