Wasted Snaps

[rexbo 104]

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Maisel

By Ivan Maisel

ESPN.com

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Wasted Snaps

That's what Auburn offensive coordinator Al Borges calls them. They are plays when the defense has nothing to do with a play failing to work. It might be a dropped pass, an errant throw, a back falling down unaided by a tackler.

"Nothing on a wasted snap is stopped by virtue of a good defense," Borges said. "If a quarterback is harassed, I don't count it. But if he takes a three-step drop, throws a slant, hits the receiver in the hands, and the ball is dropped, that's a wasted snap."

His rule: His offense must have fewer than five wasted snaps per game.

"It goes back to when I was coaching baseball," he said. "Always make the routine plays automatically. The great players will make the great plays."

Last year, with three first-round draft choices in the backfield, on the way to a 13-0 record, Auburn "seldom had more than two or three" wasted snaps. The most? Six, in the second game of the season, a 43-14 victory over Mississippi State.

Saturday night at LSU, the Tigers gained 451 yards of total offense. They committed no turnovers. And they lost, 20-17 in overtime, when John Vaughn made his fifth errant field-goal kick of the night.

"We had nine wasted snaps," Borges said. "We dropped seven balls. Had we made the routine plays, we would have had 500 yards and not been kicking field goals."

[bammanmr 0]

Good read. Every article I read about Borges makes me more and more thankful that we hired him. He definitely has his s*** together as an OC.

[WarTim 3,456]

I, too, am thankful for CAB. He has proven himself as an excellent OC. If you would like to have a chuckle, go over to the Classics Forum and read the thread when he was hired. Funny stuff.

[GoAU 1,600]

I'm thrilled we have him, and want to make sure we don't let him go. It seems that over the past few years we've had revolving doors installed in the Coordinators offices. We need to keep CAB!!!

[saniflush 0]

Wartim I went back and read through that thread and it is amazing how things and perceptions change. I will admit freely that I had my doubts as well when he was hired but VERY glad my doubts were unwarranted!

[Strychnine 1,802]

I, too, am thankful for CAB. He has proven himself as an excellent OC.   If you would like to have a chuckle, go over to the Classics Forum and read the thread when he was hired. Funny stuff.

193219[/snapback]

I love such gems as: "the "West Coast" ofense will never survive in Lower Alabama".

[sportwareagle 0]

Interesting stat. It definitely shows that mistakes cost games...big ones!!!

Hopefully that won't happen this weekend.

WAR DAMN EAGLE AND BEAT THE REBS!!!!

[rexbo 104]

Here's one more stat for StatTiger to delve into. I am sure in a few days we will have a game by game comparison of the 2004 AU tigers and the 2005 AU Tigers, and the 1983 AU Tigers, and the 1992 'Bama team, and the 2005 'Bama team's 'Wasted Snaps'. And StatTiger, don't forget to include the percentage of Wasted Snaps, because some games a team probably had many more or many less total offensive snaps...