Bison Bites: Dispatch #2

Data bites touching on: Caitlin Clark's fouls drawn through 11 games, Kurtis Rourke's career usage rates, Indiana's encouraging 2025 high school recruiting class.

Each dispatch of Bison Bites is intended to be a quick-hitting list of approximately 3-5 statistics of interest between typical Bite-Sized Bison posts. Admittedly, this was the original intent of this newsletter, until it grew into something more! 

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Let’s do this!

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Caitlin Clark ranks 11th in the WNBA with 4.2 fouls drawn per game (as of June 5).

That ranks in the top-9% of WNBA players. In total, she has drawn 46 personal fouls, and that figure ranks 4th in the league.

The reason for the discrepancy in those two rankings is because of the number of games the Fever have played, which is wild in its own right. Indiana, according to research done by Steven Ruiz at The Ringer, has played 9 of its 11 games on 0 or 1 day(s) of rest. In comparison, the Las Vegas Aces and LA Sparks have each played 1 (!!). Since Clark has played an average of 3 more games than the 10 players above her in the listed stat, the per-game number is more accurate.

Las Vegas center A’ja Wilson leads the League, with 6.8 fouls drawn per game, and to name others who lead Clark in this category: Jewell Loyd (5.6), Breanna Stewart (5.4), Napheesa Collier (5.4), Arike Ogunbowale (5.3), Rhyne Howard (5.1), Kahleah Copper (4.7), and more. Stewart, Loyd, and Copper have more total fouls drawn than Clark. All listed are some of the best players in the league and possess the ball most often for their respective teams – like Clark, who is 10th in the league in usage rate. Clark leads all rookies in fouls drawn per game (closest is Aliyah Edwards, who ranks 14th with 3.8), but Clark also leads all rookies in usage rate. She also leads the Fever in both categories.

The chart below shows usage rate-to-fouls drawn per game ratios for each team’s leader in usage rate (min. 200 minutes played).

Is the league being more physical with Clark than others? This stat, which has been used by an overwhelming amount of media on this topic, isn’t the best supporting information. I’d suggest more anecdotal evidence. 

Kurtis Rourke was used on 41% of Ohio’s offensive plays in both 2022 and 2023 (ranked 82nd in FBS for 2023).

I left this out of the recent Bite-Sized Bison piece on Big Ten QBs because it touches on a pivot point that will be left unknown until the season begins – what balance of pass-to-run will this staff employ in 2024?

In JMU’s last two seasons, they used Jordan McCloud on 53% of offensive plays – because he could run and because the OL was subpar – and used Todd Centeio on 46% of plays in 2022. The 2023 season was a mess at QB for IU, but in 2022, Connor Bazelak was used on 53% of plays, because IU essentially gave up on its running game. IU’s last season with one true starter before Bazelak was Richard Lagow in 2016, when he was used on 48% of plays.

For Rourke at Ohio, the Bobcats finished 2022 and 2023 ranked 5th and 3rd, respectively, in the MAC for rushing attempts. They were very balanced between the two phases.

With the construction of the roster, it seems the new Indiana offensive staff is prepared to go a bit more pass-heavy than in Rourke’s past, but it also has a stable of RBs that appear to be effective. Do they expect Rourke to take that step from 40%-41%-41% usage rates in his last three seasons to closer to 45-50%? With the history of this system and the number of WRs to feed, I’d assume yes.

Indiana Football’s 2025 high school recruiting class currently ranks 26th nationally (as of June 5).

Curt Cignetti and his staff are carrying their transfer portal momentum into the high school ranks, recently amplified by a slew of weekend visitors (including 5-star QB Julian Lewis) in the middle of HS visiting season. One has to believe this is a result of a staff nearly full of coaches coming from a non-Power Five (previously non-FBS) program gaining a new foothold on recruit interest at a Big Ten program, one also led by experienced, capable front office personnel like Matt Wilson and Mike Ferrera. 

Only 17 programs have more 2025 commitments than Indiana (11), and while a majority of 2025 prospects still need to commit, which will certainly shake up some things ratings- and rankings-wise, Indiana is looking at signs of a high school recruiting class that will rival its highest-rated classes of the 21st Century – 2022 at 25th and 2019 at 37th. 

Additional note: Only 9 of the 22 signees from 2022 remain on the roster (10 of the 37 additions overall).

There will be more on this in a future BSB.

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