Putting Up Numbers· college football

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

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Against what the season’s ratings expected, Old Dominion was 9.1 yards under with Maurki James and 12.5 yards over without Maurki James over its last 25 games, 17 games against 3. The plain averages are 377.5 and 401.3, a difference of 23.8. Expected was 38.6 yards lower with Maurki James than without Maurki James. 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.

total yards a game over expected

A −21.6 difference in total yards over expected with Maurki James vs without Maurki James is about what you’d expect.

A −23.8 difference in total 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
SideDateGameResulttotal yardsExpected
Nov 16, 2024vsJames MadisonL479411.8
Nov 23, 2024vsMarshallL517441.1
Nov 30, 2024@Arkansas StateW554499.8
Aug 30, 2025@IndianaL314299.6
Sep 6, 2025vsNNorth Carolina CentralW553—
Sep 13, 2025@Virginia TechW527372.1
Sep 27, 2025vsLibertyW490449.9
Oct 4, 2025vsCoastal CarolinaW619483.3
Oct 11, 2025@MarshallL439470.6
Oct 18, 2025@James MadisonL285336.6
Oct 25, 2025vsAppalachian StateW468487.2
Nov 1, 2025@Louisiana MonroeW391467.6
Nov 13, 2025vsTroyW508427.5
Nov 22, 2025@Georgia SouthernW555495.4
Nov 29, 2025vsGeorgia StateW412497.4
Dec 17, 2025vsSouth Florida (neutral)W386427.6
Sep 5, 2026vsNNorfolk StateW323—
Sep 12, 2026@Virginia TechL315251.7
Sep 19, 2026vsEast CarolinaL295289.2
Sep 26, 2026vsJames MadisonL247330.8
Oct 3, 2026@Georgia StateL146338.3
Oct 10, 2026@Appalachian StateW313316.3
Oct 15, 2026vsGeorgia SouthernL264274.3
Oct 24, 2026@Louisiana TechL141296.3
Oct 31, 2026vsMarshallL409329.5

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 7.7 in 2025, plus 12.1 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 79% in 2025, 67% 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.