It’s the return of the mistakes index, and the numbers are always telling.
As used in the Upon Further Review articles following each University of Alabama game this season it’s a measure of mistakes, but it could arguably also be an indirect indicator of maturity and discipline.
The misery index is fumbles lost + interceptions + penalties + sacks.
2014 Alabama game-by-game mistakes index
Opponent, Fum. lost, Ints, Penalties, Sacks, Total
Game-by-game
West Virginia ….. 0…1…7…0 … 8
Florida Atlantic … 0…0…6…1…7
Southern Miss …. 1…0…3…1…5
Florida ………….. 3…1…11…1…16
Ole Miss ………… 1…1…8…1…11
Arkansas ……….. 2…0…4…2…8
Texas A&M …….. 0…0…0…1…1
Tennessee …….. 2…0…6…1…9
LSU …………….. 1…0…3…1… 5
Mississippi State . 0…0…7…1…8
Western Carolina . 1…1…5…0…7
Auburn ………….. 0…3…3…1…7
Missouri ………… 0…0…2…2…4
Ohio State ……… 0…3…4…3…10
Totals …………. 12…10…69…16 … 107
It works out to a 7.6 average per game, a full point higher than when Alabama won its last national championship.
Alabama’s misery score since 2000
Year .. Fum. .. Int… Pen …Sacks.. Total .. Average
2000 .. 10 …. 16 …. 82 …. 25 …. 133 ….12.1
2001 .. 10 ….. 5 …. 93 …. 21 …. 129 …. 11.7
2002 … 9 ….. 9 … 121 …. 31 …. 170 …. 13.1
2003 … 7 …. 15 …. 79 …. 29 …. 130 …. 10.0
2004 … 9 …. 11 …. 70 …. 16 …. 106 ….. 8.8
2005 … 8 ….. 4 …. 74 …. 37 …. 123 …. 10.3
2006 .. 10 …. 10 …. 78 …. 28 …. 126 ….. 9.7
2007 … 8 …. 12 …. 59 …. 25 …. 104 ….. 8.0
2008 .. 10 ….. 9 …. 57 …. 25 …. 101 ….. 7.2
2009 … 7 ….. 5 …. 69 …. 20 …. 101 ….. 7.2
2010 … 9 ….. 5 …. 66 …. 32 …. 112 ….. 8.6
2011 … 4 ….. 8 …. 49 …. 17 ….. 78 ….. 6.0
2012 …12 …. 3 …. 54 …. 23 .…. 92 ….. 6.6
2013 …10 …. 7…. 63 …. 17 .…. 97 ….. 7.5
2014 …12 … 10 … 69 …. 16 .… 107 …. 7.6
Obviously mistakes don’t directly translate into wins and losses, but they certainly make a team more prone to lose.
Not surprisingly, the best scores on the previous list correspond to the seasons that Alabama played for the national and/or Southeastern Conference championships – until this past season.
Just as telling, though, are the numbers from the rest of the league because usually there’s about a five-point difference between the top and the bottom, with numerous teams in double digits.
This past season there were barely any, which confirms that not only is the SEC getting tougher, but the teams at the bottom of the standings are getting better.
2014 SEC mistakes index
Team …. Fum. .. Int… Pen …Sacks.. Total .. Average
Georgia ….. 7 .….. 6 …. 65 … 17 …. 95 … 7.3
Arkansas .. 11 .…. 6 …. 68 … 14 ….. 99 … 7.6
Alabama … 12 …. 10 …. 69 … 16 .…. 107 ….. 7.6
LSU ………… 8 .…. 9 …. 71 … 25 …. 113 … 8.7
Miss. State . 11 … 12 … 67 … 23 ….. 113 ….. 8.7
Texas A&M .. 5 … 15 … 68 … 27 ….. 115 … 8.8
S. Carolina . 10 … 11 … 70 … 27 ….. 118 …. 9.1
Tennessee .. 8 … 14 … 54 …. 43 …… 119 … 9.2
Florida …… 10 … 14 … 80 … 17 ….. 121 … 9.3
Kentucky … 4 …. 11 … 66 … 34 …… 115 … 9.6
Ole Miss … 10 … 15 … 69 … 31 ….. 125 … 9.6
Auburn ….. 13 …. 7 …. 92 … 15 …. 127 … 9.8
Missouri …. 3 …. 13 … 102 … 23 ….. 141 … 10.1
Vanderbilt .. 10 … 19 … 73 … 21 ….. 123 … 10.3
Christopher Walsh has covered Alabama football since 2004 and is the author of 19 books. In his free time, he writes about college football.
