Mizzou Sanity: Stats Stats Stats: 2006 (RB's)

Yesterday, it was QB’s. Tonight, we take on running backs.

For RB’s, I will look at three criteria:

1. Success Rate (% of plays in which they touched the ball—rushing or receiving—that resulted in a success, as defined in yesterday’s QB post). This measures effectivness and efficiency.

2. Average % of Success (comparing what they gained on each play as a percentage of what was defined as successful for the given play...a 6-yard gain on 3rd-and-4 would be 150% success. I cap the success at 1000% for any given play). This measures playmaking and explosiveness.

3. Total number of successful plays. This simply measures consistency throughout the course of a season.

By looking at these three things together, one can get an idea of who the better/best RB’s in the conference were in Big 12 play. And again, all of the following data is from only Big 12 games, and only from circumstances in which the score of the game is within 17 points. To register on the list, you have to have touched the ball at least 10 times in these circumstances.

There were 35 Big 12 RB’s who fit these criteria. Combining their ranking in each of the three criteria above, I came up with one all-encompassing ranking. Players in bold are returnees for 2007.

1. Jon Cornish, Kansas (75 successful plays, 47.5% success rate, avg% of success = 178%).
2. Michael Goodson, Texas A&M (53 / 54.6% / 171%)
3. Jorvorskie Lane, Texas A&M (63 / 56.8% / 143%)
4. Ryan Kock, Iowa State (31 / 59.6% / 169%)
5. Jamaal Charles, Texas (51 / 56.0% / 140%)
6. Shannon Woods, Texas Tech (52 / 48.2% / 159%)
7. Dantrell Savage, Oklahoma State (44 / 46.81% / 161%)
8. Leon Patton, Kansas State (44 / 46.8% / 161%)
9. Brandon Jackson, Nebraska (72 / 44.4% / 134%)
10. Cody Glenn, Nebraska (25 / 56.8% / 165%)
11. Keith Toston, Oklahoma State (29 / 59.2% / 148%)
12. Allen Patrick, Oklahoma (67 / 47.9% / 120%)
13. Chris Alexander, Texas A&M (15 / 83.3% / 256%)
14. Tony Temple, Missouri (39 / 44.8% / 155%)
15. Marlon Lucky, Nebraska (30 / 44.1% / 161%)
16. Paul Mosley, Baylor (31 / 44.3% / 143%)
17. Hugh Charles, Colorado (37 / 47.4% / 129%)
18. Selvin Young, Texas (40 / 44.4% / 125%)
19. Chris Brown, Oklahoma (27 / 46.6% / 145%)
20. Jason Scales, Iowa State (22 / 52.4% / 106%)
21. Jacob Gutierrez, Oklahoma (14 / 43.8% / 142%)
22. Mike Hamilton, Oklahoma State (15 / 38.5% / 134%)
23. Adrian Peterson, Oklahoma (17 / 39.5% / 125%)
24. Mell Holliday, Colorado (18 / 33.3% / 134%)
25. James Johnson, Kansas State (24 / 32.4% / 113%)
26. Earl Goldsmith, Missouri (9 / 42.9% / 119%)
27. Stevie Hicks, Iowa State (11 / 37.9% / 121%)
28. Byron Ellis, Colorado (9 / 42.9% / 106%)
29. Brandon Whitaker, Baylor (10 / 38.5% / 84%)
30. Brandon McAnderson, Kansas (6 / 28.6% / 145%)
31. Courtney Lewis, Texas A&M (9 / 32.1% / 88%)
32. Thomas Clayton, Kansas State (8 / 35.3% / 75%)
33. Josh Johnson, Iowa State (4 / 28.6% / 90%)
34. Kenny Wilson, Nebraska (5 / 33.3% / 53%)
35. Jimmy Jackson, Missouri (2 / 14.3% / 51%)

Here are the Top 5 in each category.

Successful Plays
1. Jon Cornish (75)
2. Brandon Jackson (72)
3. Allen Patrick (67)
4. Jorvorskie Lane (63)
5. Michael Goodson (53)

Success Rate
1. Chris Alexander (83.3%) – fullback
2. Ryan Kock (59.6%) – part-time fullback
3. Keith Toston (59.2%)
4. Cody Glenn (56.8%)
5. Jorvorskie Lane (56.8%)

Average % of success
1. Chris Alexander (256%)
2. Jon Cornish (178%)
3. Michael Goodson (171%)
4. Ryan Kock (169%)
5. Cody Glenn (165%)

So what does this tell us?

Jimmy Jackson really didn’t have a very good year in 2006.

Speed is good, but having a big back (Alexander, Kock, Glenn, Lane) can still pay off in the effectiveness category. Need 4 yards on 1st-and-10? Need 3 yards on 2nd-and-4? A big back’s your guy. Not that Mizzou would know anything about that. Sorry...I kid, I kid...

Teams really geared up on Adrian Peterson. That, and he got hurt in the second Big 12 game, so his sample size is only from the Texas and Iowa State games.

Jon Cornish really did make a case for being the best RB in the conference. Sometimes teams just run the same guy a million times, and that’s how he leads the conference in rushing. Cornish was consistent and effective, and he had some explosiveness as well.

A&M’s running attack was (and will be in ’07) really effective. Between these numbers and the fact that Stephen McGee was the most effective 4th quarter QB in the conference, you can definitely see how their gameplan took shape.

Just like the competition between Kerry Meier and Todd Reesing for KU QB has been kind of baffling, just as baffling is the ‘battle’ between Leon Patton and James Johnson for KSU RB. For a big back, Johnson seemed less effective in short yardage (just ask Tommy Chavis, who stoned him on 4th-and-1 in Columbia), and while he had some long runs, Patton had more.