4 Hard Downs: Timeouts Aren't Just Clock Time, Being Wrong & Being Right

Shout Out To Bama's Young Bulls & We Have To Talk Timeouts & Being Ok With Being Wrong

Unless you’ve been under a rock, you realize a huge swath of the country is battling with the wrath that Hurricane and Tropical Storm, plus remnants of Helene have brought. App State had to cancel their game against Liberty because Boone, NC was literally underwater.

Schools were canceled in my state. Now, we’re dealing with the fallout that includes landslides, flooding and having to try to deal with stupid insane insurance people. Oh, and if you don’t know, since most of the flooding and rain hit the mountains, that water is going down hill, so the next stages are still happening, something that doesn’t usually happen with storm surges and coastal flooding.

Hit up our guys, (sorry I forgot to put the link and you all got a look into my place holder system that, apparently doesn’t work for me) if you know of folks who need help or where Sports Podfest can send some hoodies to keep folks warm and show some support.

1st Down: Being Right ‘Bout Bama

If you listened to College Sports Now from Felder Friday or the Undisputed Podcast from Friday, I picked Bama to win. I said definitively that the Tide had the better QB and was the physically stronger team. Called it as a 1 score game and ultimately Alabama would walk away with the dub, as UGA gets geared up to try and finish this gauntlet with Texas, Ole Miss and Tennessee coming up soon.

Tide got out to a hot start but to pat myself on the back even more:

UGA did pull up to the bumper.

You cannot take your foot off the gas. And we talked about it last week with USC, you have to finish the drill and close the door. Jalen Milroe and one of Bama’s young bulls, Ryan Williams, slammed it shut. Zabien Brown turned the deadbolt and set the alarm, to reference last week’s 4 Hard Downs.

That’s football. That’s winning football to be more exact. These young guys showed up led by a field general in Jalen Milroe that commanded his troops.

2nd Down: I Was Wrong About Stuff Too

Ole Miss and Louisville were a nightmare to watch.

Let’s start with the Lane Train at home in Oxford. That offense let them down. 55 points per game coming in, walking out with 17. Only 56 plays in the game. Team could not run the football, including sacks, 92 yards of rushing.

I will say this, the defense at Ole Miss is fun. They swarm, they’re penetrative and holding a team, in 2024 college football, to 20 points is good football. Just like when UGA held them to 12, that was good DEFENSIVE football.

Kentucky is a nightmare and they drag teams down and make it a fight in quick sand where the game is shorter and you’re fighting them and the clock. Hats off to the Wildcats.

On to Louisville; Cardinals is a great mascot because it is a bird and birds lay eggs and that’s what they did. Laid an egg. More passing yards than Notre Dame. More rushing yards than Notre Dame. Down 10 going into the 4th quarter.

Neither could close the door.

I thought both had a great shot to handle their business and instead they got their business handed to them.

Yes, even though I’m wrong, I’m laughing. Shout out to Ron Cherry. Sometimes you’re wrong and when you do me dirty and make me wrong, you have to earn my trust back.

Good luck doing that.

3rd Down: Timeouts Aren’t Always Just About Time

All timeouts are not created equal.

There are timeouts that you call when your team is trying to avoid a delay of game, illegal formation, too many OR not enough men on the field situation. There are timeouts you call when you are completely not expecting what the other team is going to do.

Then their are just bad timeouts that buy time for you to lose the game.

Two weeks ago Kansas against West Virginia, 37 seconds to play, KU calls a timeout when WVU has none and doesn’t have a plan. They don’t have a call for 3rd down or 4th down. Yet, KU gives them bonus time to get the Garrett Greene run and then an endzone shot that leads to a penalty for first down.

Just play defense, don’t give them time to think.

Same with Oklahoma against Auburn, which at least the Sooners won. The fake fake field goal led to just a field goal. They had to call a timeout, right after Auburn used their final timeout. After Auburn’s timeout you should have had a plan: kick it or go for it, but the answer should have been known coming out of the timeout that they gave you.

4th Down: Every Interception Ain’t On The QB

As for interceptions, yes they show up on a QB stat, but hear me out, what if we put them on the WR/TE/RB instead.

This guy didn’t make the catch. Michael Mathison is the reason this play doesn’t work and his QB gets tagged with an INT. Play is setup. QB does the right thing. Gets flagged for INT when the receiver short arms it and basically chest passes it to the DB.

Not the QB’s fault.

How is this his fault? Dropped a dime and the guy basically tossed it to the defender.

How are those the QB’s fault?

They shouldn’t get penalized for this, especially when you just watch the stats and not the games and think this is on him.

Cheers!!!