Putting Up Numbers· college football

Syracuse’s third-down conversion rate with Steve Angeli and without Steve Angeli

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Against what the season’s ratings expected, Syracuse was 4.4 percentage points under with Steve Angeli and 1.1 percentage points under without Steve Angeli over its last 25 games, 7 games against 11. The plain averages are 41.1% and 34.7%, a difference of 6.4%. Both top-10 opponents were without Steve Angeli. Both opponents outside the major colleges were with Steve Angeli. All 3 games after a bye were without Steve Angeli.

Steve Angeli, quarterback: 2,504 passing yards, 328 pass attempts and 196 completions in 9 of those 25 games.

third-down conversion rate a game over expected

A −3.3% difference in third-down conversion rate over expected with Steve Angeli vs without Steve Angeli is about what you’d expect.

A +6.4% difference in third-down conversion rate with Steve Angeli vs without Steve Angeli is about what you’d expect.

The games

with Steve Angeliwithout Steve Angeli
Syracuse’s games, last 25 games, each marked with Steve Angeli or without Steve Angeli
SideDateGameResult3rd downsExpected
Nov 9, 2024@Boston CollegeL41.7%45.0%
Nov 16, 2024@CaliforniaW41.2%41.6%
Nov 23, 2024vsUConnW47.1%41.6%
Nov 30, 2024vsMiami (FL)W70.0%42.9%
Dec 27, 2024vsWashington State (neutral)W33.3%45.5%
Aug 30, 2025vsTennessee (neutral)L35.7%37.2%
Sep 6, 2025vsUConnW33.3%39.2%
Sep 12, 2025vsColgateW70.0%—
Sep 20, 2025@ClemsonW20.0%31.7%
Sep 27, 2025vsDukeL35.7%39.1%
Oct 4, 2025@SMUL37.5%33.2%
Oct 18, 2025vsPittsburghL26.7%33.7%
Oct 25, 2025@Georgia TechL35.7%37.9%
Oct 31, 2025vsNorth CarolinaL25.0%40.4%
Nov 8, 2025@Miami (FL)L40.0%27.2%
Nov 22, 2025@Notre DameL38.9%29.7%
Nov 29, 2025vsBoston CollegeL28.6%40.3%
Sep 5, 2026vsNew HampshireW66.7%—
Sep 12, 2026vsCaliforniaL41.2%40.1%
Sep 17, 2026@PittsburghL35.7%38.1%
Oct 3, 2026@UConnW58.8%38.6%
Oct 10, 2026@VirginiaL33.3%37.2%
Oct 17, 2026vsLouisvilleL21.4%36.1%
Oct 24, 2026@North CarolinaW42.1%40.6%
Oct 31, 2026vsSMUW25.0%36.8%

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 0.7% in 2025, plus 1.4% 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 56% in 2025, 40% 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.
  • Colgate, New Hampshire 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, which name every player who entered the game.
  • 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.
  • 5 games in 2024 are neither with Steve Angeli nor without Steve Angeli: Steve Angeli had no game for the team that season, and sit out.