'Cats' and Dawgs not reining in Pac
How they match up statistically
By: Richard Linde, Posted 9 October 2002

Both losers last weekend in Pac-10 action, Arizona and Washington hope to reverse their fortunes when they meet on Saturday. Since neither team can pound the ball up the middle, the game should feature a wide-open passing attack. Washington leads the Pac-10 in passing and Arizona is second in pass defense. Arizona is third in passing offense, while the Huskies are 7th in pass defense. 

Now that Pac-10 play has begun for the Dawgs, the creampuffs have turned into hard rock candy and the Husky defense and running game—both questionable confectionaries—will either meltdown (be ineffective) or turn into jawbreakers for the opposition, the latter being especially true when you consider the Huskies’ passing attack, which is second in the nation.

In Table 1 below, the Huskies (3-2, 0-1) trump the Wildcats (3-2, 0-1) in four of the five major categories. The Huskies best the 'Cats in 12 of the 18 sub-categories. 

Of those 18 statistical categories shown below, Washington has an average Pac-10 ranking of 5.3, while Arizona has an average ranking of 6.7. Of the teams they've played thus far, the Huskies' opponents have won 50% of their games and the 'Cats' opponents have won 59% of their games. If the sub-category statistics (12 to 6) are normalized by these win percentages, the Huskies have a statistical edge, 6.0 to 3.54, i.e., ((.50*12=6.0)(.59*6=3.54)). 

Prediction: Huskies 38, Wildcats 28

 Table 1. How they stand in the Pac-10