CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2008 Florida International

5–⁠7 (3–⁠4 Sun Belt Conference), coached by Mario Cristobal.

Schedule and results

Florida International in 2008, game by game: lost at No. 14 Kansas 10–40; lost at Iowa 0–42; lost vs. No. 12 South Florida 9–17; won at Toledo 35–16; won at North Texas 42–10; won vs. Middle Tennessee 31–21; lost at Troy 23–33; lost at Louisiana 20–49; won vs. Arkansas State 22–21; lost vs. UL Monroe 27–31; lost at Florida Atlantic 50–57; won vs. Western Kentucky 27–3+32−42Lost 10–40 at No. 14 Kansas-30No. 14 KansasLost 0–42 at Iowa-42IowaLost 9–17 vs. No. 12 South Florida-8No. 12 South FloridaWon 35–16 at Toledo+19ToledoWon 42–10 at North Texas+32North TexasWon 31–21 vs. Middle Tennessee+10Middle TennesseeLost 23–33 at Troy-10TroyLost 20–49 at Louisiana-29LouisianaWon 22–21 vs. Arkansas State+1Arkansas StateLost 27–31 vs. UL Monroe-4UL MonroeLost 50–57 at Florida Atlantic-7Florida AtlanticWon 27–3 vs. Western Kentucky+24Western Kentucky
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 30at14KansasL 10–⁠4010%
Sep 6atIowaL 0–⁠4218%
Sep 20vs12South FloridaL 9–⁠1717%
Sep 27atToledoW 35–⁠1623%
Oct 4atNorth TexasW 42–⁠1051%
Oct 11vsMiddle TennesseeW 31–⁠2148%
Oct 18atTroyL 23–⁠3323%
Nov 1atLouisianaL 20–⁠4933%
Nov 8vsArkansas StateW 22–⁠2148%
Nov 22vsUL MonroeL 27–⁠3158%
Nov 29atFlorida AtlanticL 50–⁠5730%
Dec 6vsWestern KentuckyW 27–⁠367%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Western Kentucky 27–⁠3; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 5th in the Sun Belt Conference.

In program history: The 12th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 24 on file).

Record
5–⁠7
Conference
3–⁠4 tied for 5th in Sun Belt Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
296–⁠340
Coach
Mario Cristobal
Elo
1361 +51 this season
SP+ rating
-17.3 No. 107 of 120; offense No. 114, defense No. 84, special teams No. 97
SRS
−9.1 No. 94 of 120 in FBS
Recruiting class
No. 84
Offensive coordinator
Bill Legg
Defensive coordinator
Phil Galiano
Offense
Spread
Defense
4–⁠3

How good, play by play

  • Offense97th of 120
  • Defense49th of 120
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted103rd of 120
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted41st of 120
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense-0.0336%0.9797th of 120
Defense0.0142%0.8749th of 120
Opponent-adjusted-0.01 off
0.01 def		37% off
41% def		—103rd off
41st 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
Offense-0.1own 322% allowed
Defense-0.2own 343% 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.

Top recruits in the 2008 class

A.J. Grant S★★★No. 502
Darriet Perry RB★★★No. 926
James Jones WDE★★★No. 1005
Kambriel Willis OLB★★★No. 1019
Derrick Clark CB★★★No. 1166

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

The 2008 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.811
Running backs13.00.842
Receivers22.00.722
Offensive line22.00.700
Defensive line62.20.757
Linebackers22.50.800
Defensive backs72.30.781
Athletes and specialists22.50.790
Whole class232.30.769

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.

2008 Sun Belt Conference standings

TeamConf.OverallAP final
Troy6–⁠18–⁠5
Louisiana5–⁠26–⁠6
Florida Atlantic4–⁠37–⁠6
Arkansas State4–⁠36–⁠6
Florida International3–⁠45–⁠7
Middle Tennessee3–⁠45–⁠7
UL Monroe3–⁠44–⁠8
North Texas0–⁠71–⁠11

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