CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2015 Bowling Green

10–⁠4 (7–⁠1 Mid-American Conference), coached by Dino Babers, then Brian Ward (interim, bowl game).

Schedule and results

Bowling Green in 2015, game by game: lost vs. No. 25 Tennessee 30–59; won at Maryland 48–27; lost vs. Memphis 41–44; won at Purdue 35–28; won at Buffalo 28–22; won vs. Massachusetts 62–38; won vs. Akron 59–10; won at Kent State 48–0; won vs. Ohio 62–24; won at Western Michigan 41–27; lost vs. Toledo 28–44; won at Ball State 48–10; won vs. Northern Illinois 34–14; lost vs. Georgia Southern 27–58+49−31Lost 30–59 vs. No. 25 Tennessee-29No. 25 TennesseeWon 48–27 at Maryland+21MarylandLost 41–44 vs. Memphis-3MemphisWon 35–28 at Purdue+7PurdueWon 28–22 at Buffalo+6BuffaloWon 62–38 vs. Massachusetts+24MassachusettsWon 59–10 vs. Akron+49AkronWon 48–0 at Kent State+48Kent StateWon 62–24 vs. Ohio+38OhioWon 41–27 at Western Michigan+14Western MichiganLost 28–44 vs. Toledo-16ToledoWon 48–10 at Ball State+38Ball StateWon 34–14 vs. Northern Illinois+20Northern Illino…Lost 27–58 vs. Georgia Southern-31Georgia Southern
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 5vs25TennesseeL 30–⁠5941%
Sep 12atMarylandW 48–⁠2734%
Sep 19vsMemphisL 41–⁠4446%
Sep 26atPurdueW 35–⁠2858%
Oct 3atBuffaloW 28–⁠2250%
Oct 10vsMassachusettsW 62–⁠3880%
Oct 17vsAkronW 59–⁠1070%
Oct 24atKent StateW 48–⁠068%
Nov 4vsOhioW 62–⁠2476%
Nov 11atWestern MichiganW 41–⁠2750%
Nov 17vsToledoL 28–⁠4457%
Nov 24atBall StateW 48–⁠1074%
Dec 4vsNorthern IllinoisMid-American Championship GameW 34–⁠1452%
Dec 23Bowls & playoffvsGeorgia SouthernGoDaddy BowlL 27–⁠5869%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Georgia Southern 58–⁠27 in the GoDaddy Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; Mid-American Conference champions.

In program history: The 10th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 73 on file).

Mid-American Conference champions7–⁠1 in the conference, won the Mid-American Championship Game

Record
10–⁠4
Conference
7–⁠1 first in Mid-American Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
591–⁠405
Coach
Dino Babers, then Brian Ward (interim, bowl game)
Elo
1597 +103 this season
SP+ rating
7.5 No. 51 of 128; offense No. 18, defense No. 92, special teams No. 56
SRS
7.3 No. 39 of 128 in FBS
Returning
98% of last season’s EPA, No. 4 of 128
Recruiting class
No. 104 roster talent No. 78 in FBS
Offensive coordinators
Mike Lynch and Sean Lewis
Defensive coordinator
Brian Ward
Offense
Veer and shoot
Defense
Multiple

How good, play by play

  • Offense3rd of 128
  • Defense44th of 128
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted3rd of 128
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted56th of 128
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.3049%1.383rd of 128
Defense0.0643%1.2344th of 128
Opponent-adjusted0.28 off
0.07 def		49% off
44% def		—3rd off
56th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense4.6own 302% allowed
Defense3.4own 302% caused

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. From CollegeFootballData.com.

Player leaders are hidden for this season: our source’s player stats for Bowling Green are missing players (they add up to less than 85% of the team’s passing or rushing yards).

Top recruits in the 2015 class

James Morgan PRO★★★No. 454
Shemar Moss WDE★★★No. 1686
BoBo Jones S★★★No. 1997
J.C. Bartok OT★★★No. 2052
Brandon Harris OLB★★★No. 2127

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2015 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.877
Running backs12.00.783
Receivers22.00.795
Offensive line32.30.788
Defensive line32.30.791
Linebackers62.20.777
Defensive backs32.30.792
Athletes and specialists32.00.733
Whole class222.20.783

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Roster 105

The 2015 roster

105 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2015 line; 29 have a stat line. See the roster

2015 Mid-American Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Bowling Green7–⁠110–⁠4
Toledo6–⁠210–⁠2
Western Michigan6–⁠28–⁠5
Northern Illinois6–⁠28–⁠6
Central Michigan6–⁠27–⁠6
Akron5–⁠38–⁠5
Ohio5–⁠38–⁠5
Buffalo3–⁠55–⁠7
Ball State2–⁠63–⁠9
Miami (OH)2–⁠63–⁠9
Kent State2–⁠63–⁠9
Massachusetts2–⁠63–⁠9
Eastern Michigan0–⁠81–⁠11

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.