Yes foot + ground does not equal being down. However, the interpretation states that if a player hit's the ground and the ball hit's the ground without the player controlling it, it's an incomplete pass. It does not matter if he had control on the way to the ground or not, and it does not matter what body part hit's the ground first. You must have control after hitting the ground, period. The picture in the first post of this thread proves that he did not have control AND the ball hit the ground. Not that hard to understand.
I think you are in the scant minority, here. Just get over the fact it was a close play and the call was a tough one to make. Hell, even my heart-headed LSU friends agree with me there. No. But, he never lost control according to the video. FOR THE LAST TIME. I sound like a broken record here, but when his elbow hit the ground it was catch. His elbow hit before the hands/ball, so he was DOWN before the ball hits the ground. He has control of the ball all the way to the elbow hitting the ground. For all the football "analysts" that think a foot=elbow, you are wrong.
Personally, catch or not (and I think he did catch it) I do not think their was enough evidence in the booth to turn it around. With that being said, we don't know if it would have influenced the game, and as many big plays as their were it probably wouldn't have. Plus, it doesn't mean Bama would have scored anyways.
You must haved missed my post. Please find a rule to dispute the bold statement. I already provided one to confirm it, so good luck.
My point is this - If he let go of the ball at that point, you agree it would have been incomplete. This means he did not have possession yet and cannot be considered a catch at the moment of the picture, regardless of the elbow. The ball touched the ground and, as you agree, the player didn't have possession. Incomplete.
