(EDITED BY AUTHOR: 10/23/2005 - 8:58 a.m.)(EDITED BY AUTHOR: 10/22/2005 - 11:54 p.m.)
::::>through. How many missed FG's does it take to realize going for it on 4th is the best bet?
You think we should have gone for it on 4th and 8 in OT? Should have thrown a jump ball from the 32 at the end of the game? I don't know what the odds of success are on such tactics but I bet they are less than 1 in 6 (our FG success rate for the game). No coach in America goes for it on 4th an 8 in OT trailing by 3. Deere lowered. Even the go ahead TD on 4th and goal from the 5 was unorthodox, but it worked. I note you fail to report that one in the asset column.
Do we even coach checking off, how many TO's did we burn on this?
Cox checks off frequently, so I am sure the answer to your question is yes. It is part of the offense, and it is hard to do on the road. Was our clock management great on the last drive? No. But was it terrible? Yes, if you call driving 50 yards on the road with no times out in 1:27 terrible. The critical time out that we burned in the second half was on special teams: the ice the kicker time out. I think that was a coaching mistake, particularly given the fact that LSU was trying to call time because of the play clock. You don't ice the kicker when you have time to score and win. We could have used that TO in the last drive for sure.
How long does it take to signal a play in the 2 minute offense (ball game there), We had a lot of dropped passes, but this loss was coaching, LSU was in no way better than Auburn, but Les Miles made Tubs look like a mac conference coach. Typical for tubs.
LSU was substantially better than Auburn in one of the most important aspects of football: special teams. It was the difference in the game, missed field goals aside.
I guess MAC coaches stay on the sidelines when the opposing team attempts a field goal. Most of LSU's big plays on offense were the result of Russell's improvisation. You can quibble with the strategy of only rushing 4 and sometimes 3 (I do), but to say LSU's strategy and coaching was better than ours is a big stretch in my view. LSU's execution was slightly better overall and much better in the kicking game where the game was decided. Tuberville has flaws, but this staff is improving. I would not trade him for Les Miles.
I hate losing. But our guys were as good as theirs in a hostile environment. We tied the real game. Overtime is great way to break ties, but it resembles football only in the equipment used. Auburn played with great effort and had a chance to win a game on the road against a favored team. The coaches should get some credit for that, too.
