When 2 Rushing Yards Beat a Dominant Defensive Front
As coaches, there are certain games you revisit months later and ask yourself one question:
How did that actually happen?
Recently, I broke down how Penn State managed to hang around with Indiana despite being badly overmatched on paper. While reviewing Miami’s schedule from last season, another game immediately jumped off the screen: SMU’s overtime win over the Hurricanes.
I remembered the game going to overtime, but what I did not remember was how SMU got there against a Miami defensive front that spent most of the year controlling the line of scrimmage.
The numbers tell a fascinating story.
During regulation, SMU called 64 offensive plays. Of those, 45 (70.3%) were passes and only 19 were runs.
The Mustangs finished regulation tied 20-20 despite producing just 2 rushing yards on those 19 carries.
Meanwhile, quarterback Kevin Jennings pushed the offense through the air, completing 29 of 45 passes for 365 yards. The SMU passing game kept them in the game with Miami.
The most surprising statistic may be that SMU’s longest run of regulation was only five yards.
Late in the third quarter, they gained those five yards on inside zone from an unbalanced formation.
For four quarters, Miami had completely shut down the SMU run game. Then overtime arrived, and everything changed.
The Six Play Decision
SMU received the ball in overtime after Miami’s Carson Beck threw a crushing interception near the goal line.
At that moment, offensive coordinator Casey Woods and head coach Rhett Lashlee made a decision that would have seemed ridiculous if you looked only at the box score.
They stopped throwing the football.
Completely.
After calling passes on over 70 percent of their snaps during regulation, SMU ran the ball six consecutive times to win the game.
The first call was a quarterback G/H Super Counter that gained five yards.
That tied their longest run of the entire game.
The next snap appears to be Duo. The offensive line gets movement and the back reaches the edge for three yards.
Now facing third and short, SMU reaches into one of football’s most reliable answers.
Power. The downhill run converts the first down and you can almost feel Miami beginning to crack.
SMU comes right back with Power again. This time it gains six yards.
Their longest run of the night… so far.
Then they return to Duo. Seven more yards.
A new longest run of the night.
Finally, from the one yard line, SMU finishes the drive with split zone for the game winning touchdown.
Six straight runs.
Touchdown. Game over.
What Changed?
The easy answer is that SMU suddenly found a running game. The better answer is that they found the right moment to use it.
Fatigue Finally Won
For four quarters, Miami’s defense had chased routes, rushed passers, and defended 45 pass attempts. The run game had not worked all night, but that does not mean it had not been serving a purpose.
Every pass protection rep forces defensive linemen to rush. Every scramble forces pursuit. Every drop back adds stress to a defense.
By overtime, Miami’s front looked exhausted. SMU recognized it and immediately changed the way they attacked.
Understanding the Situation
This is the part that matters most for coaches.
The best play call is not always the play that has worked the best throughout the game.
The best play call is the one that gives you the highest probability of winning in the current situation.
Miami had just turned the ball over in a devastating fashion.
The Hurricane defense was tired and SMU only needed a touchdown. The Mustangs did not need explosive plays. They did not need to force throws. They did not need to be creative.
They needed to be physical. So they became physical.
A Lesson for Coaches
Many coaches abandon concepts because they are not producing explosive results early in games.
The SMU overtime drive is a reminder that football is often an investment game.
Sometimes the run game is not there in the first quarter.
Sometimes it is not there in the second quarter.
Sometimes it is not even there in the fourth quarter.
But every snap places stress on defenders. Every drive accumulates fatigue. Every block forces a defensive lineman to absorb another collision. The key is recognizing when the defense has reached its breaking point.
SMU rushed for only two yards in regulation and still won the game by running the football six consecutive times when it mattered most.
That is a valuable reminder for all of us. Statistics tell you what happened. Great coaches identify what is about to happen next.
As Lashlee later summarized, “You throw the ball to score, but you run the ball to win.“
Against Miami, that philosophy could not have been demonstrated any better.