The Houston Cougar offense methodically marched down the field and hit a seemingly game-winning field goal, only to see UTSA inexplicably tie the game in the last 23 seconds of regulation. That sent the teams into overtime.
Houston won the coin toss and decided to go on offense first. UH received the ball first in the 3rd quarter, had it at the start of the 4th quarter, and started on offense in each of the three overtimes. In 26 years of the overtime rule, I had never seen a team’s offense go first in each overtime.
So how did that happen? NCAA Football Rule 3.3.C says that the winner of the coin toss gets to choose one of these options: to go on offense or defense first or which end of the field shall be used to play the overtime. Virtually every team chooses to go on defense first so that they can know what they need to do when they get the ball.
The loser of the coin toss gets “the first choice of the two options for subsequent even-numbered extra periods.” This part of the rule is largely unknown, due to the fact that it almost never comes into play because almost all teams choose defense.
But UH bucked that norm and went on offense first. The two teams traded field goals in OT, which gave UTSA the right to choose for the second overtime. They chose to go on defense first and the Cougars ran a nine-play drive capped off Nathaniel Dell’s second touchdown (and Dell scoring on the two-point conversion).
In the third overtime, UH again chose to go on offense. UH’s two OT decisions are unconventional, as so many things are under Holgorsen. But just like many other things in the last two years, it worked.
The game was UH’s fourth triple-overtime game in school history and first since the Hawaii Bowl in 2003. Dana Dimel’s teams played in two 3OT games – at Memphis in 2000 and ECU in 2002.
Widget not in any sidebars
