The Philly Special, in which a receiver throws a touchdown pass to the quarterback from the red zone, was named thusly because the Philadelphia Eagles ran a successful iteration of the play against the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LII.
Others have tried the gambit, but no team has enjoyed quite the same effect on their opponents. Certainly, the Michigan Wolverines failed to present the desired impact on the TCU Horned Frogs with 10:30 left in the first quarter of the CFP Semifinal at the Fiesta Bowl. It was fourth-and-goal, and receiver Colston Loveland tried to hit quarterback J.J. McCarthy for the touchdown pass from the TCU two-yard line, but the Horned Frogs had it all zoned up, and the result was Michigan losing the ball on downs.
How not to run the Philly Special pic.twitter.com/Wi28TXsqsb
— Crossing Broad (@CrossingBroad) December 31, 2022
Jim Harbaugh should have taken the points. On Michigan’s next possession, McCarthy threw a 41-yard pick-six to TCU’s Bud Clark.
🚨 BUD CLARK PICK SIX 🚨
📺 @ESPNCFB #Big12FB x @TCUFootball pic.twitter.com/syElaWGzxg
— Big 12 Conference (@Big12Conference) December 31, 2022
