← Matchups

Drake

· 0-3 · power -12.8 · #324
Our numberDRKE -5.3 no book has priced this game

Davidson

· 1-2 · power -20.9 · #381
Our side
MoneylineDRKE to win ours 39%
Projected score 32–27 DRKE – DAV
2026-09-26 · 1:00 PM Richardson Stadium (Davidson, NC) · Davidson, NC Conference game Early season

The books

No book has priced this game. Nothing to compare, and no ticket to build.

Series Drake lead 9–3 · 12 meetings since 2005
2025 unit ranks — last completed season, from games actually played
Run game edge Drake Bulldogs 161 ranks
Drake Bulldogs #100 rush offense Davidson Wildcats #261 run defense
Pass game edge Drake Bulldogs 114 ranks
Drake Bulldogs #89 pass offense Davidson Wildcats #203 pass defense
Run game edge Drake Bulldogs 148 ranks
Davidson Wildcats #247 rush offense Drake Bulldogs #99 run defense
Pass game even 2 ranks apart
Davidson Wildcats #145 pass offense Drake Bulldogs #147 pass defense
Drake Bulldogs Run-heavy · 69% run Ball-control Dual-threat QB · 34 rush ypg Davidson Wildcats Run-heavy · 62% run Ball-control

Ranked by team-unit strength (rush & pass offense vs. run & pass defense) across all 265 D1 teams, not by individual players. Identity, tempo and unit strength are measured from the 2025 season.

The evidence 2025 production and power ratings · supporting the number above

Who carried each team in 2025
Drake Bulldogs
LB J.R. Flood 35 tkl · 0.5 TFL #37 LB
DL Tyson Shivers 10 tkl · 2.0 sacks · 2.0 TFL #77 DL
WR Willis Nofsinger 18 rec · 285 yds · 1 TD #53 WR
WR Hank Foley 14 rec · 215 yds · 1 TD #120 WR
Davidson Wildcats
WR Jacary Lightsey 24 rec · 233 yds · 1 TD #50 WR
DL Danzel Chukwuemeka 11 tkl · 1.0 sacks · 1.0 TFL #200 DL
DL Jarmal Gilmore 11 tkl · 1.0 sacks · 2.5 TFL #223 DL
TE Jack Perozek 7 rec · 62 yds · 1 TD #51 TE

Top-rated players from last season, ranked within their position across D1. A grade measures what a player produced, and no 2026 game has been played yet — so this is who produced for these programs in 2025, not a claim about who is on the field this year.

Power breakdown
TeamPowerOffDefRank
Drake Bulldogs -12.8 -5.6 -7.2 #324
Davidson Wildcats -20.9 -8.4 -12.5 #381

Def is higher = better. The projection assumes a 2.4-pt home edge (0 at neutral sites).

Where the number comes from
Drake offense vs Davidson defense+7.0 pts
Davidson offense vs Drake defense-1.2 pts
Efficiency adjustment · EPA, success rate, explosiveness+0.3 pts
Power projection before adjustment-5.6
Travel · context onlyAway team travels 809 mi
Rest · context onlyAway team on 7 more days rest

The projection carries an efficiency adjustment — a residual from season-to-date EPA, success rate and explosiveness, which earned its place by walk-forward test (margin error 12.90 → 12.72 across seven held-out seasons).

Situational spots are shown for context, not baked in: travel, altitude and rest were tested against 6,000+ games and the power and efficiency ratings already account for them. Adding them again would double-count.