Spring Break
The Daily OrangeSchonbrun: Post-celebration flags taking NCAA rule to the extreme
By Zach Schonbrun
Posted: 9/16/08, 12:42 AM EST Section: Sports
Coaches from all different conferences sounded off about whether the Pac-10 ref had it right. Florida head coach Urban Meyer called it "horrible." California's Jeff Tedford considered it "ticky-tack."
But the debate rages on. Connecticut head coach Randy Edsall, in the Big East coach's teleconference last week, didn't understand why such uproar has been created over the correct interpretation of a rule.
"It's specifically stated in the rule book that you can't throw the ball up," said Edsall, one of only three BCS coaches on the NCAA Football Rules committee. "Do you feel bad for the kid? Yeah, you do. But that's part of the rule."
It's obviously not just a west coast thing. In the third quarter of Saturday's Syracuse game vs. Penn State, Nittany Lions running back Green rushed in for a score, dropped the ball to the ground and lifted both arms straight in the air.
He was whistled and flagged for excessive celebration.
"I just pointed up to God thanking Him for letting me score the touchdown," Green said after the game.
PSU head coach Joe Paterno didn't disagree with the call.
"You don't need to do that, for crying out loud," the 81-year-old head coach said. "Take the ball, give it to the officials."
Had no penalty been assessed, however, Paterno likely wouldn't have minded. Losing 15 yards with a 39-point lead doesn't carry the same weight as if the game was on the line.
Is the NCAA confronting its pet peeves before an Ocho Cinco enrolls at a school near you? Maybe paranoia fits the diagnosis. While the NFL cracks down on misfits and misbehavior off the field - as well as a few hand slaps for T.O.-isms - its junior circuit might be exerting control with a celebration protocol.
"I understand the mentality of what they're trying to do," SU football head coach Greg Robinson said in this week's coaches teleconference. "College football is trying to keep the game a team-focused game, and that's a good thing. But sometimes it gets - I hate to use the term ticky-tack because they want them to be enforced. It's tough."
But the debate rages on. Connecticut head coach Randy Edsall, in the Big East coach's teleconference last week, didn't understand why such uproar has been created over the correct interpretation of a rule.
"It's specifically stated in the rule book that you can't throw the ball up," said Edsall, one of only three BCS coaches on the NCAA Football Rules committee. "Do you feel bad for the kid? Yeah, you do. But that's part of the rule."
It's obviously not just a west coast thing. In the third quarter of Saturday's Syracuse game vs. Penn State, Nittany Lions running back Green rushed in for a score, dropped the ball to the ground and lifted both arms straight in the air.
He was whistled and flagged for excessive celebration.
"I just pointed up to God thanking Him for letting me score the touchdown," Green said after the game.
PSU head coach Joe Paterno didn't disagree with the call.
"You don't need to do that, for crying out loud," the 81-year-old head coach said. "Take the ball, give it to the officials."
Had no penalty been assessed, however, Paterno likely wouldn't have minded. Losing 15 yards with a 39-point lead doesn't carry the same weight as if the game was on the line.
Is the NCAA confronting its pet peeves before an Ocho Cinco enrolls at a school near you? Maybe paranoia fits the diagnosis. While the NFL cracks down on misfits and misbehavior off the field - as well as a few hand slaps for T.O.-isms - its junior circuit might be exerting control with a celebration protocol.
"I understand the mentality of what they're trying to do," SU football head coach Greg Robinson said in this week's coaches teleconference. "College football is trying to keep the game a team-focused game, and that's a good thing. But sometimes it gets - I hate to use the term ticky-tack because they want them to be enforced. It's tough."
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