Putting Up Numbers· college football

James Madison’s passing yards with JC Evans and without JC Evans

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Against what the season’s ratings expected, James Madison was 91.8 yards under with JC Evans and 0.6 yards over without JC Evans over its last 25 games, 1 game against 22. The plain averages are 118.0 and 224.9, a difference of 106.9. All 11 away games were without JC Evans. All 8 night games were without JC Evans. Both opponents outside the major colleges were without JC Evans.

JC Evans, quarterback: 371 passing yards, 39 pass attempts and 27 completions in 9 of those 25 games, 19% of James Madison’s passing yards in those games.

One game with JC Evans is one game, not a sample, but maybe you can find something if you squint.

passing yards a game over expected

The games

with JC Evanswithout JC Evans
James Madison’s games, last 25 games, each marked with JC Evans or without JC Evans
SideDateGameResultpassing yardsExpected
Nov 30, 2024vsMarshallL138223.1
Dec 18, 2024vsWestern Kentucky (neutral)W182215.7
Aug 30, 2025vsWWeber StateW145—
Sep 5, 2025@LouisvilleL137191.1
Sep 20, 2025@LibertyW213211.8
Sep 27, 2025vsGeorgia SouthernW148251.1
Oct 4, 2025@Georgia StateW74254.4
Oct 11, 2025vsLouisianaW290225.3
Oct 18, 2025vsOld DominionW313193.3
Oct 28, 2025@Texas StateW264232.5
Nov 8, 2025@MarshallW270252.7
Nov 15, 2025vsAppalachian StateW303248.6
Nov 22, 2025vsWashington StateW144179.3
Nov 29, 2025@Coastal CarolinaW239242.2
Dec 5, 2025vsTroyW93221.7
Dec 20, 2025@OregonL323131.9
Sep 5, 2026vsLibertyW118209.8
Sep 12, 2026vsWWagnerW298—
Sep 19, 2026@San Diego StateW246265.0
Sep 26, 2026@Old DominionW243212.0
Oct 3, 2026vsMarshallW263250.9
Oct 10, 2026@Georgia SouthernW229225.9
Oct 17, 2026vsGeorgia StateW265236.1
Oct 22, 2026@Appalachian StateL331238.4
Oct 29, 2026vsTroyL247239.2

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, plus 2.3 in 2024, plus 1.8 in 2025, plus 4.1 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 72% in 2024, 68% in 2025, 59% in 2026 of the difference the model predicts.
  • Weber State, Wagner 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 23 of these 25 games; in the other 2 a player is counted as in them when the box score has a stat for him.
  • With him means he was the team’s quarterback that game, at least half of its pass attempts; a game he left early or came into late reads as without him.