CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2017 Western Kentucky

6–⁠7 (4–⁠4 Conference USA), coached by Mike Sanford Jr.

Schedule and results

Western Kentucky in 2017, game by game: won vs. Eastern Kentucky 31–17; lost at Illinois 7–20; lost vs. Louisiana Tech 22–23; won vs. Ball State 33–21; won at UTEP 15–14; won vs. Charlotte 45–14; won at Old Dominion 35–31; lost vs. Florida Atlantic 28–42; lost at Vanderbilt 17–31; lost at Marshall 23–30; won vs. Middle Tennessee 41–38; lost at Florida International 17–41; lost vs. Georgia State 17–27+31−24Won 31–17 vs. Eastern Kentucky+14Eastern KentuckyLost 7–20 at Illinois-13IllinoisLost 22–23 vs. Louisiana Tech-1Louisiana TechWon 33–21 vs. Ball State+12Ball StateWon 15–14 at UTEP+1UTEPWon 45–14 vs. Charlotte+31CharlotteWon 35–31 at Old Dominion+4Old DominionLost 28–42 vs. Florida Atlantic-14Florida AtlanticLost 17–31 at Vanderbilt-14VanderbiltLost 23–30 at Marshall-7MarshallWon 41–38 vs. Middle Tennessee+3Middle TennesseeLost 17–41 at Florida International-24Florida Interna…Lost 17–27 vs. Georgia State-10Georgia State
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 2vsEastern KentuckyW 31–⁠1793%
Sep 9atIllinoisL 7–⁠2072%
Sep 16vsLouisiana TechL 22–⁠2369%
Sep 23vsBall StateW 33–⁠2177%
Oct 7atUTEPW 15–⁠1483%
Oct 14vsCharlotteW 45–⁠1491%
Oct 20atOld DominionW 35–⁠3169%
Oct 28vsFlorida AtlanticL 28–⁠4275%
Nov 4atVanderbiltL 17–⁠3158%
Nov 11atMarshallL 23–⁠3049%
Nov 17vsMiddle TennesseeW 41–⁠3868%
Nov 24atFlorida InternationalL 17–⁠4156%
Dec 16Bowls & playoffvsGeorgia StateCure BowlL 17–⁠2766%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Georgia State 27–⁠17 in the Cure Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 6th in the Conference USA.

In program history: The 13th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 56 on file).

Record
6–⁠7
Conference
4–⁠4 tied for 6th in Conference USA
AP final
Unranked
Points
331–⁠349
Coach
Mike Sanford Jr.
Elo
1462 −179 this season
SP+ rating
-4.9 No. 88 of 128; offense No. 87, defense No. 83, special teams No. 80
SRS
−13.6 No. 111 of 130 in FBS
Returning
42% of last season’s EPA, No. 98 of 128
Recruiting class
No. 82 roster talent No. 107 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Junior Adams
Defensive coordinator
Clayton White
Offense
Multiple
Defense
4–⁠2–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense60th of 130
  • Defense78th of 130
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted94th of 130
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted104th of 130
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0946%1.1460th of 130
Defense0.1243%1.1978th of 130
Opponent-adjusted0.05 off
0.16 def		43% off
45% def		—94th off
104th 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
Offense3.1own 3117% allowed
Defense3.3own 2916% caused

CORE rating -8.9, 102nd of 130 (offense -2.8, defense 6.1).

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 yardsMike White QB4,177 yds
Passing touchdownsMike White QB26 TD
Rushing yardsD’Andre Ferby RB373 yds
Rushing touchdownsMike White QB6 TD
Receiving yardsNacarius Fant WR704 yds
Receiving touchdownsDeon Yelder TE7 TD
TacklesJoel Iyiegbuniwe LB117 tkl
SacksDerik Overstreet DL3 sacks
InterceptionsDrell Greene DB2 INT

Top recruits in the 2017 class

Juwuan Jones ILB★★★No. 1012
Calder Marria WDE★★★No. 1012
B.J. Sharpe SDE★★★No. 1079
Kyle Bailey S★★★No. 1262
Latheron Rogers-Anderson ATH★★★No. 1607

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

The 2017 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks12.00.783
Running backs22.50.797
Receivers22.50.782
Offensive line52.20.782
Defensive line52.80.815
Linebackers13.00.846
Defensive backs62.20.789
Athletes and specialists42.30.785
Whole class262.40.794

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 2018

The 2018 draft
Rd 4Joel Iyiegbuniwe OLBChicago Bears
Rd 5Mike White QBDallas Cowboys

Roster 103

The 2017 roster

103 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2017 line; 54 have a stat line. See the roster

2017 Conference USA standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Florida Atlantic8–⁠011–⁠3
North Texas7–⁠19–⁠5
Southern Miss6–⁠28–⁠5
UAB6–⁠28–⁠5
Florida International5–⁠38–⁠5
Marshall4–⁠48–⁠5
Middle Tennessee4–⁠47–⁠6
Louisiana Tech4–⁠47–⁠6
Western Kentucky4–⁠46–⁠7
UTSA3–⁠56–⁠5
Old Dominion3–⁠55–⁠7
Rice1–⁠71–⁠11
Charlotte1–⁠71–⁠11
UTEP0–⁠80–⁠12

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