Turnover Margin

Of the more than 20 statistics the NCAA publishes, one of the most important – and maybe least recognized – is Turnover Margin. It’s not just a coincidence that consistently successful teams place high in this category. Last fall the leaders in this statistic included USC (Division I-A); Coastal Carolina (Division I-AA); Valdosta State (Division II); Carthage College (Division III); and Central Methodist University (NAIA). Over the last five years, the D I-A leader is Miami of Florida; in that span they’re won a national championship, was a runner-up, and had two other top ten finishes.. “We strongly believe that the two most important statistics for success are turnover margin and time of possession,” says Carthage head coach Tim Rucks. His Carthage College Redmen led all colleges with a +30 differential in turnovers in 2004. Carthage accounted for 50 takeaways (19 fumble