Tag: stop rate

Notre Dame football leads the nation in this important defensive stat

This could lead to big things for the Irish

Many of know that Notre Dame football has one of the best defenses in the country, but its not only pass the look test, its passing the advanced metrics test as well.

Max Olson of ESPN recently posted the top-12 schools in stop rate percentage, and the Irish are the best team in the country at preventing points. The data is accumulated by which defense is the best at forcing punts, creating turnovers or getting stops on 4th down tries.

Notre Dame has a 81.7% stop rate, top in the country, while allowing just 0.96 points-per-drive, which isn’t the best, but is just a few spots away from being No. 1 also.

Olson points out that last year’s national champion, the Michigan Wolverines, finished at the top of this metric as well. This is a good omen for Notre Dame, as defense typically travels well, and the Irish have one of the best this fall.

Nov 16, 2024; South Bend, Indiana, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish safety Adon Shuler (8) intercepts a pass intended for Virginia Cavaliers tight end Tyler Neville (16) in the second quarter at Notre Dame Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-Imagn Images

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes and opinions.

Follow Mike on X: @MikeFChen

Where Gators rank in stop rate heading into Week 10

Florida’s upcoming opponent, Georgia, is tied for 30th on the stop rate standings at 68.2% with 1.64 points allowed per drive.

Florida football is ranked 61st among FBS teams with a 63.2% stop rate, while allowing 2.19 points per drive, according to ESPN.

Stop rate is “a basic measurement of success: the percentage of a defense’s drives that end in punts, turnovers or a turnover on downs,” according to ESPN staff writer Max Olson.

“Defensive coordinators have the same goal regardless of their scheme, opponent or conference: prevent points and get off the field. Stop rate is a simple metric but can offer a good reflection of a defense’s effectiveness on a per-drive basis in today’s faster-tempo game.”

Last year’s national champion, Michigan, finished the season with the top stop rate (81.6%), and the top 25 teams in terms of the metric won 249 combined games and seven conference titles.

Ahead of Week 10 action, Tennessee is at the top of the stop rate standings, followed by Texas, Notre Dame, Ohio State and Army. Several SEC teams are inside the top 25, including No. 7 Ole Miss, No. 10 Alabama and No. 16 South Carolina.

Florida’s upcoming opponent, Georgia, is tied for 30th on the stop rate standings at 68.2% with 1.64 points allowed per drive.

Surprisingly, Kentucky is ranked ahead of Florida at No. 50, despite allowing the Gators to score nearly 50 points last week.

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Wisconsin defense enters top 10 of important metric after Northwestern win

Wisconsin defense enters top 10 of important metric after Northwestern win

Wisconsin’s defense continues to trend positively in almost every key metric and measurement.

The unit has been on a historic run over the last three weeks. It has allowed only 16 total points (six to Purdue, seven to Rutgers and three to Northwestern). That is the fewest the team has allowed over a three-game stretch in Big Ten play since 1998.

Related: Wisconsin’s defense among best in college football in key stats after 23-3 win vs. Northwestern

The recent dominance has Luke Fickell and Mike Tressel’s unit up to No. 18 nationally in scoring defense, No. 7 in pass defense and No. 14 in total defense. It’s hard the argue the Badger defense not being a top-15 unit in the sport at this stage of the season.

Another key metric shows the Badgers’ current strong standing: Stop rate.

ESPN’s Max Olson recently shared the metric’s updated rankings through Week 8. Wisconsin is up to No. 9 in the nation with a stop rate of 75%.

The statistic, as described by Olson, is ‘the percentage of a defense’s drives that end in punts, turnovers or a turnover on downs.’ Or, in other words, ‘stops.’

Wisconsin has risen in the rankings after boasting a stop rate of 81% against Purdue, 93% against Rutgers and 91% against Northwestern.

The team scored a combined 117 points over those three games. But that defensive dominance has been at the center of the stretch that has turned around the team’s season.

Wisconsin’s defense will now face a true test on Saturday when No. 3 Penn State visits Camp Randall Stadium. Another dominant showing, and it may be time to consider the unit among the nation’s top 10.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion.