Penn State’s points of margin with Quinton Martin Jr. and without Quinton Martin Jr.
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Against what the season’s ratings expected, Penn State was 4.3 points over with Quinton Martin Jr. and 0.3 points under without Quinton Martin Jr. over its last 25 games, 13 games against 11. The plain averages are 7.2 and 13.3, a difference of 6.0. Expected was 7.6 points lower with Quinton Martin Jr. than without Quinton Martin Jr..
Quinton Martin Jr., running back: 270 rushing yards, 54 carries and 5 receptions in 8 of those 25 games.
points of margin a game over expected
A +4.6 difference in points of margin over expected with Quinton Martin Jr. vs without Quinton Martin Jr. is a bit unusual: shuffle which games were with Quinton Martin Jr. and it comes up 20 times in 100.
A −6.0 difference in points of margin with Quinton Martin Jr. vs without Quinton Martin Jr. is about what you’d expect.
The games
| Side | Date | Game | Result | points of margin | Expected |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 7, 2024 | vs Oregon (neutral) | L | -8 | 0.5 | |
| Dec 21, 2024 | vs SMU | W | 28 | 5.5 | |
| Dec 31, 2024 | vs Boise State (neutral) | W | 17 | 10.8 | |
| Jan 9, 2025 | vs Notre Dame (neutral) | L | -3 | -4.1 | |
| Aug 30, 2025 | vs Nevada | W | 35 | 29.8 | |
| Sep 6, 2025 | vs Florida International | W | 34 | 30.4 | |
| Sep 13, 2025 | vs Villanova | W | 46 | — | |
| Sep 27, 2025 | vsOregon | L | -6 | -8.8 | |
| Oct 4, 2025 | @ UCLA | L | -5 | 16.6 | |
| Oct 11, 2025 | vs Northwestern | L | -1 | 14.2 | |
| Oct 18, 2025 | @ Iowa | L | -1 | -7.4 | |
| Nov 1, 2025 | @ Ohio State | L | -24 | -14.3 | |
| Nov 8, 2025 | vs Indiana | L | -3 | -19.3 | |
| Nov 15, 2025 | @ Michigan State | W | 18 | 8.7 | |
| Nov 22, 2025 | vs Nebraska | W | 27 | 9.3 | |
| Nov 29, 2025 | @ Rutgers | W | 4 | 11.3 | |
| Dec 27, 2025 | vs Clemson (neutral) | W | 12 | 7.8 | |
| Sep 5, 2026 | vs Marshall | W | 45 | 18.8 | |
| Sep 12, 2026 | @ Temple | W | 18 | 16.3 | |
| Sep 19, 2026 | vs Buffalo | W | 42 | 17.5 | |
| Sep 26, 2026 | vs Wisconsin | L | -4 | 2.1 | |
| Oct 2, 2026 | @Northwestern | L | -21 | -3.2 | |
| Oct 10, 2026 | vs USC | L | -8 | 4.2 | |
| Oct 17, 2026 | @ Michigan | L | -3 | 3.3 | |
| Oct 31, 2026 | vs Purdue | W | 14 | 5.0 |
Method
- 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 3.0 in 2024, plus 3.1 in 2025, plus 3.7 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 85% in 2024, 87% in 2025, 79% 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.
- Villanova has no other game in the table, so that game has no expected number and sits out the second figure.
- Who played is read from the schools’ box scores’ participation lists for 13 of these 25 games; in the other 12 a player is counted as in them when the box score has a stat for him.