RANKING EXPLANATION

#98 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
Small effect

Defensive toughness

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

Your importance: 5 out of 10
Moderate drag

Winning

Rewards teams for simply winning the games on their schedule.

Your importance: 8 out of 10
Moderate boost

Tough schedules

Rewards teams that have faced stronger opponents.

Your importance: 6 out of 10
Moderate drag

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
Moderate drag

Statement wins

Rewards teams for wins by 14 or more points.

Your importance: 3 out of 10
Moderate drag

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
Negligible effect

Team talent

How much proven player talent is already on the roster.

Your importance: 5 out of 10
Negligible effect

Recruiting strength

Rewards teams that have stacked several strong recruiting classes.

Your importance: 5 out of 10
Negligible effect

Returning production

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

Your importance: 4 out of 10
Negligible effect

Transfer portal impact

Rewards teams whose rated transfer additions outweigh their departures.

Your importance: 3 out of 10
Negligible effect

Previous-season performance

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

Your importance: 4 out of 10
Moderate drag

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-1.790-0.185-0.028
Scoring punch23.116-0.689-0.065
Defensive toughness26.2740.3590.034
Winning0.250-1.451-0.219
Tough schedules7.6351.3000.147
Big-game wins0.905-1.129-0.128
Wins away from home0.000-0.834-0.047
Statement wins0.125-1.107-0.063
Close-game grit0.000-1.437-0.054
Avoiding bad losses-28.000-0.531-0.030
Team talent717.4200.4500.000
Recruiting strength207.5130.4430.000
Returning production0.209-0.8150.000
Transfer portal impact-12.810-1.8440.000
Previous-season performance-1.481-0.1410.000
Recent form-7.333-0.724-0.055

This ranking used completed results through week 8. The stored values below reproduce this ranking’s explanation.