The stat that 7-0 Western Michigan values above all else
There was a rare occurrence with 10 minutes, 42 seconds left before halftime in Western Michigan's football game last Saturday at Akron, a moment so unusual that it helps explain why the Broncos are unbeaten and ranked No. 20 in the nation.
It was at that moment, with the Broncos up 27-0 and driving in Akron territory, that Zips linebacker Ulysses Gilbert III knocked the ball from the hands of Western Michigan running back Davon Tucker after a 6-yard gain. Akron defensive end Daumantas Venckus recovered, making it the Broncos' first and only lost fumble of the 2016 season.
The play wasn't just Western Michigan's first lost fumble of the season, it was its first turnover of any kind. No other team has fewer than four.
For all of the investment Western Michigan has made and recruiting success the Broncos have had in the past three years, that lone statistic weighs heavily on their 7-0 start this season.
Ask college football coaches what statistic they look for first when they comb their box scores after a game, and many say turnover margin. Joining the Broncos among the nation's leaders in that statistic this season are 6-0 Ohio State, 6-0 Washington and 5-1 Troy.
It's also a statistic that can vary widely year to year, variations that can be difficult to explain. But even though a team's turnover performance can be unpredictable, it can be coached.
"We coach it every single day," Broncos coach P.J. Fleck said. "Everybody always looks at these secret potions, like what did you do secretly this year that you didn't do other years? We did the same ball security drill and the same ball disruption drill every day in practice for about 10-12 minutes every single day when we were 0-8, 1-11, we do it the exact same way.
"The only difference is, when you emphasize something, you're going to get what you emphasize. We've emphasized it, and our players have definitely been helped in their maturity toward everything in our program. They have validity toward it. They see it."
Fleck and his staff have built the most talented roster in the Mid-American Conference in their time in Kalamazoo, with the league's best class in the 247Sports Composite recruiting rankings the past three seasons. The in-progress 2017 group is 48th, which would be by far the Broncos' highest-rated crop. And standout players such as interception-less quarterback Zach Terrell (a two-star recruit in 2012 with only FCS offers) and all-America wide receiver Corey Davis (whom Fleck found through a high school connection three weeks before signing day in 2013) came from classes far down in the overall FBS ranks.
The success and talent of the Broncos' players is worth celebrating. But if you step into Western Michigan's locker room something else is prominently displayed. It is a poster on the wall that reads "The ball is the program" — implying the importance of taking care of the pigskin. Below those words are the MAC standings. But they aren't typical MAC standings.
"It's not ranked by wins and losses, it's ranked by turnover margin," Fleck said. "Because that's the No. 1 thing that is tied to winning, and usually the guys that don't turn the ball over and get turnovers are toward the top, and the guys that turn the ball over and don't get turnovers are toward the bottom. That's happened since year one we've been here, year two, year three and now year four.
"I think it's the maturity of our football team to understand now that it's the No. 1 statistic in football, and the No. 1 statistic tied to winning."