This week's picks

Chaos up front: havoc created vs. allowed

College Football Charts
Data updatedOct 31, 2026

Share as an image

Image style

Chaos up front: havoc created vs. allowed

Front-seven havoc (up) against Front-seven havoc allowed (across). 138 teams.

Up and right are always better: metrics where lower is better (like ranks or points allowed) run in reverse. Dashed lines are the averages of the teams shown and split the chart into four groups. There's no trend line or gray band here: the chart compares two separate skills, so no spot is "expected." The lists rank teams on both skills together. Tap or click a team to open it in Head to head.

What this shows

Havoc is tackles for loss, sacks, forced fumbles and passes defensed. Right is an offense whose line keeps it clean; up is a front seven that wrecks plays.

There is almost no relationship here (r = -0.11): knowing a team's Front-seven havoc allowed tells you little about its Front-seven havoc.

Split by the averages: Wins the chaos 35, Creates chaos, allows it too 27, Clean but quiet 36, On the wrong end of it 40.

Winning the chaos: New Mexico (54th and 2nd), Notre Dame (1st and 18th), Virginia Tech (115th and 1st). On the wrong end of it: UTEP (137th and 89th), Old Dominion (138th and 16th), Northern Illinois (121st and 138th). Ranks are among the 138 teams shown, Front-seven havoc allowed first, then Front-seven havoc.

Pac-12: 1 of 8 in Wins the chaos, 3 in On the wrong end of it. Top of the list: Boise State (7th and 35th of 138).

Mountain West: 1 of 10 in Wins the chaos, 5 in On the wrong end of it. Top of the list: New Mexico (54th and 2nd of 138).

Where the data comes from. Front-seven havoc: play-by-play from CollegeFootballData.com (the public cfbfastR files), games through Oct 24, 2026. Front-seven havoc allowed: play-by-play from CollegeFootballData.com (the public cfbfastR files), games through Oct 24, 2026.

Winning the chaos

  1. New Mexico 54th and 2nd of 138
  2. Notre Dame 1st and 18th of 138
  3. Virginia Tech 115th and 1st of 138
  4. Indiana 31st and 6th of 138
  5. Kansas State 28th and 9th of 138
  6. SMU 56th and 7th of 138

On the wrong end of it

  1. UTEP 137th and 89th of 138
  2. Old Dominion 138th and 16th of 138
  3. Northern Illinois 121st and 138th of 138
  4. Louisville 130th and 106th of 138
  5. Tulane 133rd and 95th of 138
  6. Northwestern 124th and 124th of 138

About the stats on this chart

What is front-seven havoc allowed?

Front-seven havoc allowed: plays where the defense's linemen and linebackers make a tackle for loss, sack the quarterback, force a fumble or bat down a pass. Lower is better on offense.

Where does the front-seven havoc allowed data come from?

From play-by-play from CollegeFootballData.com (the public cfbfastR files), games through Oct 24, 2026.

What is front-seven havoc?

Front-seven havoc: plays where this team's linemen and linebackers make a tackle for loss, sack the quarterback, force a fumble or bat down a pass. Higher is better.

Where does the front-seven havoc data come from?

From play-by-play from CollegeFootballData.com (the public cfbfastR files), games through Oct 24, 2026.