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2017 Kent State

2–⁠10 (1–⁠7 Mid-American Conference), coached by Paul Haynes.

Schedule and results

Kent State in 2017, game by game: lost at No. 5 Clemson 3–56; won vs. Howard 38–31; lost at Marshall 0–21; lost at No. 19 Louisville 3–42; lost vs. Buffalo 13–27; lost at Northern Illinois 3–24; won vs. Miami (OH) 17–14; lost at Ohio 3–48; lost vs. Bowling Green 16–44; lost at Western Michigan 20–48; lost vs. Central Michigan 23–42; lost at Akron 14–24+7−53Lost 3–56 at No. 5 Clemson-53No. 5 ClemsonWon 38–31 vs. Howard+7HowardLost 0–21 at Marshall-21MarshallLost 3–42 at No. 19 Louisville-39No. 19 LouisvilleLost 13–27 vs. Buffalo-14BuffaloLost 3–24 at Northern Illinois-21Northern Illino…Won 17–14 vs. Miami (OH)+3Miami (OH)Lost 3–48 at Ohio-45OhioLost 16–44 vs. Bowling Green-28Bowling GreenLost 20–48 at Western Michigan-28Western MichiganLost 23–42 vs. Central Michigan-19Central MichiganLost 14–24 at Akron-10Akron
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 2at5ClemsonL 3–⁠568%
Sep 9vsHowardW 38–⁠3180%
Sep 16atMarshallL 0–⁠2137%
Sep 23at19LouisvilleL 3–⁠4215%
Sep 30vsBuffaloL 13–⁠2754%
Oct 7atNorthern IllinoisL 3–⁠2420%
Oct 14vsMiami (OH)W 17–⁠1443%
Oct 21atOhioL 3–⁠4820%
Oct 31vsBowling GreenL 16–⁠4456%
Nov 8atWestern MichiganL 20–⁠4811%
Nov 14vsCentral MichiganL 23–⁠4228%
Nov 21atAkronL 14–⁠2420%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Akron 24–⁠14; unranked in the final AP poll; 11th in the Mid-American Conference.

In program history: The 55th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 68 on file).

Record
2–⁠10
Conference
1–⁠7 11th in Mid-American Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
153–⁠421
Coach
Paul Haynes
Elo
1250 −137 this season
SP+ rating
-20.2 No. 124 of 128; offense No. 126, defense No. 94, special teams No. 118
SRS
−20.1 No. 124 of 130 in FBS
Returning
91% of last season’s EPA, No. 6 of 128
Recruiting class
No. 128 roster talent No. 120 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Don Treadwell
Defensive coordinators
Ben Needham and Jeff Burrow
Offense
Multiple
Defense
4–⁠3

How good, play by play

  • Offense129th of 130
  • Defense87th of 130
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted133rd of 130
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted88th of 130
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense-0.1732%1.09129th of 130
Defense0.1443%1.3487th of 130
Opponent-adjusted-0.11 off
0.13 def		33% off
43% def		—133rd off
88th 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
Offense2.0own 3324% allowed
Defense4.2own 3218% caused

CORE rating -16.2, 119th of 130 (offense -13.9, defense 2.3).

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. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsGeorge Bollas QB1,133 yds
Passing touchdownsGeorge Bollas QB4 TD
Rushing yardsJustin Rankin RB490 yds
Rushing touchdownsJustin Rankin RB3 TD
Receiving yardsTrey Harrell WR324 yds
Receiving touchdownsJustin Rankin RB2 TD
TacklesJim Jones LB98 tkl
SacksJim Jones LB6 sacks
InterceptionsDemetrius Monday CB5 INT

Top recruits in the 2017 class

Eddie Brecht OT★★★No. 1631
Elvis Hines CB★★★No. 1706
C.J. Burress S★★★No. 2001
Chris Anthony OG★★No. 2460
Rodley Jolicoeur ATH★★No. 2961

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

The 2017 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks22.00.764
Running backs22.00.771
Receivers22.00.761
Offensive line52.20.778
Defensive line22.00.749
Linebackers32.00.765
Defensive backs32.70.793
Athletes and specialists32.00.761
Whole class222.10.770

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 112

The 2017 roster

112 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2017 line; 60 have a stat line. See the roster

2017 Mid-American Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Toledo7–⁠111–⁠3
Northern Illinois6–⁠28–⁠5
Central Michigan6–⁠28–⁠5
Akron6–⁠27–⁠7
Ohio5–⁠39–⁠4
Buffalo4–⁠46–⁠6
Western Michigan4–⁠46–⁠6
Miami (OH)4–⁠45–⁠7
Eastern Michigan3–⁠55–⁠7
Bowling Green2–⁠62–⁠10
Kent State1–⁠72–⁠10
Ball State0–⁠82–⁠10

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