Quinn has been very consistent on this all year. He will defer and take the ball to start the 2nd half. They have been very good at scoring late in the 1st half and scoring again to open the 3rd quarter. If you can do that, you can get up to 14 points without the other team getting a chance to score.
There is also another reason I like that strategy, although I’ve never heard a coach admit this. The home crowd is usually fired up to start the game. So the home team wants the crowd to be roaring to start the game and help their D. Whereas at the start of the 2nd half, there are a lot of people still waiting for the bathroom, waiting for food, etc. The crowd is never as full or as loud to start the 3rd quarter. So if you are the road team, you get the ball in front of a less raucous crowd. If you are the home team, your offense gets the ball and your crowd is quiet while people are still filling up their seats.
But as I said at the start, Quinn has taken the ball to start the second half almost every time. A few teams have won the toss and taken the ball, but Quinn has deferred all year. I don’t expect that to change this week.
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