Daren Bates on Tank running out of bounds

[Tiger 8,854]

Former star AU linebacker was at the game and weighed in on his podcast Raw Room:

NSFW LANGUAGE

On the Tank play:

Full *honest* analysis of the game -- lots of interesting insight and questions about the coaches thinking behind TJ Finley's injury, and the questionable playcalling around the QB.

 

Edited December 2, 2021 by Tiger

[Win4AU 4,183]

We’re the coaches maneuvering him with a controller Xbox style?

[aubaseball 2,819]

I appreciate his perspective because he has played at the highest level, but I don’t buy it.   Everything can’t be laid at the feet of a coach.   I wonder how many times since he has been playing football has Tank been told not to go out of bounds in that situation.   Two things can be right at the same time in this situation.   Tank was giving 100 percent effort but he also should have stayed in bounds.  

Edited December 2, 2021 by aubaseball

[ThurstontheWelshCorgi 576]

Refreshing real talk by Bates. Amen. 

[Mikey 16,781]

Tank was trying to get a 1st down. Two more steps and he makes it and the game is over except for AU taking a knee twice. I think he tried to do the best thing.

[clwn 336]

I don't understand why people keep focusing on this particular play/down. Tank was giving a 100% effort to get the first down to put away game. If it wasn't for that effort then no way a 3rd and short exists in that situation. The play and down people should be focusing on was right after it. 3rd and 2 now and stupid coaching costs the game by going for a run play out of the shotgun that's been blown up majority of the game lol. You had 2 attempts to get 2 yards and blew it. If anything people should be thanking Tank for putting us in a situation to put the game away.

[e808 3,091]

44 minutes ago, Mikey said:

Tank was trying to get a 1st down. Two more steps and he makes it and the game is over except for AU taking a knee twice. I think he tried to do the best thing.

The only way Auburn could have guaranteed a win was to pick up those two yards. 

[aucanucktiger 1,891]

The attention to this single play and blame on tank is disproportionate. Like the 2013 natl title game, if any of a dozen plays goes differently Auburn wins. We're infamous for our perfect storm losses and famous for our crazy accomplishments (kick 6, tip 6, beating #1s on back to back weekend's, etc).

[alexava 6,974]

It gets attention because it gave them 40 seconds. They tied the game with 24 left. It was a good effort. Bad decision. But it’s over now. He’ll learn from it. 

[ThurstontheWelshCorgi 576]

 Bates doesn't really put it on Tank, he levies his ire at the coaching while giving tank an excuse for being a younger sophomore and he is right. He also makes good points about the two pass plays we called. Oh well.

[Barnacle 9,107]

It was coached up. Finley said so. Anyway, wish we would just move on from this play. There were a lot of mistakes and opportunities not taken advantage of during this game. 

[Sizzle 3,948]

Bates didn’t blame Tank. He just said in football things happen so fast that you’re just trying to make a play and you’re fully thinking. He’s saying the coaches should’ve kept reiterating from the sidelines to stay in bounds to keep the clock moving

[woodford 3,732]

8 hours ago, clwn said:

I don't understand why people keep focusing on this particular play/down. Tank was giving a 100% effort to get the first down to put away game. If it wasn't for that effort then no way a 3rd and short exists in that situation. The play and down people should be focusing on was right after it. 3rd and 2 now and stupid coaching costs the game by going for a run play out of the shotgun that's been blown up majority of the game lol. You had 2 attempts to get 2 yards and blew it. If anything people should be thanking Tank for putting us in a situation to put the game away.

Auburn had all game to get a couple first downs and put the game away at any point during the contest. Blaming Tank is an awful take. 

[McLoofus 35,182]

8 hours ago, clwn said:

I don't understand why people keep focusing on this particular play/down. Tank was giving a 100% effort to get the first down to put away game. If it wasn't for that effort then no way a 3rd and short exists in that situation. The play and down people should be focusing on was right after it. 3rd and 2 now and stupid coaching costs the game by going for a run play out of the shotgun that's been blown up majority of the game lol. You had 2 attempts to get 2 yards and blew it. If anything people should be thanking Tank for putting us in a situation to put the game away.

Players do a lot of stupid things in the name of effort. A ton of terrible penalties that people freak out and relentlessly chastise players for were done in the name of effort. 

Yes, the 3rd and 2 was another play that should be focused on. In fact, our head coach focused on it so much that I'm pretty sure it was one of the reasons he just fired his OC after one year and with the dude's very badly needed kid committed to us but not yet signed.

But why do people like yourself keep saying that we should focus on that play instead of Tank's mistake? Can we only talk about one play in sixty minutes of football?. 

As for thanking Tank for that play, I'm afraid not. I'll thank him for fighting throughout the game despite piss poor blocking. Have said several times that his effort was one of the few bright spots on offense. But on that play, no. Any RB worth his salt would have fought for those extra yards on that play were the parameters different- as in, were it not the absolute worst thing he could possibly do given the game script at that moment. But he chose glory over what was best for his team and it was a monumental mistake. It didn't cost us the game but it severely diminished our chances of winning it. 

And, yes, the coaching staff- Harsin included- deserve just as much blame for it as Tank does. 

[Mikey 16,781]

8 hours ago, e808 said:

The only way Auburn could have guaranteed a win was to pick up those two yards. 

Had Tank made the first down on the play before he was pulled out of bounds, we could have ended the game by taking a knee twice. He did the correct thing but it didn't work. Sometimes that happens.

[McLoofus 35,182]

1 hour ago, ThurstontheWelshCorgi said:

He also makes good points about the two pass plays we called.

Absolutely. Stunning incompetency down the stretch. 

*****

Speaking of those pass plays, I wonder what the discourse would be if we'd called a pass on that 2nd down play instead of the Tank run. First down wins the game, so it would've been the right play call, right? See how that works, folks? Ask Atlanta fans about a similar situation in the Super Bowl a few years ago. 

[aubaseball 2,819]

4 hours ago, Mikey said:

Had Tank made the first down on the play before he was pulled out of bounds, we could have ended the game by taking a knee twice. He did the correct thing but it didn't work. Sometimes that happens.

I just don’t know how anyone can come to the conclusion that “he did the correct thing “.   He was trying to get a first down and I get that, but as soon as he saw the Alabama player taking that away he has to stay in bounds.   At that particular moment, it was the most important thing he could have done.   

[Gowebb11 9,872]

There’s only one play from that game that haunts me, and it’s the phantom hold/flop on Jarquez Hunter’s 42 years reception. 

[McLoofus 35,182]

10 minutes ago, Gowebb11 said:

There’s only one play from that game that haunts me, and it’s the phantom hold/flop on Jarquez Hunter’s 42 years reception. 

Oof. I'd forgotten about one.

And while we're on the zebras. Of the two intentional grounding calls that could have been called, at least one of them had to actually be intentionally grounding. We had some go our way earlier on but nothing so egregious as that. 

Edited December 2, 2021 by McLoofus

[LKEEL75 2,567]

9 minutes ago, Gowebb11 said:

There’s only one play from that game that haunts me, and it’s the phantom hold/flop on Jarquez Hunter’s 42 years reception. 

Agreed.  That play would have made the last drive irrelevant

 

[Gowebb11 9,872]

17 minutes ago, McLoofus said:

Oof. I'd forgotten about one.

Ironically most people have. Tank’s play was very important but it was a mistake going full speed in a split second. The holding call was an abomination and cost us dearly. 

[e808 3,091]

Ok so what if tank doesn’t go out of bounds . There’s a lot of assumptions that the game would be over but if my memory serves me correctly Bama would have 40 or 45 seconds left to go. Play calling would be different and the clock stops after a first. The only definitive way of a win would have been to get the first down and the blame game would be null and void. 

[McLoofus 35,182]

17 minutes ago, e808 said:

Ok so what if tank doesn’t go out of bounds .

Bama would have 40 or 45 seconds left to go. 

Welp, there ya go. 

18 minutes ago, e808 said:

The only definitive way of a win would have been to get the first down and the blame game would be null and void. 

Okay, so we should've just called a pass play then, right? And if it got the first down then the "blame game would be null and void"? 

[aubaseball 2,819]

11 minutes ago, McLoofus said:

Welp, there ya go. 

Okay, so we should've just called a pass play then, right? And if it got the first down then the "blame game would be null and void"? 

I’m of the opinion that if the game had been played again and both teams played the same with the exception being Bo was QB, the outcome of the game would have been completely different.   I believe that Bo would have been called on some runs at the end with Bama selling out in stopping Tank.   Don’t think he would have taken as many sacks either 

[e808 3,091]

8 minutes ago, aubaseball said:

I’m of the opinion that if the game had been played again and both teams played the same with the exception being Bo was QB, the outcome of the game would have been completely different.   I believe that Bo would have been called on some runs at the end with Bama selling out in stopping Tank.   Don’t think he would have taken as many sacks either 

Exactly, I understand he made a mistake but that triggers an entire different conversation of what ifs had he stayed in bounds. It is what it is