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UAB at Memphis

Saturday, October 10 · 7:00 PM ET · Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium
UAB 3-2 21.4
AT
Memphis 4-1 38.2

01 / THE NUMBER

The model makes this Memphis -16.7. The market has it Memphis -14.5, a gap of 2.2 points toward Memphis.

Tested against closing lines on 1,148 games, this model tracks the market rather than beating it. A large gap is a question worth asking, not a signal to follow.

SPREAD
Vegas lineMemphis -14.5
ModelMemphis -16.7
Difference2.2

02 / PROJECTED SCORE

UAB21.4Memphis38.2

03 / WHERE THE MARGIN COMES FROM

Elo / track record6.8Home field4.4Passing game1.4Pass consistency1.4Rush consistency1.0Running game0.1UAB ←→ Memphis

Each bar is that input's contribution to the projected margin, in points, pointing toward the team it favours. They sum to 14.8 toward Memphis, before calibration.

04 / HOW THEY RATE · percentile vs all FBS

Offence
PassingRushingPass cons.Rush cons.Pass ratePace
Defence
PassingRushingPass cons.Rush cons.Pass ratePace
UAB Memphis
Percentile, 0–100UAB offMemphis off UAB defMemphis def
Passing986826
Rushing68793012
Pass cons.8821534
Rush cons.4558444
Pass rate6429934
Pace51434955

Higher is better on both sides — defence is flipped so the shape reads the same way. Percentiles are taken from the opponent-adjusted ratings, so a number earned against a hard schedule ranks above the same number earned against a soft one.

05 / TEAM RATINGS

Per play, vs averageUAB offMemphis off UAB defMemphis def
Pass EPA / dropback-0.076+0.293+0.043-0.014
Rush EPA / carry+0.126+0.164-0.037+0.001
Pass success rate-0.031+0.099+0.007-0.016
Rush success rate+0.046+0.057+0.023-0.042
Pass rate-0.116-0.020-0.052+0.022
Plays per game-1.3-1.5-3.9-4.2

Opponent adjusted and shrunk toward last season — after 5 and 5 games, a rating is still part last year. On defence, negative is good.

06 / ELO

RatingUABMemphisGap
Elo, years of results14001627 +227

Worth 6.8 points of this projection. Elo carries what three games of play-by-play can't: years of results, so a team that has been bad for a decade isn't rated average in September.

07 / SEASON SO FAR

UAB 3-2

at Illinois23–42
vs UL Monroe26–20
at Louisiana14–21
vs Navy24–20
vs Samford33–14

Memphis 4-1

at UNLV27–21
vs Arkansas State42–24
at Boise State20–38
vs UT Martin45–21
at Charlotte59–8