signedbewildered said:
The conference determined the late hit was not a good call? Seriously? Looked pretty late and obvious to me from where I was but I don't think I reviewed a replay of that particular hit.
Does the conference put out notes or something critiquing the officials each week?
Teams submit a few plays each week to the conference, and the conference provides feedback to the teams. I doubt that any notes are put out publicly.
My view of the play, in real time and on the stadium replay, was that the flag should not have been thrown. I said that on the board, and was somewhat shouted down. The runner was running fast. It wasn't clear whether he would try to cut back, put his head down and take on the tackler, or step out of bounds. A defender has to be allowed to come into that situation at full speed. A defender coming full speed can't avoid contact if the runner starts to step out of bounds. While a defender has a sense pf the sideline, he isn't looking at the sideline or the feet of the runner; he is looking at the body of the runner. The particular hit was hard and it knocked the runner way out of the bounds. That, along with the chirping on the opponent bench, probably caused the flag, in my view. I thought the flag was thrown late too. I didn't have a great view, tho, as I was straight across the field in the upper deck.
