San Jose State Football: Ron Caragher defends his decision to go for two

Friday night's game against the BYU Cougars ended in dramatic fashion. Trailing 17-16 with 45 seconds left in the game, Spartans head couch Ron Caragher made the decision to go for 2 instead of going for the PAT and tie things up. If you thought that Caragher was having any second thoughts, you might want to think again.

Per the Mercury News:

"It was the right thing to do at the time," Caragher said Monday at his weekly news conference. "We had a chance to win the game on the 2½-yard line."

Not only was this decision alone pretty risky, but the fact that the Spartans tried a trick play to convert the 2 points was even more head scratching. Tight End Billy Freeman dropped a pass from running back Tyler Ervin, which lead to the 17-16 loss. Even though quarterback Kenny Potter looked pretty confident in leading his team on that touchdown drive, Caragher again defends his play-calling in that moment:

"We did put the ball in the hands of the most talented player on the field," Caragher said. "With him such a key focused player we thought the pass would be there."

I'm all for putting the ball in the hands of one of your best players. For the Spartans, Ervin is certainly the best player for San Jose State as he is one of the nations top running backs. However, I don't think asking your running back to complete a pass on a trick play with the game on the line is quite the best way of getting the ball in the "hands of the most talented player on the field".

With this loss, there is added pressure on the Spartans, as they must win two of their last three games to become bowl eligible.