Putting Up Numbers· college football

Tennessee’s third-down conversion rate with George MacIntyre and without George MacIntyre

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Against what the season’s ratings expected, Tennessee was 4.8 percentage points under with George MacIntyre and 2.4 percentage points over without George MacIntyre in 2026, 4 games against 3. The plain averages are 33.0% and 41.9%, a difference of 8.8%. Both night games were without George MacIntyre. All 3 nonconference games were without George MacIntyre. All 4 first-half games were without George MacIntyre.

George MacIntyre, quarterback: 728 passing yards, 103 pass attempts and 69 completions in 6 games this season.

third-down conversion rate a game over expected

A −7.2% difference in third-down conversion rate over expected with George MacIntyre vs without George MacIntyre is about what you’d expect.

A −8.8% difference in third-down conversion rate with George MacIntyre vs without George MacIntyre is about what you’d expect.

The games

with George MacIntyrewithout George MacIntyre
Tennessee’s games, 2026, each marked with George MacIntyre or without George MacIntyre
SideDateGameResult3rd downsExpected
Sep 5, 2026vsFurmanW45.5%—
Sep 12, 2026@Georgia TechW57.1%38.7%
Sep 19, 2026vsKennesaw StateW40.0%41.5%
Sep 26, 2026vsTexasL25.0%34.9%
Oct 3, 2026vsAuburnW21.4%39.6%
Oct 10, 2026@ArkansasW30.8%41.4%
Oct 17, 2026vsAlabamaW40.0%33.0%
Oct 24, 2026@South CarolinaL40.0%37.6%

Method

Read against .

  • Expected is an offense and a defense a team, fit over every 2026 game between two teams in the table with the game being read left out, plus 1.4% 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 40% of the difference the model predicts.
  • The two sides are the games before and after one date, so the shuffle moves any game between them.
  • Furman 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, 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.