The biggest mistake that Tennessee’s Josh Heupel made against Alabama came two plays before the pick six that changed the game
Joey Aguilar’s pick six before halftime doomed the Tennessee Vols in their 37-20 loss to the Alabama Crimson Tide.
I’m not sure there’s been a drive dissected as much as the Tennessee Vols’ final drive before halftime against the Alabama Crimson Tide that resulted in a pick-six and a 16-point halftime deficit
Most of the focus of the drive has centered on the play call that resulted in the pick six.
Tennessee had no timeouts left with nine seconds on the clock, which meant a run play was not a good option for the Vols (they needed to leave enough time on the clock to kick a field goal).
The Vols came out in a bunch formation, but Alabama knew that a pass was likely so they weren’t fooled by the look. Bama’s defense was expecting the ball to be in the air, and cornerback Zabien Brown made a huge play, intercepting Joey Aguilar’s pass and returning it 99 yards for the score.
Greg McElroy, who played at Alabama and called the game for ESPN, was very critical of the play call the day after the game.
“Biggest moment of the game — without question — the pick-six at the end of the half…it was a really, really not good play call,” said McElroy. “Partly because it’s goal-line personnel. The defense knows you have to throw it, and yet you have two defensive linemen and two tight ends on the field. It’s goal line. The only time you throw it out of that personnel is with the intent to deceive the defense — ‘Oh, they think we’re running it, let’s actually surprise them and throw it.’
“When you’re in a situation where there’s nine seconds left on the clock, and you have no timeouts, the defense knows you have to throw it. So you’re not going to catch them off guard. Just a bad decision.”
I’ve gone back and forth on this since last weekend, and I think there are two different elements to consider.
One is why the Vols were in the situation they were in with the clock. The other is the play call.
I actually don’t think the play call was that bad of a decision (I felt differently in the moment). The Vols likely went with a bunch formation to make to sure Aguilar was protected and had enough time to get a throw off — a sack or any sort of negative play would’ve ended the half. I don’t think Tennessee thought they were deceiving Alabama with the formation.
If Aguilar’s pass is a little further outside, tight end Miles Kitselman catches it for a touchdown. Execute a little better and it’s six points for the Vols and this never-ending discussion about the play never happens.
I think the real issue was the clock and how the Vols ended up in a situation where they had nine seconds remaining and no time outs.
Josh Heupel’s biggest mistake came two plays before the pick six
While rewatching the last drive before the half, I initially took issue with the moment when Heupel allowed 30 seconds to run off the clock after a running play (from 1:20 to :50).
Heupel let 30 seconds run off the clock because he didn’t want to give Alabama the ball back with a large chunk of time still on the clock (Alabama had one timeout remaining).
A Twitter reply from @ChrisYow, though, changed my perception of the end of half sequence (though I still think Heupel is a bit cavalier in the he way manages the clock in these situations — something similar happened at the end of regulation against Mississippi State earlier this season).
With 17 seconds to go in the half, the Vols faced a third-and-one with two timeouts remaining. Tennessee running back DeSean Bishop picked up the first down with a three yard run which resulted in a first-and-goal from the two yard line. At that point, the Vols called timeout, which left 13 seconds on the clock.
Because the clock stops on a first down inside the final two minutes of the half, Tennessee could’ve spiked the ball in that situation, which would’ve left around 11 or 12 seconds on the clock. The Vols would’ve had two timeouts and three downs to play with. Their whole playbook would’ve been open. They could’ve ran the ball twice in that situation and they still would’ve had time for a field goal on fourth down if they didn’t get the ball into the end zone.
Calling the timeout after picking up the first down essentially robbed the Vols of a play (at the very least, it limited Tennessee’s options in the situation).
I don’t know if this was oversight by Heupel as he isn’t a coach who regularly spikes the ball to stop the clock. My theory is in that situation, he doesn’t trust his team to not false start –which would’ve resulted in a 10 second run off because the clock restarts as soon as the ball is spotted after the first down (in that case, Tennessee would’ve used a timeout to avoid the run off and they would’ve been in the same situation they ended up in, except they would’ve been pushed back to the seven yard line).
There are a lot of mixed feelings on how Heupel handled that sequence. It’s certainly not as easy as it looks to manage those situations — especially on the road in front of a hostile crowd. Still, I think it’s clear that it’s an area where Heupel and the Vols need to be better. Games are often won and lost in two minute end-of-half situations. So far this season, Tennessee hasn’t looked crisp in those moments.
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