Putting Up Numbers· college football

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

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Against what the season’s ratings expected, James Madison was 13.1 yards over with JC Evans and 9.0 yards over without JC Evans over its last 25 games, 1 game against 22. The plain averages are 77.0 and 69.8, a difference of 7.3. 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.

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

penalty 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
SideDateGameResultpenalty yardsExpected
Nov 30, 2024vsMarshallL5559.2
Dec 18, 2024vsWestern Kentucky (neutral)W2048.7
Aug 30, 2025vsWWeber StateW75—
Sep 5, 2025@LouisvilleL9560.2
Sep 20, 2025@LibertyW7258.0
Sep 27, 2025vsGeorgia SouthernW6063.3
Oct 4, 2025@Georgia StateW10060.6
Oct 11, 2025vsLouisianaW10261.8
Oct 18, 2025vsOld DominionW4567.9
Oct 28, 2025@Texas StateW4362.4
Nov 8, 2025@MarshallW3259.8
Nov 15, 2025vsAppalachian StateW7458.9
Nov 22, 2025vsWashington StateW5466.7
Nov 29, 2025@Coastal CarolinaW7065.9
Dec 5, 2025vsTroyW8057.9
Dec 20, 2025@OregonL11356.4
Sep 5, 2026vsLibertyW7763.9
Sep 12, 2026vsWWagnerW70—
Sep 19, 2026@San Diego StateW6357.2
Sep 26, 2026@Old DominionW7567.1
Oct 3, 2026vsMarshallW5358.6
Oct 10, 2026@Georgia SouthernW7565.9
Oct 17, 2026vsGeorgia StateW8555.8
Oct 22, 2026@Appalachian StateL9261.3
Oct 29, 2026vsTroyL7157.6

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.
  • 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.