I know there is a lot of confusion/frustration around some of ARod’s play calling, but my hot take is that he is a gambler.

Now, I’m no expert, but BYU has 35 plays this season over 20 yards (average of 7 per game). I think some of his plays have the equal chances of being either incredibly awesome or incredibly stupid, and he likes to take that chance, risk looking stupid, and potentially have a big play.

I mean, if we are looking at his overall competency as OC, here are 2 good metrics:

1) BYU averages 33 pts per game this season. Between the ACC, SEC, BIG, and XII, the average is 33.3.
We are shooting par for the P4 course.

2) Dave Aranda has taken over as DC, and the last time BYU went up against a Dave Aranda defense (LSU, 2017) we didn’t cross the 50 yard line the entire game.
I know, that’s a painful memory for most of us, but this time we put up 34 pts against what we know to be a very capable defensive coordinator.

Clearly he knows what he’s doing. I think he’s a risk taker, and sometimes that doesn’t always work out, and it leaves us asking “what the heck were you thinking??” But when it does (and it has on several occasions this season) it’s truly spectacular