Winning Plays- South Florida

[SWC75]

Once again I’m going to chart our football games according to which team “won” each play. The idea is that you ask yourself what was the minimum acceptable result the team with the ball wanted and then, if they achieved at least that result, they “won” the play. If they didn’t, the other team “won” the play. I break down the result sby the circumstances of the play: first down ruins, first down passes, same for second down, third down and fourth down. Then I look at each kicking play, penalties, turnovers, etc. The result is a total that shows if a team won by dominating play after play or by getting the big plays- turnovers, long gains, kick returns, blocked kicks, etc. it gives you a view of how the game was physically. It also gives you an idea of what areas we need to improve our recruiting. If we are losing a majority of the plays, look to the line of scrimmage. If we are not getting the big plays, look to the playmakers and the coach’s philosophy. The break-out allows us to see how we did in certain situations, such as first downs runs or passes.


Here is the scoring system I’ve been using: On a play from scrimmage, the team with the ball is trying to either get a first down or a touchdown, (the latter being the only goal if it is a “goal to go” situation). If they get 1/3 of the way to those goals, (rounding the goal up), on first down they have “won the play because if they gained that amount of yardage three times in a row, they’d keep the ball for another series of down or they’d score. On second down they want to get halfway to their goal. On third or fourth down, they want to obtain the goal because if they don’t, they’d have to surrender the ball or settle for a lesser goal, (a field goal instead of a touchdown). If the offense doesn’t win the play, then the defense won the play.

On place kicks, it’s simple: if the kicking team scored the field the field goal or extra point, they won the play. On kick-offs, since touchbacks go out to the 25, any kickoff that ends with the receiving team having the ball no farther in than the 25 yards line is a win for the kicking team. Anything beyond that is a win for the receiving team. On a punt, the touchback comes out to the 20 so any punt that results in the other team getting the ball no further rout than their 20 is a win for the punting team. Also, any punt that gains the kicking at least 40 yards in field positon is a win for them. I’m not interested in how far the punt travels. I’m interested in where the other team will star their next play. Kick-offs after a safety will be judged as if they were punts. You want to get the ball at least a net 40 yards downfield. Ifg it’s within the 25, you obviously did that.

Turnovers are, obviously wins for the defense. This year I’ve decided to list them under the circumstances of the play, that is if it was a second down running play and there is a fumble, I’ll put “fumble” under “2R”, rather than listing it on a separate line under turnovers. It will be a lost play of the offense counted under second down running plays.

Sacks are counted as passing plays. “Victory” plays are wins for the team with the ball because they are just trying to get the clock moving so it will run out.

Penalties will be counted as plays under the circumstances of the play. If they negate a play or are tacked onto it, it’s part of the result of the play. A gain negated by an offside penalty is a -5 play. A 20 yard run turned into a 10 yard loss by a clip is a -10 play7. If you jump offside on second down and they blow the play dead, I’ll assume it was a passing play if it was at least second and five unless the play-by play says otherwise. Within 5 yards, I’ll assume it was a running play. If it was first down, I’ll assume a run, third or fourth down I’ll assume a pass, again unless it says otherwise. If it was a penalty not associated with a play, (unsportsmanlike conduct, etc. I’ll list it using the same assumptions about down and distance.

Glossary:

KICKS
KO = Kickoffs I’ll just list where the ball wound up, unless it was a TD or turnover.
P = Punts. I’ll list the net distance and where the ball wound up, unless it was a TD or turnover.
FG= Field Goal attempts. I’ll list the distance and ‘G’ (good) or ‘NG” (no good)
XP= Extra Points. Just G or NG unless it’s not from the normal distance due to a penalty. The penalty will be listed as a separate attempt (-5, -10, -15, etc) and lost paly for the kicking team.

SCRIMMAGE PLAYS
I’ll list the yardage gained or lost and put the yards needed for a first down or touchdown in parenthesis if other than 10, unless there is no gain or a loss, which would be a win for the defesne regardless of the yardage needed..
1r = First down rushing play.
1p= First down passing play.
Same for second down, (2r, 2p), third down (3r,3p) and fourth down (4r,4p)
I = Incomplete pass
INT = interception
FUM = fumble
TD = touchdown
P = penalty
S = sack
V= “Victory” play

 

[SWC75]

When SYRACUSE had the ball:

KO: SF 25, SF 25, SF 19, SF 25, SF 18
Total: Syracuse 5 South Florida 0
P: 49 (SF 20), 40 (SF 47), 46 (SF 21), 47 (SF 25)
Total: Syracuse 4 South Florida 0
FG: 30 Good
Total: Syracuse 1 South Florida 0
XP: Good, Good, Good
Total: Syracuse 3 South Florida 0

Kicking plays total: Syracuse 13 South Florida 0

1r 7, 4, 2, 6, -5P, -5, 6, 3, -1, 3, 5, 15P, 0, 0
Total: Syracuse 6 South Florida 8
1p I, 9(15), 10, 8, 10, 29, 10P, 30TD, 12, 8, I, 7TD, I, -9S, I, 14, 10, I
Total: Syracuse 12 South Florida 6
First Down Total: Syracuse 18 South Florida 14
2r -3, -3, 0, -1, 7(4), 5(7), -7, -15P, 5(19)
Total: Syracuse 2 South Florida 7
2p 3(6), 5(4), 14(15), I, 4(5), I, I, 6, 9, 13, I, -8FUM
Total: Syracuse 7 South Florida 5
Second Down Total: Syracuse 9 South Florida 12
3r 2(3), 7(1), 2(2), 0, 7TD, -4, 2(1)
Total: Syracuse 4 South Florida 3
3p 18(6), I, I, 15P, 5(18), 11(10), 114), INT, I
Total: Syracuse 4 South Florida 5
Third Down Total: Syracuse 8 South Florida 8
4r 9(6), 12(10)
Total: Syracuse 2 South Florida 0
4p none
Total: none
Fourth Down Total: Syracuse 2 South Florida 0

Total on running plays: Syracuse 14 South Florida 18
Total on passing plays: Syracuse 23 South Florida 16
Total on plays from scrimmage: Syracuse 37 South Florida 34

Game total when SYRACUSE had the ball: Syracuse 50 South Florida 34

When SOUTH FLORIDA had the ball:

KO: SU 12, SU 21, SU 28, SU 25, SU 21
Total: Syracuse 1 South Florida 4
P: 40 (SU4), 45 (SU26)-FUM
Total: Syracuse 1 South Florida 1
FG: 49 NG, 21 GOOD
Total: Syracuse 1 South Florida 1
XP: GOOD, GOOD, GOOD, GOOD, GOOD
Total: Syracuse 0 South Florida 6

Kicking plays total: Syracuse 3 South Florida 12

1r 17, 0, 2, 6, 8, 1(2), 7, 3, 1, 5, 15, 11, 25, 5, 3, 9, 45TD, 6, 5, 1, 13, 17, 2TD, -5P, 4, 1
Total: Syracuse 8 South Florida 18
1p I, 21, I, I, 13, 42TD, I, 14TD, 12, 11
Total: Syracuse 4 South Florida 6
First Down Total: Syracuse 12 South Florida 24
2r 6, 2, -1, 2(4), 5(6), 1TD, 6, 6(5), 7, 0, 6, 8, 2(6), -2V
Total: Syracuse 4 South Florida 9
2p -4P, -5P, 56(15), 1(3), I, 8(9), 28(5), -6S-FUM, 21(1), 9(9)
Total: Syracuse 5 South Florida 5
Second Down Total: Syracuse 9 South Florida 14
3r 4(2), 5(1), 3(2), 7(4), 2(2)
Total: Syracuse 0 South Florida 5
3p 10(4), 1(8), I, -10S, 11, -15P, 18(14), I, -5P, 11(9)
Total: Syracuse 6 South Florida 4
Third Down Total: Syracuse 6 South Florida 9
4r none
Total: none
4p none
Total: none
Fourth Down Total: none

Total on running plays: Syracuse 12 South Florida 32
Total on passing plays: Syracuse 15 South Florida 15
Total on plays from scrimmage: Syracuse 27 South Florida 47

Game total when SOUTH FLORIDA had the ball: Syracuse 30 South Florida 59

Overall Game Total: Syracuse 80 South Florida 93

Comments: Everybody thinks the key down in football is third down. I think it’s first down, because that sets everything else up. We did OK overall on first down in this game, averaging 5.8 yards on 32 first down plays. But South Florida was off the charts, averaging 8.6 yard per first down play. They had 13 first down plays that gained 10 yards or more. We had seven such plays. Both teams passed well on first down as teams usually do, as the defense is expecting a running play. They gained 113 yards on 11 first down passes, (10.3) We had 146 yards on 18 first down passes (8.1). The big difference was in first down rushing plays: we gained only 40 yards on 14 first down rushes (2.9). The Bulls ran for 207 yards on 26 first down runs, 8.0 yards per carry. Overall they made 320 yards of their 541 yards on their 37 first down plays. Because of that they had only 15 third down plays, none of them in the third quarter. In their first two possessions they ran nine plays from scrimmage: 5 yards, 6 yards, 13 yards, 15 yards, 11 yards, 25 yards, 5 yards, 28 yards, 42 yards. That produced two touchdowns, which turned a 3-10 game into a 3-24 game. Seven of those nine plays were first down plays.

 

[SWC75]

SEASON TOTALS

When SYRACUSE had the ball:

KO: Syracuse 23 Opponent 5
P: Syracuse 21 Opponent 4
FG: Syracuse 8 Opponent 2
XP: Syracuse 17 Opponent 1

Kicking plays total: Syracuse 69 Opponent 12

1r Syracuse 43 Opponent 55
1p Syracuse 32 Opponent 22
First Down Total: Syracuse 75 Opponent 77
2r Syracuse 28 Opponent 27
2p Syracuse 21 Opponent 24
Second Down Total: Syracuse 49 Opponent 51
3r Syracuse 12 Opponent 18
3p Syracuse 16 Opponent 25
Third Down Total: Syracuse 28 Opponent 43
4r Syracuse 6 Opponent 3
4p Syracuse 0 Opponent 0
Fourth Down Total: Syracuse 6 Opponent 3

Total on running plays: Syracuse 89 Opponent 103
Total on passing plays: Syracuse 69 Opponents 71
Total on plays from scrimmage: Syracuse 158 Opponent 174

Game total when SYRACUSE had the ball: Syracuse 227 Opponent 186

When THE OPPONENT had the ball:

KO: Syracuse 7 Opponent 16
P: Syracuse 11 Opponent 15
FG: Syracuse 3 Opponent 6
XP: Syracuse 0 Opponent 14

Kicking plays total: Syracuse 21 Opponent 51

1r Syracuse 53 Opponent 43
1p Syracuse 26 Opponent 34
First Down Total: Syracuse 79 Opponent 77
2r Syracuse 21 Opponent 36
2p Syracuse 30 Opponent 30
Second Down Total: Syracuse 51 Opponent 66
3r Syracuse 12 Opponent 10
3p Syracuse 35 Opponent 18
Third Down Total: Syracuse 47 Opponent 28
4r Syracuse 1 Opponent 1
4p Syracuse 1 Opponent 3
Fourth Down Total: Syracuse 2 Opponent 4

Total on running plays: Syracuse 87 Opponent 90
Total on passing plays: Syracuse 92 Opponent 85
Total on plays from scrimmage: Syracuse 179 Opponent 175

Game total when our OPPONENT had the ball: Syracuse 200 Opponent 226

Overall game total: Syracuse 427 Opponent 412

Comments: Going into the South Florida game we’d won 45 of 70 plays where the opponent ran on first down. Vs. USF it was 8 of 26. We’d been 75-58 defending running plays on all downs. In that game were 12-32. A total reversal of form in a critical area. That’s what lost us the game, pure and simple.

 

[SWC75]

Historical Winning Plays

(Game totals only)

2011
Syracuse 101 Wake Forest 87
Syracuse 92 Rhode Island 65
Syracuse 75 USC 90
Syracuse 96 Toledo 88
Syracuse 103 Rutgers 99
Syracuse 79 Tulane 99
Syracuse 90 West Virginia 84
Syracuse 74 Louisville 83
Syracuse 84 Connecticut 86
Syracuse 92 South Florida 106
Syracuse 83 Cincinnati 104
Syracuse 87 Pittsburgh 93
TOTAL: Syracuse 1,056 Opponents 1,117

2012
Syracuse 105 Northwestern 116
Syracuse 92 USC 98
Syracuse 93 Stony Brook 82
Syracuse 82 Minnesota 95
Syracuse 85 Pittsburgh 76
Syracuse 93 Rutgers 73
Syracuse 103 Connecticut 70
Syracuse 115 South Florida 92
Syracuse 96 Cincinnati 122
Syracuse 103 Louisville 86
Syracuse 92 Missouri 98
Syracuse 98 Temple 81
Syracuse 105 West Virginia 82
TOTAL: Syracuse 1,262 Opponents 1,171

2013
Syracuse 75 Penn State 113
Syracuse 92 Northwestern 114
Syracuse 115 Wagner 52
Syracuse 107 Tulane 76
Syracuse 64 Clemson 136
Syracuse 111 N C State 85
Syracuse 46 Georgia Tech 113
Syracuse 108 Wake Forest 81
Syracuse 92 Maryland 88
Syracuse 55 Florida State 104
Syracuse 80 Pittsburgh 96
Syracuse 100 Boston College 87
Syracuse 99 Minnesota 79
TOTAL: Syracuse 1,144 Opponents 1,224

2014
Syracuse 91 Villanova 103
Syracuse 99 Central Michigan 76
Syracuse 91 Maryland 91
Syracuse 71 Notre Dame 114
Syracuse 71 Louisville 100
Syracuse 80 Florida State 101
Syracuse 86 Wake Forest 77
Syracuse 75 Clemson 102
Syracuse 92 N C State 101
Syracuse 78 Duke 98
Syracuse 46 Pittsburgh 114
Syracuse 72 Boston College 78
TOTAL: Syracuse 952 Opponents 1,155

2015
Syracuse 96 Rhode Island 56
Syracuse 83 Wake Forest 83
Syracuse 84 Central Michigan 91
Syracuse 84 Louisiana State 89
Syracuse 80 South Florida 93
TOTAL: Syracuse 427 Opponents 412