Week 13 Analytics MVPs: Back-to-backs on both side of the ball

Nov 27, 2024 | Uncategorized

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Luther burden running with the ball
(CAL TOBIAS/ROCK M NATION)

For the first time ever, both players on both sides of the ball received back-to-back MVPs.

The No. 23 Missouri Tigers won in convincing fashion on the road in Starkville to pick up their first road win of the season, A game which had the Tigers first offensively potent first half, the Tigers continued to pull away from the Bulldogs with timely scoring drives.

While the Bulldogs have one of the bottom five defenses in all of college football, Mizzou still ended up picking a banner performance on offense. 98th percentile in yards/dropback and 96th percentile in EPA/dropback while also being 86th percentile in success rate, are some of the best numbers in those categories the Tigers had this season.

This week, we had something most unusual happen. Both the MVPs were the same as last week. Now I try to avoid this as much as possible, but this week both the players just had analytical performances that put themselves far and away better than the rest of the team.

Luther Burden III | Wideout

Of all people to pick up the honor of our first back-to-back winner, it had to be Luther Burden. Burden had another near perfect week, hauling in seven of his eight targets for 91 yards and a touchdown. 63 of his yards came after catch, with most of his game being in the short and intermediate this Saturday.


For the second week in a row Burden picked up above 90th percentile in key catching areas, but this week saw a big uptick in his after catch analytics. It’s his second-best VAT numbers of the season, just behind last week’s performance but a lot of that is altered by a singular target of Luther’s not being secured this week as opposed to the perfection we were subjected to last week.

Just as last week with Luther, it’s pretty obvious which play we are going to look at. The way he peels away for this touchdown catch is absolutely absurd, and the body control he showcases to stay in bounds is even better. One thing Luther has always done well, is recognize when the defender is playing him instead of the ball and to wait until the last moment to put his hands up for the catch. This is just one of those plays where no matter how the defender was defending it, this was going to end up being a touchdown.

I already gave the spiel about why Tigers fans should really cherish this man last week, and he proved it again this week. He’s actually my first guy to win a back-to-back for this honor ever, and he’s deserving this week too. The fact my first game as a student was witnessing his first snaps as a freshman, and just two years later I am about to witness his last game as a Tiger is just shocking to me.

Johnny Walker, Jr. | Edge Rusher

His third honor of the season, Walker Jr. really made a living in the backfield for the second week in a row. He contributed to half of the Tigers’ 12 pressures, being the only Tiger lineman that actually made contact with Mississippi State quarterback Michael Van Buren.


Walker placed himself above the 90th percentile in HHS for the second week in a row, and while he missed his only tackle attempt of the game, he still had far and away the most productive defensive outing on the team. Miss State surprisingly moved the ball well despite their struggles this season, showing that head coach Jeff Lebby’s philosophy is starting to stick in Starkville.

The play I’m going to be analyzing of Walker’s is his sack against Auburn, mostly because of the view we have of the play. What’s insane about this play is that he is being double teamed in blocking and still sheds those blocks with ease and rips through them with the leverage he has to get to the quarterback. His play remains phenomenal, and I think his emergence in conference play back to his last season form was a huge momentum shift for this defense.

Walker is another one of those players that’s going to be trying to hide his emotions on Senior day, and that’s because he’s been here through the ups and downs. When this team needed it most, he developed himself into a true leader on the defense and a force to be reckoned with on the edge. The SEC is notoriously the conference filled with the most athletic offensive linemen, and Johnny Walker Jr. didn’t have a problem with that at all during his time at Mizzou.


Legend

Wideouts

Depth: Average Depth of Target, used to show if a wideout is typically a short passing threat, a deep threat, or one that spreads the field.

Evasive: Missed Tackle Rate, how often can a wideout break tackles in space.

Catching: A wideout’s catch rate on catchable balls thrown in his direction.

Contested: A wideout’s contested catch rate in 1-on-1 situations.

Drops: How often a wideout drops the ball.

Man: A wideout’s catch rate in Man Coverage Situations.

Zone: A wideout’s catch rate in Zone Coverage Situations.

QBR: A QB’s NFL QBR when a wideout is targeted.

YAC: Yards After Catch.

YPR: Yards Per Reception.

Edge Rushers

Pass Rush: Pass Rush Score, comprised of various pass rushing stats and factors

Run Defense: Run Defense Score, comprised of various run defense stats and factors

Stops: On a first down, if the offense gets 45% of the way to a first down or less.

On a second down, if the offense gets 60% of the way to a first down or less.

On a third or fourth down, if the offense doesn’t get a first down.

HHS: Hits, Hurries, and Sacks generated

Efficiency: Overall Defensive Efficiency

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