College Football

Tale of the tape: Comparing Colorado and Minnesota

Tale of the tape: Comparing Colorado and Minnesota

Football games aren’t played on paper, but statistics are still a valuable measure of how strong a team is.

Through two games, Colorado and Minnesota are on the opposite sides of the spectrum in nearly every statistical category. HOWEVER, there’s a giant disclaimer worth mentioning: the Buffs played TCU and Air Force while the Golden Gophers took it easy with New Mexico State and Western Illinois — outscoring them a combined 100-10.

So, the stats going into Week 3 are certainly skewed. I’m a big fan of numbers, though, and at the very minimum, we can get a better idea of both teams’ tendencies.

Below are how Minnesota and Colorado compare in a few statistical categories:

Offensive numbers

Colorado Minnesota
Total offensive yards 255 582
Total passing 143 280
Total rushing 112 302
Average yards per play 4.15 7.41
First downs 14 33

 

Defensive numbers

Colorado Minnesota
Total yards allowed 428 142.5
Total rushing 355 36.5
Total passing 73 106
Average yards per play 6.69 3.39
First downs 21 7

 

Special teams

Colorado Minnesota
Field goal attempts: FGM/FGA 3/3 3/3
Net punting 33.7 38.5
Kickoff return yardage defense 0 25
Kickoff returns 25.75 22.5

 

Other relevant stats

Colorado Minnesota
Time of possession 27:28 41:48
Penalties per game/yards 4.5/35 3/31/5
Turnovers gained/lost 3/3 2/1
Last 50 games 20-30 32-18

 

Analysis

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