In case you missed Winning Box Scores last week, well, a lot of you did. In fact, we weren't going to do it at all, until an FBS head coach reached out asking where it was and if we could have it out by his 3 p.m. Thursday meeting.
We didn't, but the Week 10 edition is ready in plenty of time.
If you're new here, the idea isn't necessarily to teach you anything new, but instead to test conventional wisdom across every FBS game. What we've learned through a year and two-thirds is that teams who can grab an early lead, then protect it by running the ball and not turning it over are incredibly difficult to beat.
For instance, of the 60 FBS teams that won games this past weekend, 15 rushed for less yards than their opponent but threw for more, while 23 teams threw for less yards than their opponent but rushed for more. Seventeen teams won both categories, while four lucky teams managed to win a game where they were out-rushed and out-passed. (If you're wondering why these numbers don't add up, that's because Wisconsin and Maryland both threw for 77 yards.)
This past weekend, Michigan out-rushed Rutgers 282-14.
UCLA to Arizona State, 402-119.
Texas to Kansas State, 269 to 139.
Kansas to Oklahoma State, 351 to 111.
Wisconsin to Maryland, 278 to 112.
Marshall to Old Dominion, 298 to 11.
Georgia State to Southern Miss, 388 to 33.
Washington State to Stanford, 306 to 71.
South Alabama to Georgia Southern, 321 to 88.
Even SMU-Houston applies. The Mustangs surrendered 527 passing yards, but out-rushed the Cougars 263-182 and won turnovers 3-0.
All of the above teams won this weekend. The only example of the reverse I found came from the Auburn-Mississippi State game: the Tigers won the ground 256-13, while the Bulldogs won the air 357-75.
Still, if you'd rather dominate the land or the skies, choose the land every time.
Week 10 Numbers:
-- Rush for more yards: 42-18
-- Pass for more yards: 31-28
-- Score first: 40-20
-- Lead at halftime: 45-12
-- Win turnovers: 37-14
-- Win all five: 9-0
Year to Date:
-- Rush for more yards: 497-148 (.771)
-- Pass for more yards: 393-249 (.612)
-- Score first: 420-206 (.671)
-- Lead at halftime: 493-120 (.806)
-- Win turnovers: 362-133 (.731)
-- Win all five: 113-0 (1.000)