Predicting Scores Mathematically

Using the scores of the games that have already been played among a set of teams, it is possible to define mathematically an "offensive strength" and a "defensive strength" for each team, and to do so in a mathematically optimal manner (in the sense that no other choice of strengths will generate a better approximation to the scores of the games that have already been played). 

The higher the strength number, the stronger the team's offense or defense is. The sum of the offensive and defensive strengths is the overall strength of the team.  That number can be used to determine a ranking for each team.  Also, a team with an overall strength of (for instance) 50 should beat a team with an overall strength of 30 by a 20-point margin.

Don't take these too seriously.  Mistakes may have been made in gathering the scores and resolving the the team names.  Furthermore, the mathematical predictions do not take into account real-world concerns, such as injuries and team motivation and whether or not a team tries to run the score up when it is far ahead.

If the difference in overall strengths between two teams is small (less than, say, 6 or 7), the game is too close to call!  Furthermore, the predicted winner is often wrong, even when the predicted margin of victory is large.  All that really counts is what the teams do on the field!