The big plays we hit were on our usual running plays and play-action passes off of those same plays. The long pass to Lewis was just a crossing route by the slot receiver. I think our "vanillaness" probably also contributed to the lackluster 3rd down conversion ratio (4-12). Sure, we ran a couple of jet sweeps, and maybe even ran play-action off it once, but we didn't dig very deep into the playbook.
I think that accomplishes two things: (1) obviously, you don't show anything to next week's opponent, and (2) you work on your bread and butter plays in a live setting. I think it worked out well for both.
Along those lines, I was very surprised to see the fake punt. After screaming WHY??@!!1?, I thought about it for a second, and I believe there's more to it. You see, Auburn now has to keep an eye out for a fake punt up the middle, dumping it over the rushers' heads. So, either the rushers don't pin their ears back and come after the punt, or someone else has to watch for that. Also, with them watching the middle, maybe you open up fake opportunities off-tackle or outside. Or, perhaps,Mullen wanted to try a new fake in a live game situation - your basic "hey, let's try this **** and see if it works" technique.
I'm not trying to deify Mullen, but Ibelieve that most of the things he does, especially on the football field, are calculated for some purpose.There had to be more to it than "hey, let's fake it and get a first down."</p>