CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2008 Kent State

4–⁠8 (3–⁠5 Mid-American Conference), coached by Doug Martin.

Schedule and results

Kent State in 2008, game by game: lost vs. Boston College 0–21; lost at Iowa State 28–48; won vs. Delaware State 24–3; lost at Louisiana 27–44; lost at Ball State 20–41; lost vs. Akron 27–30; lost vs. Ohio 19–26; won at Miami (OH) 54–21; lost at Bowling Green 30–45; won vs. Temple 41–38; lost vs. Northern Illinois 14–42; won at Buffalo 24–21+33−28Lost 0–21 vs. Boston College-21Boston CollegeLost 28–48 at Iowa State-20Iowa StateWon 24–3 vs. Delaware State+21Delaware StateLost 27–44 at Louisiana-17LouisianaLost 20–41 at Ball State-21Ball StateLost 27–30 vs. Akron-3AkronLost 19–26 vs. Ohio-7OhioWon 54–21 at Miami (OH)+33Miami (OH)Lost 30–45 at Bowling Green-15Bowling GreenWon 41–38 vs. Temple+3TempleLost 14–42 vs. Northern Illinois-28Northern Illino…Won 24–21 at Buffalo+3Buffalo
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 30vsBoston CollegeL 0–⁠2120%
Sep 6atIowa StateL 28–⁠4830%
Sep 13vsDelaware StateW 24–⁠351%
Sep 20atLouisianaL 27–⁠4443%
Sep 27atBall StateL 20–⁠4117%
Oct 4vsAkronL 27–⁠3047%
Oct 11vsOhioL 19–⁠2645%
Oct 25atMiami (OH)W 54–⁠2134%
Nov 1atBowling GreenL 30–⁠4533%
Nov 12vsTempleW 41–⁠3850%
Nov 18vsNorthern IllinoisL 14–⁠4246%
Nov 28atBuffaloW 24–⁠2121%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Buffalo 24–⁠21; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 8th in the Mid-American Conference.

In program history: The 33rd-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 68 on file).

Record
4–⁠8
Conference
3–⁠5 tied for 8th in Mid-American Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
308–⁠380
Coach
Doug Martin
Elo
1353 −23 this season
SP+ rating
-8.5 No. 89 of 120; offense No. 53, defense No. 101, special teams No. 105
SRS
−13.5 No. 105 of 120 in FBS
Recruiting class
No. 94
Offensive coordinator
A.J. Pratt
Defensive coordinator
Pete Rekstis
Offense
Air raid
Defense
4–⁠3

How good, play by play

  • Offense18th of 120
  • Defense80th of 120
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted26th of 120
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted89th of 120
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.1043%1.0018th of 120
Defense0.0742%0.9780th of 120
Opponent-adjusted0.07 off
0.06 def		40% off
41% def		—26th off
89th 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
Offense0.0own 303% allowed
Defense-0.1own 352% 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

Leon Green ATH★★★No. 1005
Sal Battles ATH★★★No. 1187
Ike Washington ILB★★No. 1406
Matthew Hurdle PRO★★No. 1436
T.J. Williams WR★★No. 1602

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

The 2008 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks12.00.789
Running backs12.00.767
Receivers52.00.767
Offensive line32.00.744
Linebackers42.00.757
Defensive backs22.00.756
Athletes and specialists42.50.792
Whole class202.10.767

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.

Drafted in 2009

The 2009 draft
Rd 7Julian Edelman WRNew England Patriots

2008 Mid-American Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Ball State8–⁠012–⁠2
Western Michigan6–⁠29–⁠4
Central Michigan6–⁠28–⁠5
Buffalo5–⁠38–⁠6
Northern Illinois5–⁠36–⁠7
Bowling Green4–⁠46–⁠6
Temple4–⁠45–⁠7
Akron3–⁠55–⁠7
Kent State3–⁠54–⁠8
Ohio3–⁠54–⁠8
Eastern Michigan2–⁠63–⁠9
Toledo2–⁠63–⁠9
Miami (OH)1–⁠72–⁠10

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