The NCAA, that bastion of bureaucratic buffoonery, is considering passing a rule for to take effect for the 2011 college football season. The new rule would penalize a player if he, for example, makes a taunting gesture to an opponent on the way to scoring a touchdown, the flag would nullify the score and penalize the offending team from the spot of the foul. Normally, I would be very quick to call out the NCAA for being finding yet another way to legislate fun out of the game while at the same time lining their pockets and having all the stability of a pig on stilts. This time however, I think they got it right....well kinda.
Look, its no secret that I am a purist. If I were in charge, all teams would have jerseys with block numbers and letters and no names on the back . Remind me to tell you all my "Uniform theory of success" one of these days. However, I am not so rigid or tradition bound to discount all forms of celebration. In fact, the current "excessive celebration" rule that is currently in place is, well, excessive. For example, in 2008 the University of Washington had just scored to get within 1 point of tying BYU. Husky QB Jake Locker (BTW, that is the team mascot, not a description of Jake..don't want Jake's mama calling me :) ) ran the ball in and in an example of youthful exuberance, tossed the ball in the air and hugged a teammate.
FLAG!!!!
According to the current rule for excessive celebration:
"After a score or any other play, the player in possession immediately
must return the ball to an official or leave it near the dead-ball spot.
This prohibits:
(a) Kicking, throwing, spinning or carrying (including off of the
field) the ball any distance that requires an official to retrieve it.
(b) Spiking the ball to the ground [Exception: A forward pass to
conserve time (Rule 7-3-2-d)].
(c) Throwing the ball high into the air.
(d) Any other unsportsmanlike act or actions that delay the game"
U-W was flagged and moved 15 yards back on the PAT...BYU blocked it...game over. Now, lets be fair. It was still a chip shot that should have been converted and props to the Cougars for blocking it. Besides, if the game comes down to something like that, then there was something else wrong. Like how the Huskies missed two field goals and lost three fumbles.
I can hear you now..."hey Mr. purist...it's a rule" and as my nephew Ben will attest to, I like to follow to rules and usually to the letter. (especially in Taboo) Yes, it is a rule and should be followed unless it is changed, and this rule should be. College Football is supposed to be about spirit. You have kids out there busting their asses in the name of their school. Kids that 90% of which will not even sniff football on Sundays. Why not let them cut loose? I have absolutely no problem with end zone celebrations. Scoring a touchdown in football is not always easy, especially at the college and pro levels. It's a big deal and should be celebrated as such. The only thing I have issue with is when a player who just scored goes to another player and taunts him. That has no place in the game and in that situation, the rule is good. The rule, however, needs to be less rigid. Amend it to allow celebrations with your teammates or by yourself. If you turn and face another player and begin douche-baggery...then throw the flag. It's that behavior that is still legal on your way to score that the proposed rule is aiming to stop. I'm ok with that but its too vague and leaves way too much to interpretation. The new rule would flag things like highstepping and pointing at an opponent while you are headed to the end zone. That is a taunt and should be flagged...highstepping is not. Highstepping, for those new to the Sports Blog, is when a player is headed to the endzone and is in the clear and starts running with a high leg kick, a'la the Rockettes. It's done when the player is pretty much by himself and is aimed at no one. That is not taunting...when you are headed to the endzone and you point to the opponent you just burned, that is. It's light, but still taunting by definition.
One popular fan response, usually those who are younger and think its more important to look good than win, is to say "well, if you don't like it, don't let the other team score"
Crap.
There is never, ever an excuse for unsportsmanlike behavior. You go to the end zone, celebrate your teammates and then line back up and play. That is how the game is played. You want to showboat...join the WWE. You show me one moron who says "don't let them score" and I will show you the same moron who will strain an ovary whining when it happens to their team. You don't dance on logos....Terrell...and you don't plant flags....Sparty. Sadly, things like that are what is wrong with sports...but that is another blog for another day.
When did taunting become so popular? Man, back in the day on the Misty Oaks courts, you ran your mouth, you got an elbow in it....and it was usually my elbow. We took it on the road too. One time in the Stone Ridge neighborhood, we were playing and there was this one kid who told his teammates "don't worry about him, he can't play anyway" and he was referring to yours truly. Was he right? Well, yeah...I was not terribly good at the game...I was the guy who made space for the others and cherry picked the occasional lay up..but don't embarrass me. I knew the ball was coming to him and he was coming at me. I looked to Salmans, Spohn and McCracken and smiled. That smile that each of them knew was trouble. Kid got the ball and came at me...as I was helping him up, he said that was weak (I am paraphrasing) so he tried again...second verse, same as the first. The third time was apparently the charm because his teammates let him know that maybe he should choose his words a little more carefully. I am pretty sure that wise-ass is still picking gravel out of his teeth. Trash talk, the most popular form of taunting, is now an art form. You see your favorite stars do it so the kids think its cool. People tell me, its a psychological thing. Hey, if your game is so weak that you need to talk instead of play, then maybe you should not play with the big boys. Gone are the days where players, save a precious few, let their game speak for itself. Trash talk isn't cool, its a tool of the cowardly.
So how would I fix this issue? What I would do is combine the two rules into one, no taunting rule. You want to highstep? Fine. You want to jump around in the end zone with your buddies? Go for it. You want to Riverdance with a Song Girl skirt on? Knock yourself out but if you do so much as turn toward an opponent....BAM! Flag...15 yards, then try your conversion. If you miss or get it blocked...well then, work on your special teams in time for homecoming. Same thing with the pros. Ochocinco wants to dance? Let him. I think Uncle Chad is funny as hell. Joe Horn's cell phone bit? Great! I liked the T.O sharpie...just stay off the Star, big boy....don't make me call George Teague.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment