RANKING EXPLANATION

#40 Northwestern

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

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Moderate boost

Game control

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

Your importance: 8 out of 10
Small effect

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 boost

Winning

Rewards teams for simply winning the games on their schedule.

Your importance: 8 out of 10
Not used: evidence unavailable

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
Moderate boost

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
Moderate boost

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 control13.5060.4390.050
Scoring punch38.1230.2410.017
Defensive toughness25.5610.3540.025
Winning1.0000.8880.102
Tough schedulesNot available0.0000.000
Big-game wins1.0000.0370.003
Wins away from home0.000-0.355-0.015
Statement wins1.0001.1680.050
Close-game gritNot available0.0000.000
Avoiding bad losses16.0000.6170.026
Team talent677.9700.1550.009
Recruiting strength191.4620.0990.006
Returning production0.8851.7830.084
Transfer portal impact6.9601.2970.046
Previous-season performance4.5100.3910.018
Recent form16.0000.3410.020

This ranking used completed results through week 2. The stored values below reproduce this ranking’s explanation.