Putting Up Numbers· college football

Illinois’ penalty yards with Kaden Feagin and without Kaden Feagin

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Against what the season’s ratings expected, Illinois was 11.8 yards under with Kaden Feagin and 1.0 yards under without Kaden Feagin over its last 25 games, 18 games against 5. The plain averages are 37.4 and 44.8, a difference of 7.4. All 6 night games were with Kaden Feagin. Both top-10 opponents were with Kaden Feagin. Both opponents outside the major colleges were with Kaden Feagin.

Kaden Feagin, running back: 507 rushing yards, 122 carries and 24 receptions in 18 of those 25 games.

penalty yards a game over expected

A −10.8 difference in penalty yards over expected with Kaden Feagin vs without Kaden Feagin is about what you’d expect.

A −7.4 difference in penalty yards with Kaden Feagin vs without Kaden Feagin is about what you’d expect.

The games

with Kaden Feaginwithout Kaden Feagin
Illinois’ games, last 25 games, each marked with Kaden Feagin or without Kaden Feagin
SideDateGameResultpenalty yardsExpected
Nov 16, 2024vsMichigan StateW2044.8
Nov 23, 2024@RutgersW9345.8
Nov 30, 2024vsNorthwestern (neutral)W5041.5
Dec 31, 2024vsSouth Carolina (neutral)W1548.4
Aug 29, 2025vsWWestern IllinoisW60—
Sep 6, 2025@DukeW5154.7
Sep 13, 2025vsWestern MichiganW4643.6
Sep 20, 2025@IndianaL2343.6
Sep 27, 2025vsUSCW4251.3
Oct 4, 2025@PurdueW3147.7
Oct 11, 2025vsOhio StateL1937.6
Oct 25, 2025@WashingtonL8242.2
Nov 1, 2025vsRutgersW2547.8
Nov 15, 2025vsMarylandW3047.0
Nov 22, 2025@WisconsinL4043.1
Nov 29, 2025vsNorthwesternW4444.7
Dec 30, 2025vsTennessee (neutral)W2048.8
Sep 3, 2026vsUABW449.3
Sep 12, 2026vsDukeL7159.8
Sep 19, 2026vsSouthern IllinoisW44—
Sep 26, 2026@Ohio StateL5247.4
Oct 3, 2026vsPurdueL4648.6
Oct 10, 2026@Michigan StateW1645.1
Oct 24, 2026vsOregonW3244.4
Oct 31, 2026@MarylandW1557.6

Method

Read against .

  • Expected is an offense and a defense a team, fit over every game of its season between two teams in the table with the game being read left out, minus 0.8 in 2024, minus 2.1 in 2025, minus 1.3 in 2026 for the home team (the edge the fit finds once strength is in), nothing at a neutral site.
  • Each expected number is then fit to the season’s games: a game bears out about 44% in 2024, 45% in 2025, 27% in 2026 of the difference the model predicts.
  • The shuffle keeps the season’s shape: the games are cut in two where one date leaves the least variance, each game is read against its stretch, and the sides are shuffled only inside each stretch.
  • Western Illinois, Southern Illinois have no other game in the table, so those games have no expected number and sit out the second figure.
  • Who played is read from the schools’ box scores’ participation lists for 21 of these 25 games; in the other 4 a player is counted as in them when the box score has a stat for him.