About the 40 Yard Line Computer Rankings

The 40 Yard Line ranking system is a computer generated ranking of all the Division IA football teams. Without getting into too much detail on the math, an explanation of the general system is below:

Each team is given a modified winning percentage, which is basically their winning percentage modified by a factor which is determined by their opponents actual winning percentages. This modified winning percentage is used in various instances in the math.

In the 40 Yard Line rankings, each game is looked at individually. A team is given 1 point for winning the game. This is then modified by a number of factors that include:

- Home, Road or Neutral Site
- Opponents Modified Win %
- Overtime or Regulation win
- Opponents conference record

If a team loses a game, the losing team may be awarded or penalized some fraction of a point dependent upon certain factors:

- A team may get a tough loss bonus for losing to a team with a relatively high winning percentage, provided that the margin of victory is not too great.

- A team gets a fraction of a win point for an overtime loss.

- A team may get penalized for losing by too great of a margin of victory regardless of the strength of the opponent.

The total number of points divided by the teams respective number of games played, results in an overall adjusted winning percentage. The teams are then ranked in descending order based on this overall adjusted winning percentage.

In summary, the 40 Yard Line rankings provide a measure of how a team performed throughout the season considering the strength of their opponents and the strength of their opponents opponents. It differs from many computer rankings in that schedule strength is not applied as a general multiplier. For the most part, schedule strength only helps a team if you are winning the tough games. Furthermore, margin of victory does not boost the ratings of the winning team, but can, under some circumstances, decrease the rankings of the losing team. Additionally, by treating overtime wins and losses differently that regulation wins and loses, the 40 Yard Line rankings reward and penalize teams accordingly for a regulation tie.

The ranking system does not consider winning or losing streaks as it is a measure of a team’s performance over the course of the season as a whole. Additionally, it does not consider games won or lost due to injuries or extenuating circumstances, rivalry games or any other non quantitative factors. That is left to the human voting polls.

Admittedly, the 40 Yard Line rankings are a work in progress and any comments, suggestions or questions are welcome and appreciated.

Return to the current 40 Yard Line Computer Rankings.