Josh Heupel forgot Nick Saban’s best coaching advice, and it cost Tennessee in a huge moment against Oklahoma
Earlier this year, legendary former Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban delivered some of the best coaching advice you’ll ever hear. Unfortunately for the Tennessee Vols, UT head football coach Josh Heupel didn’t hear the advice. Because if he had, maybe the fourth quarter of the Vols’ 33-27 loss to the Oklahoma Sooners on […]
Earlier this year, legendary former Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban delivered some of the best coaching advice you’ll ever hear.
Unfortunately for the Tennessee Vols, UT head football coach Josh Heupel didn’t hear the advice.
Because if he had, maybe the fourth quarter of the Vols’ 33-27 loss to the Oklahoma Sooners on Saturday night in Knoxville would have played out differently.
Josh Heupel forgot Nick Saban’s best coaching advice, and it cost Tennessee in a huge moment against Oklahoma
Saban said that his first coaching lesson was delivered to him when he was a 15-year-0ld high school quarterback playing in a must-win game.
Near the end of the game, Saban’s team had a chance to win. But he called the plays for the offense, and he wasn’t sure what to call in that moment.
Saban said that his high school coach told him (after calling a timeout) in those moments to think about players, not plays. In other words, get the ball into the hands of one of your best players and trust that they’ll get the job done.
On a crucial fourth-and-one in the fourth quarter against Oklahoma, Heupel called a timeout and drew up a perfect play.
The play would’ve worked, but true freshman Jack Van Dorselaer couldn’t make the catch (it bounced off his facemask).
I think Van Dorselaer will be a really good football player. But in that moment, is trusting a true freshman who has two career receptions the best idea?
Why not try to get the ball to Braylon Staley, Mike Matthews, Chris Brazzell, or DeSean Bishop — you know, the Vols’ four best offensive players.
There are a lot of things that went wrong for Tennessee on Saturday night. It wasn’t just one thing that lost the game. But the fourth-down throw to a true freshman in one of the biggest moments of the game is certainly one of the big things that went wrong in Tennessee’s loss to Oklahoma.
This article was originally published on A to Z Sports Tennessee Vols as Josh Heupel forgot Nick Saban’s best coaching advice, and it cost Tennessee in a huge moment against Oklahoma.
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