Texas Tech football: Turning points that doomed Red Raiders in Lawrence
A false start on 4th down kills Tech’s opening drive
Anytime you lose a game by three points on the final play of regulation, it is natural to look at every missed opportunity for points as reasons for your defeat. One such moment came on the Red Raiders’ first drive of the game and though we didn’t know it at the time, it may have played a huge role in the outcome of this contest.
After picking off KU on the first snap of the game, Tech moved the ball to the Jayhawk 36 where it faced a 4th-and-1. Going for it, Wells saw his team snap the ball and give it to Armand Shyne but the play was blown dead.
Left guard Madison Akamnonu was flagged for a false start that pushed the ball back to the KU 41 and prompted Wells to punt. Austin McNamara’s punt was downed at the KU 5 so Tech was able to win the field position game but it lost out on an opportunity for early points.
At the 36-yard-line, Tech was just on the edge of field goal range for Trey Wolff. Had the drive continued, it likely would have ended with the freshman trying to at least put three points on the board.
Of course, those three points would have been nice to have at the end of the game but this needed to be a touchdown drive for the Red Raiders. Tech has been awful in regards to converting turnovers into points this year and that trend continued when Akamnonu couldn’t hold his water.
Interestingly, this was one of the closest false start calls you will ever see. At full speed, it looked as if the Red Raider guard was guilty of no infraction. But when watching the play in slow motion, you can see Akamnonu’s shoulders begin to move about a tenth of a second before the ball is snapped.
Technically, this was a correct call but we have seen tons of other plays in which a jump this small was not noticed or not called. Still, lining up right next to the center should always prevent a guard from jumping the snap. But because one of the seniors on Tech’s line was again undisciplined, the Red Raiders lost a great opportunity for points.