North Dakota State
North Dakota State is 7-2 and No. 69 of 138 in the machine's ratings, 0.7 points below an average FBS team. Last game: won 31-7 vs UTEP in Week 9.
Week 11: at Hawai'i, Saturday, Nov 14: the matchup, unit by unit
Why North Dakota State is No. 69
- North Dakota State's rating is −0.7: the machine's estimate that North Dakota State is 0.7 points worse than an average FBS team on a neutral field. That is No. 69 of 138. For scale, 0 is an average FBS team: right now the closest to it is No. 68 Arizona State (0.2).
- It started the season at −8.3, ESPN's preseason Football Power Index from July. Its results since have moved it up 7.6.
- The biggest weekly moves: +4.1 after Week 1 (W 33-7 vs Jacksonville State) and +2.1 after Week 5 (W 28-0 vs Wyoming).
- Its record is 7-2. The 2 losses were to No. 48 New Mexico, No. 91 UNLV, by 5.5 points on average. The 7 wins came by 22.4 points on average; the best was over No. 82 Air Force. The rating weighs how much a team won or lost by and against whom, not just the win-loss count.
- Its FBS opponents so far average No. 97 in the machine's ratings.
- Just above is No. 68 Arizona State (0.2); just below is No. 70 Oregon State (−1.4).
The rating, week by week
Strengths and weak spots
Head coach
Tim Polasek is in his 1st season at North Dakota State. This season: 7-2.
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Team stats
Season totals and averages over 9 games, each with its national rank among 138 FBS teams (No. 1 = best). The game-by-game story is in the season, week by week.
Passing
| Completions-attempts | 149-236 |
|---|---|
| Passing yards | 1749 |
| Touchdowns-interceptions | 13-8 |
| Yards per attempt* | 7.4No. 72 of 138 |
| Explosive pass rate | 12.7%No. 25 of 138 |
| Sacks allowed (rate) | 4.1%No. 39 of 138 |
Rushing
| Carries-yards | 352-1417 |
|---|---|
| Yards per carry | 4.0No. 94 of 138 |
| 10-plus-yard runs (rate) | 13.0%No. 89 of 138 |
| Stuffed at or behind the line (rate) | 20.4%No. 112 of 138 |
Scoring
| Points per game | 28.1No. 71 of 138 |
|---|---|
| Yards per play | 5.42No. 105 of 138 |
| Third-down rate | 39.7%No. 76 of 138 |
| Red-zone TD rate | 60.7%No. 73 of 138 |
| Giveaways | 9No. 42 of 138 |
Defense
| Points allowed per game | 11.9No. 2 of 138 |
|---|---|
| Yards per play allowed | 4.44No. 10 of 138 |
| Yards per pass attempt allowed | 5.5No. 2 of 138 |
| Yards per carry allowed | 3.6No. 37 of 138 |
| Sack rate | 7.4%No. 26 of 138 |
| Takeaways | 18No. 8 of 138 |
| Third-down rate allowed | 34.7%No. 37 of 138 |
Totals are the official box score. * Yards per attempt and the rates come from the play-by-play, where passing yards count on completions only, so they can differ from the box score by a play or two.
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Player leaders
The top 3 in each category over the same games. Passing yards count every completion (official box score).
Passing
- Nathan Hayes145-228, 1710 yds, 13 TD, 8 INT
Rushing
- Myles Mitchell95 carries, 398 yds, 3 TD
- DJ Scott95 carries, 364 yds, 5 TD
- Nathan Hayes50 carries, 228 yds, 5 TD
Receiving
- Jackson Williams42 catches, 614 yds, 1 TD
- Reis Kessel27 catches, 345 yds, 4 TD
- Mekhi Collins18 catches, 227 yds, 4 TD
Tackles
- Donovan Woolen66
- Gavin Sell46
- Ray James Jr.39
Sacks
- Kelton McCaslin6
- Donovan Woolen2.5
- Gavin Sell2
Interceptions
- Marion Moore5
- Ray James Jr.2
- Deron Russell1
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Who's playing
Based on who has actually played this season, from the box scores, not the team's published depth chart. Each bar is that player's share of the team's attempts, carries (quarterbacks left out), catches or tackles. The box score lists no positions, so there is no offensive line here.
Throwing
- Nathan HayesMost passes in the last game9 games228 attempts97%
Carrying
- DJ Scott8 games95 carries32%
- Myles Mitchell8 games95 carries32%
- Nyeoti Punni7 games38 carries13%
- Barry Kpeenu6 games30 carries10%
Catching
- Jackson Williams9 games42 catches28%
- Reis Kessel9 games27 catches18%
- Mekhi Collins8 games18 catches12%
- Chris Kiel5 games12 catches8%
Tackling
- Donovan Woolen9 games66 tackles13%
- Gavin Sell8 games46 tackles9%
- Ray James Jr.8 games39 tackles7%
- Keenan Wilson9 games31 tackles6%
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
The season, week by week
- Week 1 W 33–7 vs Jacksonville State. The pass defense was the strength: Jacksonville State got 3.7 yards an attempt, 4.9 under what it usually gains. The fewest yards a carry it has allowed all season.
- Week 1 W 38–0 vs Fordham. Fordham is an FCS team, so there is no FBS baseline to grade this one against. Won the turnover battle by 4.
- Week 2 W 38–32 at Air Force. The pass defense gave ground: Air Force got 11.9 yards an attempt, 5.5 over what it usually gains. Its most yards an attempt of the season.
- Week 3 W 31–10 at Sacramento State. No unit was far from the usual. The biggest gap was the run defense: Sacramento State got 3.5 yards a carry, 0.7 over what it usually gains. Won the turnover battle by 3.
- Week 5 W 28–0 vs Wyoming. The pass defense was the strength: Wyoming got 3.7 yards an attempt, 3.5 under what it usually gains. Its most yards a carry of the season.
- Week 6 L 7–13 at UNLV. The pass defense was the strength: UNLV got 4.8 yards an attempt, 2.9 under what it usually gains. Lost the turnover battle by 2.
- Week 7 W 31–17 vs Nevada. No unit was far from the usual. The biggest gap was the pass defense: Nevada got 5.3 yards an attempt, 0.8 under what it usually gains. Won the turnover battle by 2.
- Week 8 L 16–21 at New Mexico. The pass defense was the strength: New Mexico got 6.6 yards an attempt, 1.5 under what it usually gains. Its fewest yards a carry of the season.
- Week 9 W 31–7 vs UTEP. The run defense gave ground: UTEP got 5.1 yards a carry, 1.7 over what it usually gains. Won the turnover battle by 2.