Late-game leniency?

By: Jamey Codding (jameycodding@bullz-eye.com)

01/15/2003

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Q: When is a door not a door?

A: When it's ajar!

Once your fit of laughter passes, I've got another riddle for you.

Q: When is a penalty not a penalty?

A: When it directly affects the outcome of a football game!

At least, that's what coach Bill Cowher would like us to believe. Infuriated over a running-into-the-kicker penalty on Pittsburgh cornerback Dewayne Washington that gave Tennessee another shot at what would be a game-winning field goal, Cowher charged after referee Ron Blum seconds after the overtime game had ended and then called the play "ludicrous" during his press conference. "A game can't be decided because a kicker takes two steps and we have someone slide into him," he continued. "We had some chances to win but we had some taken away from us, too."

I've always been fascinated by this notion that a penalty should not be called in the closing seconds of the game if it will impact the final score. "Let the players decide the game," I've heard before. "Officials should be invisible; they should never have a hand in the outcome of a game."

The funny thing is, I whole-heartedly agree with those statements. Games should be decided by the players in uniform and officials should never directly influence the action on the field. But let's remember that they have a job to do, and when a referee dismisses a blatant penalty solely because it occurred in the fourth quarter or overtime of a tight game, he's directly influencing the action on the field by not doing his job.

Kind of ironic, isn't it?

People like Cowher say they should never lose a game because of what they deem to be a "ticky-tack" call, but let's flip that on its ear for a second. Why did the Steelers deserve to not have that penalty called more than the Titans deserved to have it called? 

I know, I confused you, didn't I? Think I confused myself, actually.

Let's try this again. Cowher's logic centers around a flag not being thrown because his player didn't commit a vicious penalty, yet Blum's call nonetheless prevented his team from winning the game.

And that's just "ludicrous."

But why should the Titans be robbed of a legitimate chance to win the game? That's exactly what would have happened had a flag not been thrown on the play because, let's get something straight here, it absolutely was a penalty. Sure, Washington didn't exactly plow over Nedney, and maybe there was a bit of acting involved, but that was textbook running into the kicker. Had it been more brutal, it would've been roughing the kicker, and had it not been called, Tennessee head coach Jeff Fisher would've been fuming after the game about the officials taking a win away from his team. 

And his criticism would've been justified. Although I doubt Fisher could get his jaw to jut forward as noticeably as Cowher can.

So say what you will about referees not directly affecting the outcome of a football game, but you don't have an argument in this case. Blum's call actually prevented that from happening. As for players deciding the final score, Dewayne Washington did just that when he ran into Joe Nedney and gave him another chance to hit the clinching field goal.

Of course, the Steelers aren't the only team to cry foul because of a controversial late penalty. Remember the Fiesta Bowl between Miami and Ohio State a couple weeks ago? What a great game, huh? Double-overtime, hard-fought, big plays, a gruesome injury, some key turnovers on both sides... .

And, of course, a pass interference call that Hurricanes fans and coaches will forever debate.

The 'Canes were up 24-17 after a Kellen Winslow touchdown in the first overtime. Ohio State has the ball at the five-yard line. It's fourth-and-three.

Buckeyes quarterback Craig Krenzel throws to Chris Gamble in the endzone, who has the ball slip through his hands and fall incomplete. As the Miami sideline explodes in celebration, field judge Terry Porter tosses a late penalty flag onto the field. First he signals holding, then pass interference on freshman corner Glenn Sharpe after he realizes the foul occurred while the ball was in the air. Ohio State scores three plays later and, in the next overtime period, stuffs the 'Canes at the goal line to wrap up a 31-24 win.

After the game, Miami players, coaches and fans were livid.

"I really thought that game was over, just like everybody else," said secondary coach Mark Stoops. "And there's not another official in the history of the game that would make that call."

"They didn't beat us," said Winslow. "We're the best team in the country. They're not."

"You hate for an official to have to make that call," said head coach Larry Coker. "You would like it to be a legitimate call."

But television replays clearly show that it was a legitimate call, that in fact Sharpe was holding Gamble while the ball was in the air. I believe that's practically the definition of pass interference, as laid out on NFL.com:

"It is pass interference by either team when any player movement beyond the line of scrimmage significantly hinders the progress of an eligible player of such player's opportunity to catch the ball... . Defensive pass interference rules apply from the time the ball is thrown until the ball is touched."

I believe holding Gamble while the ball was in the air would mean that Sharpe "significantly hindered the progress of an eligible player of such player's opportunity to catch the ball."

But Miami fans disagreed then and they still disagree now. They use the familiar "ticky-tack call" defense, the "let the players decide the game" argument. "Officials should be invisible; they should never have a hand in the outcome of a game."

But again, I ask why should Ohio State be penalized by a non-call and Miami rewarded by the same non-call? Who decides which team is more deserving?

The answer, of course, is nobody should decide that. Instead, the play should be called impartially, regardless of when the call is made, what's on the line and how each team will be affected.

What if the exact same play occurred in the second quarter? Would Porter's call be more acceptable then? What if Ohio State scored what eventually turned out to be the game-winning touchdown after that pass interference penalty? Suddenly, a seemingly meaningless call in the second quarter carries more weight, so does that mean Porter shouldn't have thrown his flag?

Of course not. Pass interference in the second quarter is pass interference in overtime.

And who determines whether or not a specific penalty is severe enough to call? Did Sharpe have to rip Gamble's helmet off and tie his shoelaces together to warrant a pass interference call? Did Washington have to break Nedney's ankle to earn his flag?

The funny thing about all of this, of course, is that both coaches know what would've happened had the tables been turned. If Andre Johnson had been interfered with to the same degree as Gamble on the exact same play in the exact same situation, Coker would've demanded the flag. Had Cowher's kicker been the one on the ground in overtime and no penalty was called, that would've been "ludicrous."

Players absolutely should be in sole control of what transpires between the sidelines and on the scoreboard -- no team should have a rightful victory taken away by a referee.

But had Blum and Porter not had the balls to make the right call at the right time, that's exactly what would've happened to the Titans and Buckeyes.

In the Bullz-Eye

New Cincinnati Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis. Regarded as one of football's premier defensive coordinators, Lewis takes over a team that won just two games last year, hasn't finished above .500 since 1990 and is currently sporting a record of 55-137 over the past 12 years. Hey, but at least he has Corey Dillon and Takeo Spikes.

Questions/comments? Send all e-mails to jcodding@bullz-eye.com.