I’m not saying we win, but would the outcome of the game been different had we not went for it on 4th down on our own 20 something?

At that point in the game in the second quarter, they were only up 3.

They had not done a lot against our D, and we even looked to have them guessing “a little” on offense.

Maybe if we punted, pushed them back on their own 20/30 mid way through the second, could it have prevented their momentum.

Once we did it get the 4th down attempt of course, 21 yards and three plays later it was 10-0.

It seemed like a big blow to us.

We had a little more fight the next drive or two and then the fumble. Couple plays later they scored again.

After that it was over. We had no chance.

But I wonder who made that call. I don’t think that’s a “numbers” call on your own 20 something.

This post was edited on 1/23/26 at 1:03 pm

3 ...

Report Post

Posted by YStar

Member since Mar 2013

19944 posts

Posted on 1/23/26 at 1:06 pm to RTRnFlorida

Honestly and people won't like reading this buf it we actually fought for that first down on the 3rd down prior.... you know like Mendoza bulldozed and fought his way for the gaming winning TD on 4th down?

We would have gotten the first and that momentum could have changed the tie.

Our coaching staff knew how limited our run game and QB were and they took a bad chance.

1 ...

Report Post

Posted by Diego Ricardo

Alabama

Member since Dec 2020

12192 posts

Posted on 1/23/26 at 1:07 pm to RTRnFlorida

quote:
Maybe if we punted, pushed them back on their own 20/30 mid way through the second, could it have prevented their momentum.

That's the problem we had. Our punter sucked, so they would have been starting at midfield with an offense that had moved on us pretty easily the last time when going full-field.

We didn't play the three phases complimentary football necessary to compete with Indiana. We could have probably traded blows with them a bit if we could win field position more often than not. However that is exactly why DeBoer went for it against UGA and Indiana in bad situations. Our punter sucked, so it is hard to play bend but don't break when a team is 20 yards for a reasonable FGA and 50 yards from the end zone.

Our fortunes declined as teams were able to get us off the field on 3rd down more consistently on our side of the 50. That really caused us a lot of problems against Oklahoma, Georgia, and Indiana.

This post was edited on 1/23/26 at 1:09 pm

0 ...

Report Post

Posted by Funky Tide 8

Bayou Chico

Member since Feb 2009

56238 posts

Posted on 1/23/26 at 1:12 pm to YStar

quote:
Honestly and people won't like reading this buf it we actually fought for that first down on the 3rd down prior.... you know like Mendoza bulldozed and fought his way for the gaming winning TD on 4th down?

We would have gotten the first and that momentum could have changed the tie.

There have been too many plays over the last 3 seasons where this happened. Didn't get a first down on third down when we absolutely should have, and then we go for it on 4th and 1 and don't get it leading to a big momentum swing.

0 ...

Report Post

Posted by EastTXTide

Member since Nov 2025

67 posts

Posted on 1/23/26 at 1:49 pm to RTRnFlorida

Yes. It was an idiotic decision and there is a reason you almost never see a team go for it down 3-0 in their own end at any level of the sport. Worst case scenario is we pin them deep and make them earn a 10-0 lead rather than gifting it to them. Playing from a massive hole early on affected the play calling and overall strategy.

Page 1