Syracuse Post Game

roadkill

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That chart is to convert on one play not to convert overall. If it was overall then the percentage to convert at second and 10 should be higher than 3rd and 10. So yes it's less likely to convert it first down from second and 20 plus than it is from 3rd and 10 on one play but not necessarily that different on two plays.
I tried to find where the analytics chart showed time left in the game and timeouts remaining, but couldn't find it. ;)
 

MWBATL

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Notable stats: King had a higher completion % (74) than McCord (70). One key difference was that King's short passes to the flat usually resulted in a 3-4 yard gain, while McCords's were usually an 8-yard gain or better. Give Syracuse credit for being ready for us more than we were ready for them.
I do. The better team won today. They pushed us around like they owned us. That pi**es me off.

I felt like we were outcoached. I felt like we stubbornly stuck to an offensive plan that Syracuse was well prepared for, and wasn't working. And on defense, we simply had no answers. All....day....long...
 

Eli

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I disagree. They were not just gonna run the ball. They were gonna do what was necessary to get the first down and had no fear of throwing the ball 15 or 20 yards downfield and we had shown no ability to stop them.
So if they complete a 15 yard pass it’s still 3rd and 10 lol. No matter how you slice it not taking the penalty is next level dumb.
 

bke1984

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3,447
Can we please drop the bitching about not taking the chop? Earlier in the game we took a hold that put them with 20 to go and McCord immediately picked up the first down. The way the game was going we gave ourselves one play to make a stop rather than requiring two to make a stop. The problem with the 7% stat is that it assumes those are our chances as a defense rather than the average of all defenses. What about how we played makes you think they wouldn’t pick up 25 in two plays? At least with one play maybe they screw up or we make a play.

We lost the game in the first and second quarters. We were playing catchup the rest of the way. In the third quarter we ran 8 plays…8!!! That’s ridiculous. It’s a miracle we even had a chance. I’d much rather have one play to get a stop than play some silly stat game at the end like that.

Bottom line is we lost because we thought we could push them around and it turns out we were wrong. We should have switched to throwing down field much earlier, but we didn’t.

Oh well. Flush it and move on. The Louisville game is a bigger deal.
 

Heisman's Ghost

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The issue was we gave ourselves no margin for error not trying the onside kick, or at least a low pooch kick and beat them to the ball.

It mattered not if they scored again. We had to get the ball back. An onside/pooch kick gives you two shots at possession. Kicking deep only gives you one.
We had a game years ago, where we sort of faked the onside kick and kicked the pooch kick. The other team's players looked at that pooch kick like it was snake or something and we got it. Can't remember the outcome but they were ready for the onside kick but the pooch kick seemed to mesmerize them. Football is a strange game sometimes.
 

bke1984

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And another thing. Some of you guys act like coaches can never lose a football game. News flash - every coach loses football games. John Heisman, William Alexander, Bobby Dodd, Bobby Ross, George O’Leary, Paul Johnson, Bear Bryant, Woody Hayes, Vince Lombardi, Bill Belichick, Jimmy Johnson (should I go on?) - They all lost football games. They also all lost football games against opponents that were better, even, and worse than they were.

People need to grow up and learn how to deal with losing. Does it suck? Yeah it sucks. It’s supposed to suck. It’s what makes you want to get better. But it happens.

Instead of complaining about it just go to sleep. We have 9 more chances to win, and I’m guessing we will win more of them than we lose.
 

Jacket05

Ramblin' Wreck
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686
Yes. Regardless if they hit a 15 yard play you are in the same situation you were in if you didn’t take the penalty. Taking the penalty also changes Syracuse philosophy. They might have try to hit one chunk play on 2nd and 22 and what if it was incomplete? If the defense wasn’t going to hold up on 2nd and 22 I sure as hell don’t have faith in them stopping a 3rd and 10
If the hit a 15 yard play on 2nd and 22.5 you are not in the same situation as declining the penalty. It would now be 3rd and 7 or 8 and you would have lost about 10 seconds at least on the clock and minus a timeout. At that point time was a critical factor so saving as much as possible was Key's priority.

If it was third and short I would agree you should take the penalty but at third and long your defense SHOULD be able to make a stop more often than not.
 

Heisman's Ghost

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A thought I’ve gone round and round with since before the FSU game is the age old question of whether you should schedule difficult games early or cup cakes. Lots of coaches like scheduling cup cakes early to get all the kinks worked out with their teams without tiring them out. Saban did this most seasons. Other teams like to establish a hard nosed attitude early by playing tougher opponents. I seem to recall TCU doing this when they were trying to climb back into national prominence after decades of being mediocre.

I’m not suggesting one is better than the other but the latter approach is high risk high reward and you better have quality depth. Syracuse playing Ohio ended up being the perfect warm up for them and they seemed much fresher and well rested than Tech. Over the course of the next four or five games we will see if Tech’s schedule or Syracuse’s schedule served them better.
Well, Tech's schedule is ranked the hardest in the ACC and 10th hardest in the nation. Syracuse's schedule is ranked 2nd easiest in the ACC and one of the easiest in the nation. I would rather have Syracuse's schedule myself but that is just me. Dodd used to schedule LSU, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, Auburn, Clemson, Tulane, Vanderbilt and usually either Florida or Kentucky but he often had lots of depth and good players at most positions. We just do not have the defense for this kind of challenging schedule. Defensive line cannot consistently get pressure and the defensive backs are too slow.
 
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