It might be September but already we have seen some brutal collapses from teams. Multiple times. Texas and Tennessee again? Yup. Apparently some teams just don’t learn. On that note, here are the four most painful flops from Week 4:
Vols Blow A Big Second-Half Lead Again
Tennessee was en route to making a statement win when they took a 17-0 lead at home against Oklahoma back in Week 2 but they blew their largest home lead ever and eventually fell to the Sooners 31-24 in overtime. Fast-forward two weeks later and the Vols were once again in position to make a statement against Florida with a 13-point lead in the fourth quarter only to let it slip away in a 28-27 loss.
A 55-yard missed field goal that was wide right would have made the difference in the game but once again, all of the talk this week is about how Tennessee found a way to let another one get away. Head coach Butch Jones has been questioned for his decision-making after he was extremely conservative against Oklahoma and after two heartbreaking losses in a row, the Vols are now in an extremely tough spot with Georgia and Alabama coming up on the schedule.
A Special Effort From Texas Special Teams
For the second straight week, the Longhorns were on the verge of winning but let it get away in the absolute worst way. Texas fought hard against Oklahoma State and was in position to force overtime when a botched punt put the Cowboys in field goal range and allowed them to kick the game-winning score in a 30-27 Longhorns loss. Texas was punting from inside their own 10-yard line with less than a minute to go in a tie game when punter Michael Dickson couldn’t handle the snap. He managed to scramble and get a punt off but it only went 10 yards, setting Oklahoma State in field goal range.
The fact that Texas found a way to lose that game in such a dramatic fashion only one week after a missed extra point cost them in a 45-44 loss to Cal is testament to how bad things have gotten for this team in a hurry. Turnovers and dumb penalties – like the 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty taken by head coach Charlie Strong for losing his cool following a penalty for holding – are exactly the type of thing that has kept the Longhorns from playing to their potential this season. The good news is that it looks like they’re close to turning it around. The bad news is they’re 1-3 and are staring down back-to-back games against TCU and Oklahoma.
Arizona Forgets To Show Up
With UCLA in town, Arizona had the opportunity to make a statement this past weekend but they failed to capitalize on several opportunities. While the consensus is that the better team won, the reality is that the Wildcats repeatedly shot themselves in the foot. Arizona lost the turnover battle 0-3 and the offense looked completely out of sync from the outset with snap issues early on and poor decisions from sophomore quarterback Anu Solomon throughout the game.
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Arizona had a chance to show the country that they had arrived. Instead, they fell flat on their face and lost by 26 in a 56-30 blowout. Factor in an injury to Solomon that forced him out of the game and Saturday turned out to be an absolute disaster for Arizona.
Arizona State Gets Run Over
The Sun Devils are another team that some had pegged as a College Football Playoff contender but they failed to seize their opportunity on Saturday. Facing a USC team that was coming off its first loss of the season, Arizona State flopped dramatically. They suffered a lopsided 42-14 loss to the Trojans that pushed them back to 2-2 on the season.
It wasn’t just that Arizona State lost but the manner of which it happened. Trailing 21-0, they were driving to get on the board just before the end of the half. They had first-and-goal from the USC one-yard line but then fumbled and allowed USC to return it for a touchdown. On the ensuing kickoff – with just 22 seconds remaining – the Sun Devils’ returner decided to come out of the end zone for some reason. As dumb as that was, he ended up fumbling and allowing USC to start on the ASU four-yard line. So much for ASU being the real deal.
