Big Ten Football: Breaking Down 2011's Big Pass Plays

The 2011 season certainly wasn't lacking for drama in the Big Ten, and the late-game heroics were especially evident when it came to big-pass plays in the final quarter. Nothing rips the heart out of a defense and its fans quite like seeing a receiver running free, either with the ball or to where it's going, without a single defender able to do anything about it until the damage is done. Here are four such plays, with video, and a breakdown of, well, the breakdown in coverage.

1. Denard Robinson to Jeremy Gallon, 64 yards vs. Notre Dame (:20 left)

Everyone will remember Robinson's game-winning fade to Junior Hemingway with two seconds left to win this game, but the only reason Michigan was remotely near scoring position (much less only 16 yards away) was this throw from Robinson to a stunningly wide-open Jeremy Gallon, a play that took Michigan 80 percent of the way to the end zone in one fell swoop.

Here, Gallon is in the near slot and simply runs a deep route to the sideline in hopes of finding a soft spot in the zone and/or simply outrunning his man to a certain spot. As it turns out, Denard Robinson breaks out of the pocket and takes off toward his right just as a receiver comes on a deep cross the same way. With that receiver and Denard's feet drawing defenders' attention, suddenly, Gallon is wide open and (rather amazingly) Robinson hits him right in stride. The rest would be history.  

2. Taylor Martinez to Rex Burkhead, 30-yard touchdown vs. Ohio State (7:47 left)

In Nebraska's largest comeback in school history, the Huskers scored four unanswered touchdowns to stun Ohio State at Memorial Stadium, 34-27, and this touchdown is what brought Nebraska level in a game that looked lost.

Here, the key is not only the playcall, but the chess of preparation before it. Coming into the Ohio State game, Rex Burkhead had only three catches on the entire season, so even though he'd end up with five catches for 59 yards and this score on the day, the outlet throw to Burkhead wasn't something that was really on Ohio State's radar.

As such, with the rest of the Nebraska receivers running a flood to the left, Ohio State paid only cursory attention to Burkhead in the flat. Watch how Etienne Sabino (No. 6, LB) concerns himself more with shadowing Martinez, while the only person giving Burkhead any coverage is safety Christian Bryant (No. 2) from 15 yards away.

Well, eluding a safety in a dead sprint isn't terribly difficult for Burkhead when he doesn't have much momentum of his own to manage, and after making Bryant miss, Burkhead can reach the goal line before any other Buckeyes can touch him. Beautiful.

3. Braxton Miller to Devin Smith, 40-yard touchdown vs. Wisconsin (:30 left)

In what (prematurely) looked to be the death knell for Wisconsin's Leaders Division title chances, freshman sensation Braxton Miller took off toward the sideline, only to pivot and throw an off-balance yet perfect Hail Mary to a wide-open Devin Smith to give Ohio State the four-point lead with scant few seconds on the clock.

The key here is obvious upon replay; Smith is split out on the far side and runs a deep post, and when Miller takes off toward the other sideline, the defenders covering Smith (including Marcus Cromartie, No. 14) flow to Miller's side of the field. Similarly, the safety on the near side of the field (Aaron Henry, No. 7) sees a different Ohio State receiver coming down the sideline and focuses his attention on him instead of Smith, who sneaks behind the coverage. By the time the defenders recognize the ball and its target, it's too late to find Smith, who hangs on after Cromartie's desperation tackle for the crucial score.

4. Russell Wilson to Jeff Duckworth, 36 yards vs. Michigan State (4:01 left)

Including this play is sort of not fair to Michigan State because Jeff Duckworth was not open. If Russell Wilson had thrown that ball on any down but fourth, he probably would have been beaten with his own helmet by Bret Bielema (I am 85 percent sure that is a joke). But the drive and the game were on the line, and the throw had to be made. So it was.

If there's any aspect of this play that was in Wisconsin's favor at the snap, it was that the back covering Duckworth was Isaiah Lewis—hardly a slouch in coverage, with three picks on the year, but also the strong safety. Making him man up in coverage at the line on someone who's trying to blow past him wasn't a foolproof recipe for success, and fellow safety Trenton Robinson (No. 39), who was more concerned with TE Scott Pedersen (No. 48) than anyone else in the area, couldn't get there to help in time. Just a great play in a great game.