2011 bowl games open thread

[FN Phat]

Meh, just own it. Your team benefited from the call. So what?It looked like a catch and TD to me. It was a close call. Too close to overturn from the referee's call on the field. The video evidence was not indisputable.

Exactly. It happens to fans all the time. It's okay

[il Padrino Ute]

That's not how it works. The receiver must maintain possession throughout the catch. Furthermore, you'll notice that the ball isn't even in the receiver's hands when the ball hits the ground, but between his forearms. Nobody is saying that it isn't a very close call, but according to the rules as written, that's not a catch.

I for one would love to see that rule clarified after a much more firmly controlled TD catch by Michigan against Iowa was also ruled incomplete, but under the current rules, no way that's a catch.

How is it determined when the catch begins and ends? Did his left elbow touching the ground cause the ball to move? Had it been his knee that touched first rather than his elbow, would that have been different?

As for the rules, doesn't it have to be irrefutable video evidence to overturn a call? If so, that didn't meet the standard, IMO.

[Surfah]

VT fans are annoying. It's kind of funny to hear them bitch this morning at work.

[woot]

Does the rule states that the ball has to be in the receivers hands to be deemed a catch? Is the ball in control at the time the ball hit the ground? Did the receivers left elbow strike the ground first? Answer the questions honestly, without your Wolverine goggles on.

I promise I have no Wolverine goggles on. The rule only states that the ball must be "firmly controlled"; whether the ball moved or not is simply a convenient proxy that is often used, since I don't know how else you could make such a judgement. Since the ball clearly moved when it hit the ground, that indicates that it wasn't firmly controlled. Yes, the receiver's left elbow definitely hit the ground first; that's not what's at issue here.

[Coach McGuirk]

Let me also add, that game was not good or great. If one more person tells me that was such a good game I may explode. Just because a game is decided on the last play doesn't make up for 60 minutes of really shitty football.

[woot]

For those sympathetic to VT, you should really be bitching about the game-winning FG. The kicker false-started. It isn't often called, but the refs would have been completely justified to do so.

[woot]

Let me also add, that game was not good or great. If one more person tells me that was such a good game I may explode. Just because a game is decided on the last play doesn't make up for 60 minutes of really shitty football.

That's something we can all agree on. Michigan's offense looked like garbage, and their defense seemed to go to sleep any time it was 3rd or 4th and long.

[il Padrino Ute]

VT fans are annoying. It's kind of funny to hear them bitch this morning at work.

You should point out that if the regular kicker would stop breaking and entering, VaTech their team might have had another shot at winning in a 2nd OT.

[il Padrino Ute]

For those sympathetic to VT, you should really be bitching about the game-winning FG. The kicker false-started. It isn't often called, but the refs would have been completely justified to do so.

I'm neither for nor against Mich. or VaTech. I'm just calling it like I see it. But as I pointed out in my post to Surfah, if the regular kicker wasn't a criminal, the FG may have been good.

[USUC]

Defense has been nonexistent in these bowl games. It seems like low scoring games are more the product of inept offenses than good defenses.

[LiveCoug]

49 points in the first half! Yowza!

[USUC]

I didn't see this coming. WVU putting up ridiculous points on Clemson. 49 points at the half? WTF?

[TripletDaddy]

I didn't see this coming. WVU putting up ridiculous points on Clemson. 49 points at the half? WTF?

Go B12!

[TripletDaddy]

Train put on an excellent halftime show.

[TripletDaddy]

I'm trying to decide whether Clemson is a huge piece of poo or a giant dried turd.