Interception wasn’t crucial
(Written by kencraw)
I seem to be the only one out there who had a lot of confidence/hope when Stanford had 1st and 10 at the Cal 13. Those last yards are the hardest and the clock was down low enough that handing the ball to Toby 4-5 times in a row was not an option. That game was far from being a lock for Stanford at that moment.
So, imagine that Mohammed wasn’t there. The receiver was well covered and it wouldn’t have been caught (in fact, if Luck had put some air under it like he said he should have, it might have been intercepted by Cattouse who was all over the receiver). In any case, let’s pretend that there was no interception. After the incompletion, it would have been 3rd and 10 from the 13. That’s two plays to get a touchdown (I’m ignoring the 1st down scenarios because it’s unlikely that close to get a 1st down but not a touchdown when going to the air or screen passes or the such.) and it’s even more difficult to figure out how to get Toby the ball in a way that works, because you’ve basically got two plays. Personally, I think the smart money at that moment is still on the Bears, particularly the way Luck was playing.
Don’t get me wrong, I was glad that Mohammed put an end to it. I just don’t think it was as desperate as many suggest.
November 23rd, 2009 at 11:12 am
Ken,
Why haven’t you answered the question we’re all dying to know:
How will Shane Vereen carry the ball for 262 yards against u-dub?
Or do bowl games count in the “Jeff Tedford always has someone rush for 1,000 yards” stat.
Aloha from Mass,
Your brother
November 23rd, 2009 at 11:17 am
Bowl games definitely count.
Heck, we could end up with two 1000 yard rushers again. If Best is held out of Washington and Vereen gets over 150 yards, the Bears would be in position where a 135 yard performance by either Best or Vereen would net another 1000 yard rusher and both would net in two 1000 yard rushers.
November 23rd, 2009 at 3:08 pm
Staying positive for 1000 yards!
November 23rd, 2009 at 3:25 pm
even if the ‘furd did score a touchdown, we’d have the ball back with a minute and a half left. the only problem is, we had wasted 2 timeouts on boneheaded plays. timeouts are precious, and that’s why we need to manage them better. i don’t think the receiver was all that well covered on that play. i think the mohamed pick was a huge deal looking at the replay. there’s also the possibility of a PI call if mohamed doesn’t grab that. then we’re looking at a fresh set of downs and first and goal from the 6. lots of what-ifs, but I think the best call of all would have been to run it twice on 3rd and 8, rather than taking a knee, and either win it right then and there, or give them the ball with even less time on the clock, at their own 5 yard line. they still would have had to come all the way down and kick a field goal just to tie. i swear tedford thought we were up 7.
November 24th, 2009 at 7:14 am
In life and coaching, there are multiple paths to success. A wide range of coaching styles have won the NCAA football championship. Both Woody Hayes and Pete Carroll have won the title, and there couldn’t be two more contrasting people.
Because Tedford did something that you or I wouldn’t do, that doesn’t mean he made a mistake.
If you think the interception was lucky then I refer you to Bear Bryant’s famous line: “It seems the harder we practice, the luckier we get.”
The probability of an interception on Stanford’s final drive was reasonably high. I have witnessed many untested QB’s throw interceptions at the game’s most critical moments. (Many of them wore Cal uniforms.) The odds were very much against Standford winning the game.
All I know is that Cal won — yippee!
November 24th, 2009 at 9:42 am
That’s the best point yet Rick. If we flip it around and imagine Cal at the 13 yard line, most of us would be fully expecting the pick. God knows that if I started recalling each time the Bears were in position to win and then a boneheaded throw by the QB sunk our chances, I’d be here for a while.
November 24th, 2009 at 4:33 pm
Some people are just never satisfied with a victory. Cal won and that’s all that matter’s. What about Harbaugh’s decision to not punt on fourth down with all three TO’s left? This was The Big Game, and anything can happen!
November 29th, 2009 at 5:33 pm
Hi Ken,
I was freaking out. I had already gloated on my Aunt’s (stanfurd fan) facebook wall, but I deleted it immediately after they advanced the ball. After the interception, it went right back up again.
I can’t say that I liked Tedford’s decision to take a knee on 3rd down, but it worked out. He seemed a lot more energetic this game.
On another note (since I know you follow Notre Dame), people here are absolutely livid at Charlie Weis. My wife and I tried to watch the Big Game at a bar in South Bend, but the anti-Weis talk shows dominated all the TV screens. We had to return home and catch the game online. Anyhoo, if you ever want to catch an Irish game next year, you are always welcome to crash at our new (very old) house.