Putting Up Numbers· college football

USC’s points with Waymond Jordan and without Waymond Jordan

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Against what the season’s ratings expected, USC was 6.6 points over with Waymond Jordan and 5.7 points under without Waymond Jordan over its last 25 games, 14 games against 8. The plain averages are 39.9 and 24.9, a difference of 15.0. All 5 games while unranked were with Waymond Jordan.

Waymond Jordan, running back: 911 rushing yards, 163 carries and 14 receptions in 14 of those 25 games.

points a game over expected

A +12.3 difference in points over expected with Waymond Jordan vs without Waymond Jordan is unusual: shuffle which games were with Waymond Jordan and it comes up 2 times in 100.

A +15.0 difference in points with Waymond Jordan vs without Waymond Jordan is unusual: shuffle which games were with Waymond Jordan and it comes up 2 times in 100.

The games

with Waymond Jordanwithout Waymond Jordan
USC’s games, last 25 games, each marked with Waymond Jordan or without Waymond Jordan
SideDateGameResultpointsExpected
Nov 23, 2024@UCLAW1929.4
Nov 30, 2024vsNotre DameL3523.4
Dec 27, 2024vsTexas A&M (neutral)W3527.0
Aug 30, 2025vsMissouri StateW7339.9
Sep 6, 2025vsGeorgia SouthernW5944.8
Sep 13, 2025@PurdueW3336.3
Sep 20, 2025vsMichigan StateW4537.1
Sep 27, 2025@IllinoisL3230.3
Oct 11, 2025vsMichiganW3131.8
Oct 18, 2025@Notre DameL2426.2
Nov 1, 2025@NebraskaW2134.9
Nov 7, 2025vsNorthwesternW3831.0
Nov 15, 2025vsIowaW2626.4
Nov 22, 2025@OregonL2724.6
Nov 29, 2025vsUCLAW2939.5
Dec 30, 2025vsTCU (neutral)L2734.9
Aug 29, 2026vsSan Jose StateW4233.5
Sep 4, 2026vsFresno StateW3930.9
Sep 12, 2026vsLouisianaW4931.3
Sep 19, 2026@RutgersW4238.9
Sep 26, 2026vsOregonL2726.8
Oct 3, 2026vsWashingtonW2532.4
Oct 10, 2026@Penn StateW3125.7
Oct 24, 2026@WisconsinL727.3
Oct 31, 2026vsOhio StateW3026.2

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 1.5 in 2025, plus 1.9 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 78% in 2025, 66% 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.
  • Who played is read from the schools’ box scores’ participation lists for 21 of these 22 games; in the other game a player is counted as in it when the box score has a stat for him.
  • 3 games in 2024 are neither with Waymond Jordan nor without Waymond Jordan: Waymond Jordan had no game for the team that season, and sit out.