Impact Stats: The Most Critical Statistic in Football

Obviously the most important statistics in a football game are points scored and allowed – that will determine the winners and losers. But what comes next? What statistic plays the biggest role in determining a game’s outcome? We asked nine successful coaches that question. And eight of them answered that it’s turnover margin. One said average starting field position. Here are the coaches’ explanations.     “Obviously every possession is very valuable,” said Mike Whelan, head coach of Division III Williams College in Williamstown, MA. “Turnovers will affect a lot of things. They will affect your time of possession and starting field position. They really dictate a lot of other statistics. And there’s a psychological component. Football is a game of momentum. Anytime there’s a turnover, one side is excited, and the other is dejected. It can certainly change the