Given how Saturday's game for USF at Memphis turned out, it's easy to criticize the ill-fated decision by Alex Golesh to go for it on fourth-and-3 at the Memphis 7-yard line instead of taking a chip-shot field goal.
Three points would have given USF a two-score lead on the road late in the third quarter.
On that fateful play, quarterback Byrum Brown's pass was incomplete, giving Memphis the ball as the USF drive came up empty.
Hindsight is always 20-20, especially on a critical American Conference game that USF eventually lost 34-31. What if the Bulls had those three points in their pocket?
Long-time USF watchers might have had a nightmarish flashback to a 2005 game at UConn. The Bulls were squarely in the running for BCS bowl appearance.
Trailing 15-10 in the fourth quarter, the Bulls had a second-and-goal at the Huskies' 1-yard line. But instead of taking their time to punch it in, USF coach Jim Leavitt got cute and tried a quick count.
False start.
An incomplete pass followed, but instead of taking three points and relying on their defense, the Bulls called for another trick play -- Voodoo 5. It lost 13 yards. Lost game, lost BCS appearance.
Before we tag Golesh with Voodoo 5.20 for his decision Saturday, let's look at what happened after the Bulls turned the ball back over to Memphis.
Memphis drove into USF territory but missed a field goal. On the first play after the Bulls took over, Sam Franklin ran for a 73-yard touchdown as the third quarter ended.
The Bulls led 31-17 at that point. They had that two-score lead heading into the fourth.
That should have been enough to win, but Memphis outscored USF 17-0 in the final 15 minutes.
"I'll take the blame. It's on me for us offensively," Golesh said.
Should Golesh have kicked the field goal when he had the chance?
Probably
But did it cost USF the game?
No.
The fourth quarter was less about Voodoo and more about Memphis Do.
The Bulls have been a second-half team all season, but were outscored 20-7 in the final 30 minutes. USF had its streak of forcing a turnover for 15 consecutive games snapped.
Unable to get consistent pressure on Tigers' quarterback Brendon Lewis, defensive coordinator Todd Orlando resorted to a variety of blitzes, but Lewis handled them well. USF sacked him three times, but he also threw for 307 yards and two touchdowns.
Brown had 390 yards of total offense for USF -- 269 through the air with a touchdown, and 121 on the ground with a touchdown.
And despite the second-half struggles, Brown got the Bulls into position for a 42-yard field goal that would have sent the game to overtime.
Unfortunately, a holding call against veteran offensive lineman Cole Best pushed the Bulls back 10 yards, and Nico Gramatica's 52-yard attempt sailed wide left. He had made a 46-yarder earlier, but the snap was low on the final kick and that may have thrown things off.
"I think really the most frustrating piece is just not able to score in the fourth. We protected well, but I felt like at times we we couldn't get open," Golesh said. "Man, it was frustrating."
So, now what?
The Bulls can still finish the regular season 10-2. In theory, their toughest remaining game is Nov. 15 at Navy, which is still undefeated in conference play. The ESPN matchup predictor already gives USF a 76 percent chance of winning that game.
If form holds, the Bulls would end the regular season with just one conference loss. The path to make the American championship game remains, and if that happens and USF wins, it could still make the playoffs.
The Bulls' second open date is next week, and it couldn't come at a better time. They have time to heal -- Saturday's game was extremely physical -- and refocus on a Thursday, November 6 home game with UTSA.
The loss at Memphis, while frustrating and painful, is not the end of the world and plan a strategy for going forward.
And next time, if the same situation arises, take the field goal.