Poll: Which "dumb butt play" hurt the Zips the most last night

[1981 grad]

During the last dozen years of Zips football we have seen a lot of losing and "dumb butt plays" like trying to catch a punt on the one yard line and then fumbling the ball or taunting penalties that have killed a drive.  Last night we had three "dumb butt plays" that prevented us from winning because that is what losing teams do.  Which dumb butt play do you think hurt the most:

 

The special teams player that called out a cadence in a field goal attempt that led to a penalty and first down and then a touchdown instead of three.

 

With 2:05 left in the first half and the ball on the UAB 3 yard line instead of letting the clock run down to the 2 minute warning we tried to draw them offsides and the center snapped the ball unexpectedly leading to a loss, and then a field goal instead of a touchdown.  UAB then scored a touchdown right before the half.  (Giving up a touchdown before the half is an Akron tradition)

 

The unsportmanlike penalty when we had driven the ball to the 15 and instead of 1st and 10 we had 2nd and 19 at the 34.  We did not move the ball after that play and missed a field goal.   (Lets be real, we have seen that a lot in the last 12 years)

 

 

[kreed5120]

I would say the penalty on the field goal by the defender. That directly led to UAB scoring at least 4, maybe 7 (if he missed fg try) additional points. That alone more than accounts for the scoring difference.

 

In the other examples it's no guarantee Akron would have scored a TD and with how bad the defense played in the UAB they may have gotten a TD before half anyway.

[ZippyDoo]

I agree with Kreed.  Mistakes are going to happen and players will get called for penalties such as holding where they are trying to make a play.  Summers calling the fake cadence with the referee two feet away from him was completely boneheaded.  This was not like Durham getting caught up in the emotion and getting the 15 yards or half the distance what ever it was.  Summers is a senior and supposed to be a leader he knows better.  That was definitely a turning point.  His teammates let him know it, the coaches let him know it, and I don't think he played a snap after that but I may have missed if he did.

 

Initially, I was upset with how Joe handled the Durham penalty but the more I thought of it, I believe it was a teaching lesson and "hey we need you in this game, keep your head." type moment which in my opinion was actually good coaching.  If Durham were to get ejected we would have really been hurting.  We did not dress a third d end on that side and to this point D. Frazier has been ineffective.  I'm not impressed with Durham to this point, but he is needed until someone else shows they can step up.

 

The Summers penalty though... I think we all had the same thought when that happened.

 

To me that is the "dumb butt play" that changed the outcome.