Vincent Taylor didn’t take this returned extra point all the way back to the house, but without him, it’s just a ho-hum gimme for Texas. Let’s take a walk through Mr. Taylor’s fine work here.
This Oklahoma State big man made 3 great plays all at once against Texas
As a complete athlete, Vincent Taylor makes his Piesman case.
The block
It all starts with Taylor’s burst off of the line of scrimmage. Taylor’s lined up over the long snapper shaded into the A-gap on the long snapper’s left:
Taylor’s explosiveness out of his stance with his first step (look at where the ball is and nearly every other lineman is as well) shows he’s in the gap before the left guard can take a step down to fill the hole:
Typically this wouldn’t be too much of an issue. While Taylor’s initial burst was good, he probably should have been impeded enough by No. 63 Alex Anderson to not waltz into the backfield essentially untouched and send this extra point attempt straight to hell. But that’s where Taylor gets by with a little help from his friends (and his coaches).
No. 90 Motekiai Maile comes out of his stance and immediately engages Anderson, tying him up and not allowing him to step down and seal the A-gap:
Texas’ long snapper has a snap to worry about so this isn’t really on him.
This isn’t something the Cowboys’ coaches drew up on their own, by the way. Picking on Anderson is exactly the same thing Notre Dame did when they blocked an extra point and returned it in the season opener.
With help from Maile, Taylor’s in scot-free and the block is all but a certainty.
The scoop
Now this takes a little bit of luck. There’s absolutely no telling what an oblong pointed ball will do when it ricochets with pace onto a field that is fake grass laid down on chopped up tires. But because of Taylor’s position, he’s the only one with a real chance to pick it up. The holder’s barely out of his kneel, and the kicker hasn’t even finished his kicking motion as the ball shoots behind him off of Taylor’s body:
So Taylor gets the opportunity to slow down just a touch, gather himself, and pick the ball up.
The flip
Ahh, the piece de resistance. The deft flip shows the presence of mind to understand one’s limitations (the man is 6’3, 285 pounds after all) and the awareness to know you’ve got black jerseys with you in a convoy.
This is as much a physical Piesman nomination as it is a mental one.
Well done, Mr. Taylor.
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