Middle Tennessee — Conference USA
HC
Derek Mason · Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium · Murfreesboro, TN · 30,788 cap
PPA off / def
0.14 / 0.21
2025
Class rank
#119
class of 2026
Returning PPA
33%
returning production
2026 schedule
2025 results (3–9)
Statistical comps — 2025 Middle Tennessee's closest analogs
Nearest neighbors by z-scored success rate, explosiveness, run rate & havoc (offense + defense), 2015–25.
2025 leaders
Transfer portal — 2026 (19 in / 18 out)
Origins
Stockstill lasted seventeen seasons, which in this conference is close to permanence. The Blue Raiders beat Missouri in 2016 and Miami in 2017 and mostly play the role of dangerous visitor.
Founded 1911 · One of three normal schools the state opened the same year · first football 1911 · defined by Rick Stockstill
All-time record
All-time
160–212–1
1911–2025
Win %
43.0%
62 seasons played
Winning seasons
17
27% of seasons
By level: ii/iii 0–13 (1911–1951) · FCS 7–25–1 (1953–1998) · FBS 153–174 (1999–2025)
| Best seasons | W | L | Conference |
|---|
| 2009 | 10 | 3 | Sun Belt |
| 2001 | 8 | 3 | Sun Belt |
| 2012 | 8 | 4 | Sun Belt |
| 2022 | 8 | 5 | Conference USA |
| 2016 | 8 | 5 | Conference USA |
Season records from CollegeFootballData, which is why the span starts at 1911 — that is where its coverage of this program begins, not necessarily the first year it fielded a team.
Play-calling tendencies (2025 · garbage time excluded)
| Situation | Plays | Run % | Success % | Nat'l | Avg yds | Expl % |
|---|
| 1st down | 341 | 42% |
48% | 28 of 136 | 5.8 | 11% |
| 2nd down | 256 | 37% |
41% | 87 of 136 | 6.0 | 11% |
| 3rd & short (≤3) | 42 | 50% |
64% | — | 5.5 | 14% |
| 3rd & medium (4–7) | 56 | 18% |
36% | — | 4.0 | 4% |
| 3rd & long (8+) | 71 | 11% |
27% | — | 6.1 | 15% |
| 4th down | 25 | 32% |
28% | — | 2.6 | 8% |
152 drives · 26% ended in points · 6.9 plays and 37.1 yards per drive · 0.76 PPA per drive
Success: 50% of yardage needed on 1st, 70% on 2nd, 100% on 3rd/4th. Explosive: 12+ yd rush / 16+ yd pass. National rank is shown only for 1st and 2nd down, where every team has 100+ plays; the later buckets average 18-43 and a rank there would be noise.
League leaderboard →Most valuable plays (by PPA, 2025)
| Wk | Opp | Play | Yds | PPA |
|---|
| 12 | Western Kentucky |
(07:01) No Huddle-Shotgun #16 R.Gagliano rush middle for 64 yards gain to the WKU02 (#17 D… |
64 | 4.76 |
| 11 | Florida International |
(00:51) No Huddle-Shotgun #16 R.Gagliano pass complete deep middle to #13 C.Lacy caught at… |
60 | 4.76 |
| 14 | New Mexico State |
(01:56) No Huddle-Shotgun #29 D.Taylor rush right for 64 yards gain to the NMSU00 TOUCHDOW… |
64 | 4.63 |
| 4 | Marshall |
Jekail Middlebrook run for 72 yds to the MRSH 3 for a 1ST down |
72 | 4.61 |
| 12 | Western Kentucky |
(13:01) No Huddle-Shotgun #16 R.Gagliano pass complete deep left to #13 C.Lacy caught at W… |
68 | 4.61 |
| 14 | New Mexico State |
(06:54) No Huddle-Shotgun #16 R.Gagliano pass complete deep right to #89 L.Collins caught … |
48 | 4.45 |
| 13 | Sam Houston |
(13:03) #16 R.Gagliano rush middle for 33 yards gain to the SHSU00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 12:55,… |
33 | 4.40 |
| 12 | Western Kentucky |
Myles Butler 52 Yd pass from Roman Gagliano (Two-Point Pass Conversion Failed) |
52 | 4.01 |