I also created this graph in ye old days of 2014. I created a postgres database of college football results and applied extremely simple ELO ranking. It cuts through some BS that Pepper Rodgers had more difficult schedules or whatever. öööö, around 1979-81 we went above freaking #140.
I may try to see if I also have the database backed up and add 2014-17 to it. But for context, here's the 2014-17 rankings by Sagarin's Predictor:
2014: 13
2015: 39
2016: 32
2017: 33
This post will probably go over like a fart in an elevator. "Stats aren't wins, nerd." But both the 2015 and 2017 seasons feel aberrational
in general to me. The injuries, multiple kickers setting career longs on game-winning kicks, etc. in 2015. 2017, we were up by double-digits in 3 or 4 losses. The Duke game was the lowest I had felt about CPJ's coaching in the history of his tenure. If we did not at least part ways with Roof, I was done with CPJ. I got öööö for partly defending the offense against Duke and feeling the defense was a pure dumpster fire. Duke had a decent enough defense, holding Miami down for 3 quarters. The offense still didn't do well, but the defense was
atrocious. Duke had 6.3 yards per play, vs 4.0 yards per play week before against Army and 4.9 yards per play against Wake Forest. So our Duke defensive performance certainly wasn't a talent thing.
Yes, I do have hope that
this one will work for DC, more hope than Roof. Certainly Woody has the most recent and sustained success as a college DC.
The ones who want to fire CPJ are going keep using stuff like "how will we go 3-9 again without CPJ." So this post just digs me more in a hole with them. But yes, the 2014/16 success and glimpses in 2017, and the new DC, buys a contract extension in my opinion.