Fifty-five seconds left, twenty-six yards from the end zone, second and eight.
Under such circumstances, what would one choose?
Clearly, the safest choice was to run down the clock, kick a field goal, tie the score, and then head into overtime.
If that had been the case, Saban and Sweeney would have been in perfect harmony, playing a game of give and take, comradely walking into overtime with their arms around each other's shoulders in mutual agreement.
So, what was Saban thinking?
Li Wei, change your position.
All along, the offensive group of the Crimson Tide Storm had mostly been using the pistol formation—
The offensive line would spread out in a line, the quarterback four yards behind the center, and the running back another four yards behind the quarterback, all three players in the same vertical column; additionally, on a horizontal line relative to the offensive line, there were two wide receivers on the left and one wide receiver paired with a tight end on the right.
