This loss was a flashback to 2016 when IA led ND State 21 - 20 with very little time left. The Hawks had the ball and needed only 1 first down to run out the clock. But they stubbornly ran 3 straight plays up the middle into a 9 or 10 man front and then punted, counting on the D to hold on to the lead. The Bison were able to move down the field and they kicked a 37 yard FG as time expired to win 23 - 21.
(I know i am delusional about this one, since KF never changes QBs): How about putting in Sullivan for that last series, not to pass, but to use his legs? He's a much better runner than McNamara. Call a (Chuck Long v Sparty) bootleg or even a QB sweep, which the Clowns hadn't seen all day. Sure, Sully would have to stay in bounds, but, he's a smart NW guy.
At the very least, as others in this thread have pleaded, please do
something that forces the Clowns to take some defenders out of the box to at least give yourself a fighting chance to pick up that game clinching first down.
Also painful (to me, anyway) was the decision to let the clock run out and take a 5 yard penalty before punting to the Clowns at the end of the game. We had 3 timeouts, so why not use one of them with one second left on the play clock and save those precious yards? Why give the Clowns 5 gift yards when you know all they need is a FG to result in our grabbing defeat out of the jaws of victory? After the game KF poo pooed the importance of the penalty, but think about this: Does Soupy have his RS frosh try a 59 yarder, or would he have run another play at that point? That might have changed the outcome.
And while it didn't cost us, think about this: At the end of the first half, there were 90 seconds left, and IA had a first down deep in the red zone. Rather than milk the clock, eating up those 90 seconds over 4 plays, and leaving the Clowns little or no time to mount a drive, KF called a time out. IA ended up kicking the FG, and the Clowns had a full minute to try to score. They mounted a drive, but fortunately KF lucked out and their RF frosh missed the FG attempt. Clock management has often been an Achilles heel, and it nearly was this time as well.