RANKING EXPLANATION

#85 Michigan State

See which factors helped or hurt this team’s ranking.

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Small effect

Game control

Rewards teams that consistently outscore opponents, with schedule strength considered.

Your importance: 8 out of 10
Moderate drag

Scoring punch

Rewards teams that put points on the board, adjusted for who they played.

Your importance: 5 out of 10
Moderate boost

Defensive toughness

Rewards teams that keep opponents off the scoreboard, adjusted for who they played.

Your importance: 5 out of 10
Small effect

Winning

Rewards teams for simply winning the games on their schedule.

Your importance: 8 out of 10
Small effect

Tough schedules

Rewards teams that have faced stronger opponents.

Your importance: 6 out of 10
Small effect

Big-game wins

Gives extra credit for beating strong opponents.

Your importance: 6 out of 10
Small effect

Wins away from home

Gives extra credit for winning road and neutral-site games.

Your importance: 3 out of 10
Small effect

Statement wins

Rewards teams for wins by 14 or more points.

Your importance: 3 out of 10
Not used: evidence unavailable

Close-game grit

Rewards teams that win games decided by eight points or fewer.

Your importance: 2 out of 10
Small effect

Avoiding bad losses

Rewards teams whose worst result was still competitive.

Your importance: 3 out of 10
Small effect

Team talent

How much proven player talent is already on the roster.

Your importance: 5 out of 10
Small effect

Recruiting strength

Rewards teams that have stacked several strong recruiting classes.

Your importance: 5 out of 10
Small effect

Returning production

Rewards teams bringing back more of last season's on-field production.

Your importance: 4 out of 10
Small effect

Transfer portal impact

Rewards teams whose rated transfer additions outweigh their departures.

Your importance: 3 out of 10
Small effect

Previous-season performance

Lets last season's results matter until this season builds its own story.

Your importance: 4 out of 10
Small effect

Recent form

Emphasizes how a team performed in its three most recently completed games.

Your importance: 4 out of 10
Show the technical details
FactorRaw valueAdjusted valueContribution
Game control-2.928-0.247-0.031
Scoring punch16.289-1.355-0.106
Defensive toughness24.5680.6920.054
Winning0.6670.1690.021
Tough schedules-3.995-0.338-0.032
Big-game wins1.051-0.401-0.038
Wins away from home0.000-0.521-0.024
Statement wins0.333-0.345-0.016
Close-game gritNot available0.0000.000
Avoiding bad losses-17.000-0.288-0.013
Team talent717.4200.4500.019
Recruiting strength207.5130.4430.019
Returning production0.209-0.815-0.028
Transfer portal impact-12.810-1.844-0.047
Previous-season performance-1.481-0.141-0.005
Recent form7.000-0.020-0.001

This ranking used completed results through week 3. The stored values below reproduce this ranking’s explanation.