For a team that had spent much of October searching for a reliable way to move the football, Texas A&M picked an unusually creative way to give it away Saturday afternoon at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

Leading No. 13 Alabama 20-17 late in the third quarter, the Aggies faced fourth-and-1 from their own 45-yard line. There was some confusion before the snap, with players appearing uncertain about what was supposed to happen. What followed was considerably worse than a failed conversion attempt, something that would've been a disaster in its own right.

Instead, Texas A&M somehow managed to run a play that nobody had called.

A Snap That Wasn't Supposed to Happen

Mike Elko explained afterward that the Aggies were attempting to draw Alabama offsides. The plan didn't involve handing the football to Marcel Reed or challenging the Crimson Tide's defense. It involved lining up, hoping for a jump and making another decision if Alabama didn't bite.

"We were trying to draw them offsides, and the center just snapped the ball," Elko said.

That's not what was supposed to happen. The ball was snapped, and it subsequently hit the turf as Reed was surprised that the pigskin was touching his hands. Alabama recovered the loose ball, giving the Crimson Tide fantastic field position in a game it was losing. And because Texas A&M's season is cursed, the Crimson Tide subsequently drove down the short field and took the lead for good, burying the Aggies' chances of an upset.

Elko was asked whether he considered taking a timeout amid the confusion. He admitted that he hadn't, despite the Aggies having practiced the sequence repeatedly throughout his three seasons in College Station.

"I don't have a great explanation. I need to have one. It's my job to have one," Elko said.

Alabama Takes Advantage of Texas A&M's Mistake

Texas A&M's narrow three-point advantage had just transformed into a four-point deficit, something it never recovered from.

Alabama eventually secured a 31-20 victory, while Texas A&M managed just 15 yards throughout the fourth quarter. The botched snap didn't account for every problem that followed, but it dramatically changed the circumstances of a game that the Aggies had every opportunity to win.

There's little reason to make one person the sole culprit for the defeat. Mistakes happen, even to experienced players, and Elko deserves credit for acknowledging his responsibility afterward. But preparation is supposed to prevent precisely this sort of confusion, particularly when the difference between winning and losing has become so small.