Weekend of Strange Calls
| 11
|
by user ASwaff
I'm sure there were other strange (or ridiculous) calls this weekend, but I wanted to take a minute to call attention to three of the most ridiculous calls I've ever heard in my life. And all three occurred this weekend. Two occurred in the OU matchup (University of Oklahoma versus University of Oregon).
- First of all, there was the onside kick by Oregon in the fourth quarter. Watching the replay, it seemed completely clear that an Oregon player touched the ball first. Therefore, there should have been only two issues: 1) Did the player touch the ball before it went ten yards? 2) Did the player interfere with Oklahoma's chance to receive the kick? If you ask me, the answer to both questions is yes. But, my opinion isn't the issue. For some reason, neither of the questions at hand were addressed in the ruling on the replay. The ref came back and merely stated that there was indisputable video evidence that Oklahoma touched the ball. Not that Oklahoma touched the ball first, only that they touched the ball. The ball was given to Oregon.
- During Oregon's possession, a pass interference was called on an Oklahoma player. In live-action shot, and even more so on replay, it was clear that the ball was tipped by an Oklahoma linebacker, negating any ensuing pass interference as the tip makes the ball fair play. The perfect spiral pass could be seen to change direction, and start tumbling end over end. Easy call. They came back and ruled that there was no indisputable video evidence to overturn the call. That call was not as pivotal as the onside kick call, but the ruling was even worse. It makes me wonder just what constitutes "indisputable video evidence" anymore.
- During the game tonight between the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Redskins, there was a fourth quarter play in which defensive lineman-turned-linebacker Greg Ellis sacked Mark Brunell. But, there were numerous penalty flags on the play. At first, it appeared as though there would be off-setting penalties. But, one flag got picked up. Dallas was flagged for illegal contact. The flag that was picked up was on a holding call. The call was overturned on the grounds that the defender "ran through the attempted hold." No kidding, that was the ref's ruling, word-for-word. Have you ever heard a ruling so ridiculous in your entire life? What's next - pick up pass interference flags on plays when the receiver catches the ball? Maybe stop flagging 15-yard facemasks if the grab-and-pull doesn't take down the ball carrier. A penalty doesn't stop being a penalty just because the attempted cheating doesn't work. If a defender jumps off sides and the quarterback goes on to throw a touchdown pass, it's still up to the team with the ball to decide if they want to decline or accept the penalty. The flag doesn't just get picked up. My favorite part, though, was the reaction by John Madden and Al Michaels. There was a significant moment of silence when it seemed that the commentators were so confused, they didn't even know what to say about it.
Anyway, I hope these are just some of the early-season kinks that will be worked out as the season progresses. I can only hope. I'll now open this up for discussion. Did anyone else see any calls as absurd as these that you'd like to share?
Date
Sun 09/17/06, 8:21 pm EST
