CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2021 Western Michigan

8–⁠5 (4–⁠4 Mid-American Conference), coached by Tim Lester.

Schedule and results

Western Michigan in 2021, game by game: lost at Michigan 14–47; won vs. Illinois State 28–0; won at Pittsburgh 44–41; won vs. San José State 23–3; won at Buffalo 24–17; lost vs. Ball State 20–45; won vs. Kent State 64–31; lost at Toledo 15–34; lost vs. Central Michigan 30–42; won vs. Akron 45–40; lost at Eastern Michigan 21–22; won at Northern Illinois 42–21; won vs. Nevada 52–24+33−33Lost 14–47 at Michigan-33MichiganWon 28–0 vs. Illinois State+28Illinois StateWon 44–41 at Pittsburgh+3PittsburghWon 23–3 vs. San José State+20San José StateWon 24–17 at Buffalo+7BuffaloLost 20–45 vs. Ball State-25Ball StateWon 64–31 vs. Kent State+33Kent StateLost 15–34 at Toledo-19ToledoLost 30–42 vs. Central Michigan-12Central MichiganWon 45–40 vs. Akron+5AkronLost 21–22 at Eastern Michigan-1Eastern MichiganWon 42–21 at Northern Illinois+21Northern Illino…Won 52–24 vs. Nevada+28Nevada
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 4atMichiganL 14–⁠4738%
Sep 11vsIllinois StateW 28–⁠073%
Sep 18atPittsburghW 44–⁠4129%
Sep 25vsSan José StateW 23–⁠353%
Oct 2atBuffaloW 24–⁠1743%
Oct 9vsBall StateL 20–⁠4565%
Oct 16vsKent StateW 64–⁠3161%
Oct 23atToledoL 15–⁠3451%
Nov 3vsCentral MichiganL 30–⁠4265%
Nov 9vsAkronW 45–⁠4081%
Nov 16atEastern MichiganL 21–⁠2246%
Nov 23atNorthern IllinoisW 42–⁠2144%
Dec 27Bowls & playoffvsNevadaQuick Lane BowlW 52–⁠2437%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Nevada 52–⁠24 in the Quick Lane Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 6th in the Mid-American Conference.

In program history: The 8th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 83 on file).

Record
8–⁠5
Conference
4–⁠4 tied for 6th in Mid-American Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
422–⁠367
Coach
Tim Lester
Elo
1561 +61 this season
SP+ rating
0.6 No. 76 of 130; offense No. 39, defense No. 91
SRS
0.1 No. 70 of 130 in FBS
Returning
82% of last season’s EPA, No. 53 of 128
Recruiting class
No. 97 roster talent No. 106 in FBS
Offensive coordinators
Mike Bath and Eric Evans
Defensive coordinator
Lou Esposito
Offense
West Coast
Defense
4–⁠2–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense13th of 130
  • Defense100th of 130
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted28th of 130
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted105th of 130
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.2549%1.2113th of 130
Defense0.2140%1.48100th of 130
Opponent-adjusted0.21 off
0.20 def		46% off
41% def		—28th off
105th 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
Offense4.2own 2813% allowed
Defense3.7own 3222% caused

CORE rating 1.9, 65th of 130 (offense 5.3, defense 3.4).

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 yardsKaleb Eleby QB3,277 yds
Passing touchdownsKaleb Eleby QB23 TD
Rushing yardsSean Tyler RB1,150 yds
Rushing touchdownsLa’Darius Jefferson RB10 TD
Receiving yardsSkyy Moore WR1,292 yds
Receiving touchdownsSkyy Moore WR10 TD
TacklesZaire Barnes LB68 tkl
SacksAli Fayad DE13 sacks
InterceptionsDorian Jackson CB2 INT

Top recruits in the 2021 class

Brandon Honorable OT★★★No. 756
Elijah Hawk DL★★★No. 1142
Henry Wilson ATH★★★No. 1551
Jaali Parker S★★★No. 1608
Carson Briggs OT★★★No. 1608

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

The 2021 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.815
Running backs13.00.818
Receivers33.00.819
Offensive line53.00.831
Defensive line33.00.823
Linebackers13.00.812
Defensive backs13.00.835
Athletes and specialists43.00.822
Whole class193.00.824

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 2022

The 2022 draft
Rd 2Skyy Moore WRKansas City Chiefs

Roster 96

The 2021 roster

96 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2021 line; 55 have a stat line. See the roster

Transfers in 1

The 2021 portal
Hozey Haji-Badri DL★★★from East Carolina

Transfers out 7

Treshaun Hayward LB★★★to Arizona
Eston Miles DL★★★no new school on file
Ginial Isma CB★★★returned to Western Michigan
Luke Sanders TE★★★no new school on file
Stiles Moore DE★★★no new school on file
Roy McCree LB★★no new school on file
Ryan Lezzer WR★★no new school on file

2021 Mid-American Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Central Michigan6–⁠29–⁠4
Northern Illinois6–⁠29–⁠5
Kent State6–⁠27–⁠7
Toledo5–⁠37–⁠6
Miami (OH)5–⁠37–⁠6
Western Michigan4–⁠48–⁠5
Eastern Michigan4–⁠47–⁠6
Ball State4–⁠46–⁠7
Ohio3–⁠53–⁠9
Buffalo2–⁠64–⁠8
Bowling Green2–⁠64–⁠8
Akron1–⁠72–⁠10

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