... doesn't wash. Typical, conservative No Fun League (NFL) logic ...
From today's DMN notebook (and props to Kate H. for asking the question):
"Jones elected to kick the extra point and tie the score after Mitchell's 10-yard touchdown pass to Aldrick Robinson against Navy with 1:35 left in regulation. He said because SMU was at home, he went for the tie. If the game had been on the road, he would have gone for two."
Huh?
Playing at home does not give you any built-in advantage in overtime (like it does, say, in baseball, where you bat last). In fact, Jones even elected to play into the open end of the stadium, where there were as many or more Navy fans, plus the Navy band. True, he did choose to play with the wind, which makes sense. But, if there were some homefield advantage in overtime, it would be with the crowd, a luxury we do not yet enjoy.
The more logical choice would have been to go for two, because Navy had gained over 300 yards in the second half on its way to scoring 28 points in two quarters and would have had only 1:35 left in a run-oriented offense to try to win the game down by a point -- against the wind, no less. Navy completed FOUR passes all night. If SMU had missed the 2-pointer, it still had all three timeouts, an onside kick attempt and the wind at its back. And, SMU would have needed just a field goal, perhaps the same field goal they missed in overtime.
Three yards to win the game? After blowing a 14-point lead and not stopping Navy the entire second half? I will take that chance -- especially at home.