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2015 Western Michigan

8–⁠5 (6–⁠2 Mid-American Conference), coached by P.J. Fleck.

Schedule and results

Western Michigan in 2015, game by game: lost vs. No. 5 Michigan State 24–37; lost at Georgia Southern 17–43; won vs. Murray State 52–20; lost at No. 1 Ohio State 12–38; won vs. Central Michigan 41–39; won at Ohio 49–14; won vs. Miami (OH) 35–13; won at Eastern Michigan 58–28; won vs. Ball State 54–7; lost vs. Bowling Green 27–41; lost at Northern Illinois 19–27; won at No. 24 Toledo 35–30; won vs. Middle Tennessee 45–31+47−26Lost 24–37 vs. No. 5 Michigan State-13No. 5 Michigan StateLost 17–43 at Georgia Southern-26Georgia SouthernWon 52–20 vs. Murray State+32Murray StateLost 12–38 at No. 1 Ohio State-26No. 1 Ohio StateWon 41–39 vs. Central Michigan+2Central MichiganWon 49–14 at Ohio+35OhioWon 35–13 vs. Miami (OH)+22Miami (OH)Won 58–28 at Eastern Michigan+30Eastern MichiganWon 54–7 vs. Ball State+47Ball StateLost 27–41 vs. Bowling Green-14Bowling GreenLost 19–27 at Northern Illinois-8Northern Illino…Won 35–30 at No. 24 Toledo+5No. 24 ToledoWon 45–31 vs. Middle Tennessee+14Middle Tennessee
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 4vs5Michigan StateL 24–⁠3731%
Sep 12atGeorgia SouthernL 17–⁠4342%
Sep 19vsMurray StateW 52–⁠2081%
Sep 26at1Ohio StateL 12–⁠3810%
Oct 10vsCentral MichiganW 41–⁠3953%
Oct 17atOhioW 49–⁠1432%
Oct 24vsMiami (OH)W 35–⁠1384%
Oct 29atEastern MichiganW 58–⁠2877%
Nov 5vsBall StateW 54–⁠775%
Nov 11vsBowling GreenL 27–⁠4150%
Nov 18atNorthern IllinoisL 19–⁠2729%
Nov 27at24ToledoW 35–⁠3023%
Dec 24Bowls & playoffvsMiddle TennesseeBahamas BowlW 45–⁠3155%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Middle Tennessee 45–⁠31 in the Bahamas Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 2nd in the Mid-American Conference.

In program history: The 6th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 83 on file).

MAC West champions6–⁠2 in the conference, shared with Northern Illinois and Toledo

Record
8–⁠5
Conference
6–⁠2 tied for 2nd in Mid-American Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
468–⁠368
Coach
P.J. Fleck
Elo
1567 +83 this season
SP+ rating
4.9 No. 56 of 128; offense No. 26, defense No. 95, special teams No. 46
SRS
2.6 No. 57 of 128 in FBS
Returning
100% of last season’s EPA, No. 2 of 128
Recruiting class
No. 76 roster talent No. 76 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Kirk Ciarrocca
Defensive coordinator
Ed Pinkham
Offense
Spread
Defense
4–⁠3

How good, play by play

  • Offense8th of 128
  • Defense91st of 128
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted15th of 128
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted90th of 128
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.2447%1.288th of 128
Defense0.1442%1.3591st of 128
Opponent-adjusted0.21 off
0.12 def		46% off
42% def		—15th off
90th 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
Offense3.6own 291% allowed
Defense3.8own 292% 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.

Leaders

Passing yardsZach Terrell QB3,522 yds
Passing touchdownsZach Terrell QB29 TD
Rushing yardsJamauri Bogan RB1,051 yds
Rushing touchdownsJamauri Bogan RB16 TD
Receiving yardsCorey Davis WR1,436 yds
Receiving touchdownsDaniel Braverman WR13 TD
InterceptionsDarius Phillips WR5 INT

Top recruits in the 2015 class

Justin Tranquill S★★★No. 499
LeVante Bellamy WR★★★No. 1217
John Keenoy OG★★★No. 1408
Kadeem Goulbourne WR★★★No. 1412
Davon Tucker RB★★★No. 1417

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

The 2015 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.819
Running backs13.00.833
Receivers72.60.803
Offensive line22.50.812
Defensive line52.40.798
Linebackers22.00.783
Defensive backs52.60.814
Athletes and specialists42.80.798
Whole class272.60.804

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 2016

The 2016 draft
Rd 4Willie Beavers OGMinnesota Vikings
Rd 7Daniel Braverman WRChicago Bears

Roster 102

The 2015 roster

102 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2015 line; 25 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.