Homer Smith on Clock Management
for games played during the week of 10/19/02

Clemson 31 vs. Wake Forest 24, 4th Quarter

In a tight thrilling game, WF fumbles the ball through the Clemson end zone, Clemson gets the touchback, and Clemson has 1st and 10 on the 20 with 01:15. WF has one timeout.

This is in the range where the decision is between taking a knee of keeping the ball alive. In my Part II on Clock Management (http://www.homersmith.net/videopromo.htm) I recommend keeping the ball alive, without handing it off, if the clock is stopped, the opponent has one timeout, and the clock shows between 01:05 and 01:20.

Anyway, Clemson hands it off securely, WF does not get its timeout called for 11 seconds, Clemson takes a knee, Clemson lets the 25-second clock run out on 3rd-down, 00:14 is left, Clemson takes a knee, Clemson wins.

It was a nice piece of clock management in a very tense situation.

If Clemson had started with 01:25, they would have had to try to make a first down to keep from having to punt.

Of course, on a 4th down, the QB could have thrown the ball back to a receiver in the end zone and that receiver could have stayed alive for probably eight seconds before getting tackled for a 2-point safety.

Texas vs. Kansas State, 4th Quarter

It is 14 to 14. Texas gets the ball on a punt with 04:26, on its 36.

They want to get safely within field goal range, bleed the clock, kick, and leave Kansas State no time to answer.

They have to get to the field goal line but they would like to get there by running, if possible.

They run; run; throw incomplete. The throw is on 2nd and 11. The color man says, “Great call. It is a throwaway down – 2nd and 1.” There is joking in the “booth” as there so often is when the clock becomes a factor.

Next, they throw complete, to the 17, with 03:15 left. Next, they run; run. The clock is going 01:49, 01:48, 01:47 and the color man is talking about turf-toe.

On 3rd-and-3, Texas throws, incomplete. This saved KS either 40 seconds or one of their timeouts. It was no time to throw. They were on the 10, right hash. It was time to put the ball in front of the goalposts. But they make the field goal, go ahead, and kickoff. KS has 01:23.

KS plays great clock offense and kicks for the tie from the 20, with 00;06. Texas should have been tied, but the kick is blocked.

The most incredible bit of color was at 00:56 after a KS first down on about the 50. “Now, get up to the line and spike it.” With 25 yards to gain, “spike it?” On a first down with the clock stopped, “spike it?” I don’t think so.

South Carolina 14, LSU 3, 2nd Quarter

LSU is coming off its own nine, with 04:56, behind 14 to 3.

They make a first down and have 04:07. They make another and have 03:06; and another and have 01:59. (They would like to score but leave USC without time to answer with a score.)

They cross midfield with 00:14, hit a pass for a first down at 00:01, and kick a field goal.

They had kept the clock moving when they wanted to, stopped it when they wanted to, saved a timeout, scored, and gone in at halftime feeling encouragement. They went on to win.

It looked routine. Great clock management looks routine.

Georgia 5, Tennessee 0, 2nd Quarter

Tennessee has a 4th-and-3 on Georgia’s 35 with 00:46. Georgia has two timeouts, so a drive is possible.

Tennessee fails. Georgia’s ball on its 36 (the –36) with 00:38.

Georgia uses a timeout, with the clock stopped for the change of possession. Now it will be more difficult to score.

Georgia hits a pass for 9 and the receiver gets out of bounds. It is 2nd-and-1.

Georgia hits another pass – first down on the –49 with 00:28.

Georgia hits another pass, in-bounds, and calls its last timeout at 00:19. Now a spike is the only way to stop a moving clock to get field goal personnel on. It is 2nd-and-6. Another completion, on the +22, first down, 00:13 showing.

Spike. 00:10 left.

The kick is good and Georgia goes to their locker room ahead by 8.

A lesson: If Georgia had not used a timeout with the clock already stopped, they could have run with 00:13 and a first down. A runner could have ensured that time would not expire on the run, and timeout could have been called.

USC 27, Cal 21, 4th Quarter

USC has 4th-and-goal inside of the 1 with 001:45 showing. Cal is out of timeouts.

Which is more likely to happen: (1) a blocked field goal by an 11-man rush and either a return or a drive for a TD, or (2) a 99-yard drive with no timeouts for a TD?

USC kicks, goes up by 9, yields a TD, recovers an onside kick, and goes on to win, 30 to 28.

I would say that, if you could have asked 10 experienced coaches what to do on that 4th down, about half would have said, “run it,” and about half would have said, “kick it.”

Sometimes, decisions are not right or wrong; they are just decisions that must be made to be right.

Former Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator, Homer Smith, is an expert on clock management. For more on Clock Management and many other topics, visit his website http://www.homersmith.net.