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Terry Bowden breaks down the numbers...

Discussion in 'The Tiger's Den' started by saltyone, Apr 13, 2008.

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saltyone So Mote It Be

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Very interesting look at last year's top ten teams...

You may not think much of Terry's coaching ability, but there is no denying that he is a great student of the game.

As a general rule, if seven out of 10 of the teams (70 percent) are statistically in the top 25 in any one category, then I consider that strong evidence it is a critically important area of the game to be good at to compete at a top-10 level.

• Rushing Defense remains the single most important statistic in college football. Of the top 10 teams last year, all 10 were in the top 25 in stopping the run and half of those were in the top 10 in run defense. It is the only category on the chart where all 10 teams showed up in the top 25. This statistic is so compelling it should weigh in on every defensive consideration a coaching staff makes from personnel to scheme to the actual game plan. The bottom line is that championship football begins with being able to stop the run.

• The next two most important categories on the chart are Scoring Defense (9 of 10 in top 25) and Total Defense (8 of 10). I believe the only reason that pass defense is not equally as high is that teams that are getting beat usually have to pass the ball more.

• Conversely, it is not nearly as important to be dominant in the offensive running game. Only two of the top 10 teams in the country are in the top 25 in rushing offense and only one of those is in the top 10. Only West Virginia and LSU ran the ball for more than 200 yards a game. But before you write off the importance of the running game, it needs to be noted that the top eight teams are all solid running teams with rushing stats that are well above the national average. If you want to contend for the national championship, you don’t have to be great at running the football, but you’d better be pretty dadgum good.

• The rule of thumb in all areas of offensive football is being “good but not necessarily great.” Balance between running and throwing looks to be much more important than dominance in either, as only two of the top 10 teams – West Virginia and Boston College – would be considered one-dimensional offensive football teams.

• Turnover margin is also very important to winning football games. Seven of the top 10 teams ended up in the top 25. And again, to show you how important great defense is, the best teams are much better at creating turnovers than they are at preventing turnovers. Interestingly, Ohio State, which is known for great fundamental football, is the only team in the top 10 that has a very poor turnover margin.

• If you think that excessive penalties are the road to ruin – then get ready for another shock. The top three teams in the country – LSU, Georgia and Southern Cal – are ranked 117th, 85th, and 111th respectively in fewest penalties per game. Ouch! On further study, I bet most of these penalties would be on the defensive side of the ball and would be associated with what I call “aggression penalties.” Great teams generally play defense with reckless abandon.

Click to expand...

http://sports.yahoo.com/ncaaf/news;...vrYF?slug=tb-spring041208&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

Also, look at his PDF for an even more detailed break down of the top teams.....

http://us.lrd.yahoo.com/_ylt=Am4Qgm....yimg.com/a/i/us/sp/ncaaf/newbowdenchart4.pdf

saltyone, Apr 13, 2008

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GregLSU LSUFANS.com

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It's a good analysis... right on the money.

GregLSU, Apr 13, 2008

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houtiger Founding Member

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My comment about our two championship teams recently is I'm struck by the absence of superstars, but what I notice is we have no glaring weakness. If you have a weakness that can be exploited, it will. Last year, we were strong everywhere. These are the best days to be a Tiger fan!

houtiger, Apr 13, 2008

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LSUTiga TF Pubic Relations

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And I'm pretty sure I remember reading that Florida was the most penalized team the year they won the NC.

LSUTiga, Apr 13, 2008

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bhelmLSU Founding Member Staff Member

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lsutiga said: ↑

And I'm pretty sure I remember reading that Florida was the most penalized team the year they won the NC.
Click to expand...

True

bhelmLSU, Apr 13, 2008

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TerryP Founding Member

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lsutiga said: ↑

And I'm pretty sure I remember reading that Florida was the most penalized team the year they won the NC.
Click to expand...

In the SEC, by far. They finished the year with over 30 more flags than the 11th (2nd worse) team, Arkansas. Ironically, who did UF face in the SECCG? You guessed it, the 'backs.

TerryP, Apr 13, 2008

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JohnLSU Tigers

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Didn't LSU have the best producing offense in school history last year? Interesting that it wasn't even in the Top 10 in any of the four categories, and only in the Top 11-25 in two of the four categories.

Also interesting how four of the Top 10 teams had offenses that weren't in the Top 25 in any of the four categories, while not a single Top 10 team had a defense that wasn't in the Top 25 in anything.

Seems that the clique is true, that defenses win championships.

Bowden pretty much said the same thing when he talked about how important a great defense was, but then said that offense isn't as important, that it just has to be “good but not necessarily great.”

Also, I thought it was interesting how Bowden said that run defense is the most important thing when it comes to winning championships.

JohnLSU, Apr 13, 2008

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Deceks7 Founding Member

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saltyone said: ↑

You may not think much of Terry's coaching ability,
Click to expand...

The longer he stayed, the less I thought of him......

JohnLSU said: ↑

Also, I thought it was interesting how Bowden said that run defense is the most important thing when it comes to winning championships.
Click to expand...

By the time tater tot left AU he made sure each opponent's defense looked like a championship defense against our run.

Deceks7, Apr 13, 2008

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saltyone So Mote It Be

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Breakdown of Offense, Defense, and Special Teams for the SEC - 2007. We really need a return game, or something that resembles one.

http://sports.yahoo.com/ncaaf/stats/byteam?cat1=offense&conference=I-A_SEC&year=2007

saltyone, Apr 13, 2008

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gumborue Throwin Ched

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saltyone said: ↑

You may not think much of Terry's coaching ability, but there is no denying that he is a great student of the game.
Click to expand...

yes there is

gumborue, Apr 13, 2008

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