I can't compare the Crabtree catch to TX/USC-NC-2005 at all, as flukes or non-flukes.
I remember both of those games vividly. Texas actually had the correct defense called for the play and would have won with a simple tackle, but the safety utterly and completely whiffed and Crabtree went on to spark a sea of black rushing the field.
USC had no answer for VY once he decided to quit sitting in the pocket for 5 seconds and take off running if the first options were covered. The Trojans picked their poison. They could cover the routes and maybe even David Thomas on the dumps occasionally, and frustrate Vince. Or they could come after him in which case he would (and did) burn them with a hot read. Down the stretch Pete Carroll had seen enough. Rush 4 and drop 7 in coverage. Vince was simply too good of an athlete to not to pick up a string of yards on successive plays. The Trojan linebackers weren't at all in a position to do anything about him, they were playing off, and Young took the ground they gave.
That was a team/qb who took what the defense gave in the the clutch, with a roughly equal amount of talent. Tech/UT was a much more of a fluke play to my mind, because UT had the final play covered, only the safety failed to execute. He was right there and just forgot his position as a bracketing safety is to stay behind your mark and converge with your help. Instead he went in front with his help, which is....I don't know what to say about that....and it was off to the races.
Maybe I am misunderstanding the comparison. I just don't see how those things are similar.
