The "If Only" is the reason you lost the game. Similar to the Loser's Lament, the only thing standing between you and a win is whatever if only your team has. The "if only" is not changing an uncontrollable aspect of the game. It doesn't mean weather (we beat them 3 times earlier in the year, if only it wasn't raining at Regionals) or wind (we crush them when they have to play man, but their 4 man cup is unbeatable). Instead, it's either a strategic decision (if only we didn't play man all game and mixed it up instead) or a person/set of players playing poorly (if only he didn't throw 3 turns close to his own endzone).
The "If Only" doesn't exist in games where the talent level is dramatically different. Some worse teams will try to ponder an if only, but if they really came to terms with it, they'd realize that they just need to improve. In reality, the if only is what separates most elite teams from each other, changing on a game-to-game basis.
A final note: being the "if only" for your team's loss, especially a "big" loss, sucks.
