I'm not going to have time to complete this before I have to go to work. Maybe you all can run with it.
I'm trying to put together a list of those things that historically and to the present are the ingredients, characteristics, statistical patterns -- the conventions -- of championship teams in college football. Maybe even cliches (i.e. "Defense wins championships"). So first create a list of all the truisms and truths that are held about how championships are won and won consistently.
What I would then like to do is compare these conventions against the Top Ten teams over, say, that last 10-20 years to see how they bear out. There will always be a few anomalies here and there and I'd like to see if there are any consistencies within those anomalies (Wisconsin just may be an example, not sure until we collect the conventions). But otherwise, I assume there will emerge some fairly tried and true, sure principles and consistencies that make up Top Ten teams.
Then AND ONLY THEN I'd like to see how Nebraska is currently aligning with those Conventions of Championship Football. In other words, another off-season thread to assess the football program and how we're trending relative to being a Top Ten team and/or winning championships.
First, then. Can we compile a list of those things that are almost universally true of top teams (w/notable exceptions)? Potential -- rush/pass ratio, recruiting ranking, quarterback, running back, pass completion, turnovers/forced turnovers, coaching tenure and staff turnover, playmakers, pass defense, run defense, schedule, type of offense, type of defense, practice philosophies/principles, processing, etc.
I'll even start...
1. Scoring Defense in Top 20 (for Top Ten), Top 15 for playoff/BCS teams.
I'm trying to put together a list of those things that historically and to the present are the ingredients, characteristics, statistical patterns -- the conventions -- of championship teams in college football. Maybe even cliches (i.e. "Defense wins championships"). So first create a list of all the truisms and truths that are held about how championships are won and won consistently.
What I would then like to do is compare these conventions against the Top Ten teams over, say, that last 10-20 years to see how they bear out. There will always be a few anomalies here and there and I'd like to see if there are any consistencies within those anomalies (Wisconsin just may be an example, not sure until we collect the conventions). But otherwise, I assume there will emerge some fairly tried and true, sure principles and consistencies that make up Top Ten teams.
Then AND ONLY THEN I'd like to see how Nebraska is currently aligning with those Conventions of Championship Football. In other words, another off-season thread to assess the football program and how we're trending relative to being a Top Ten team and/or winning championships.
First, then. Can we compile a list of those things that are almost universally true of top teams (w/notable exceptions)? Potential -- rush/pass ratio, recruiting ranking, quarterback, running back, pass completion, turnovers/forced turnovers, coaching tenure and staff turnover, playmakers, pass defense, run defense, schedule, type of offense, type of defense, practice philosophies/principles, processing, etc.
I'll even start...
1. Scoring Defense in Top 20 (for Top Ten), Top 15 for playoff/BCS teams.
