Putting Up Numbers· college football

Old Dominion’s rushing yards with Maurki James and without Maurki James

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Against what the season’s ratings expected, Old Dominion was 11.9 yards under with Maurki James and 76.7 yards over without Maurki James over its last 25 games, 17 games against 3. The plain averages are 169.4 and 248.5, a difference of 79.1. Both games after a bye were with Maurki James.

Maurki James, running back: 327 rushing yards, 89 carries and 10 receptions in 17 of those 25 games, 12% of Old Dominion’s rushing yards in those games.

rushing yards a game over expected

A −88.5 difference in rushing yards over expected with Maurki James vs without Maurki James is about what you’d expect.

A −79.1 difference in rushing yards with Maurki James vs without Maurki James is about what you’d expect.

The games

with Maurki Jameswithout Maurki James
Old Dominion’s games, last 25 games, each marked with Maurki James or without Maurki James
SideDateGameResultrushing yardsExpected
Nov 16, 2024vsJames MadisonL290211.3
Nov 23, 2024vsMarshallL286253.0
Nov 30, 2024@Arkansas StateW411252.9
Aug 30, 2025@IndianaL218126.3
Sep 6, 2025vsNNorth Carolina CentralW276—
Sep 13, 2025@Virginia TechW251196.5
Sep 27, 2025vsLibertyW219257.4
Oct 4, 2025vsCoastal CarolinaW302257.3
Oct 11, 2025@MarshallL173224.3
Oct 18, 2025@James MadisonL76160.0
Oct 25, 2025vsAppalachian StateW158247.5
Nov 1, 2025@Louisiana MonroeW160241.5
Nov 13, 2025vsTroyW356225.7
Nov 22, 2025@Georgia SouthernW380257.5
Nov 29, 2025vsGeorgia StateW306249.5
Dec 17, 2025vsSouth Florida (neutral)W259191.1
Sep 5, 2026vsNNorfolk StateW180—
Sep 12, 2026@Virginia TechL12876.9
Sep 19, 2026vsEast CarolinaL20194.2
Sep 26, 2026vsJames MadisonL-14130.8
Oct 3, 2026@Georgia StateL67138.8
Oct 10, 2026@Appalachian StateW21697.3
Oct 15, 2026vsGeorgia SouthernL65112.0
Oct 24, 2026@Louisiana TechL-13110.9
Oct 31, 2026vsMarshallL80163.9

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 5.9 in 2025, plus 8.0 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 77% in 2025, 60% 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.
  • North Carolina Central, Norfolk State 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 18 of these 22 games; in the other 4 a player is counted as in them when the box score has a stat for him.
  • 3 games in 2024 are neither with Maurki James nor without Maurki James: Maurki James had no game for the team that season, and sit out.