Why did we take the penalty?

[MysteryMen]

they were playing the odds and moving the ball backwards. you all may not agree with the call - I didn't due to our record on 3rd downs this year - but it isn't indefensible.

Maryland had it 4th and 7 on the 42 with like a minute and half before the break. Do people really think that they would have gone for it from that long distance and risked giving us great field position to go up two scores going into halftime? I say there's a 95 percent chance they would have punted, that's why accepting the penalty makes no sense

 

[tsywake]

Maryland had it 4th and 7 on the 42 with like a minute and half before the break. Do people really think that they would have gone for it from that long distance and risked giving us great field position to go up two scores going into halftime? I say there's a 95 percent chance they would have punted, that's why accepting the penalty makes no sense

If you're talking about the same call everyone is, there was :33 left in the half.

 

[AsheboroDeacon]

You always put a team in a 4th down situation if you have the opportunity....ALWAYS!!

 

[DCDeac]

I was infuriated at the time, but that's when I thought Maryland was punting. Folks at the game said they had already put their offense on the field to go for it. That being the case, you back them up 10, because if you hold on 3rd and 17 they punt on fourth down. Either way you have to stop one play.

They gained 18 anyway, so it would have been a first down regardless. Really it was just a huge fail by our defense.

Luckily everyone came to play in the 2nd half.

 

[ArlingtonDeac]

You always put a team in a 4th down situation if you have the opportunity....ALWAYS!!

Certainly in that situation. You put the pressure on them to risk giving us the ball near midfield if they choose to go for it. You don't give them a free shot at a play on third down, with no significant downside if it fails. It was a terrible decision, thankfully meaningless.

If they'd have failed on third down they would've punted on fourth, so we basically just gave them a no-risk free play to aim downfield.

 

[DirkTheDeac]

You do realize we gave them two more plays in the red zone with a Maryland kicker whose longest kick for the entire season was 33 yards?

Yeah, I realize that. You should be a head coach.

 

[SugarlandDeac]

In Skip's words "that was curious". It's a call most coaches would've taken to reject penalty. That puts twice the pressure on the offense to "do or die" on one play. I don't think Grobe makes that call again...I suspect he heard a raft of crap from the crowd and others for it.