Around the SEC – Coaches Oh No, Croom and Nutt complain about SEC Officials, Ole Miss AD Boone complains about Bama Coach Saban --- From the Memphis Commercial Appeal. The links: http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2007/oct/16/replay-ref-got-rebs-call-right-sec-says/ http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2007/oct/16/croom-nutt-also-have-beefs-with-officiating/ http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2007/oct/16/rebels-notebook/ ldskule:
I saw the Saban article in Bama's paper this morning. I was surprised he called out the Ole Miss fans. He continues to screw up with his mouth. It's not his place to be calling other teams fans classless, especially after what Bama did to Georgia players after they won the game. Going through the proper channels works a lot better for controlling something that is becoming more of a problem around the league. It's sounds like Ole Miss got screwed, the replay was not conclusive. Just read this, a Bama sports columnist admits it in todays paper. Upon further review, it still isn't clear to me http://www.al.com/birminghamnews/stories/index.ssf?/base/sports/119243627430130.xml&coll=2 I don't ever condone throwing things onto the field, anyone who does needs to spend the night in jail.
So, it's ok for Saban to say it's classless for Alabama fans to throw things on the field, but it's not ok to say it about other teams? Like I posted in the Ole Miss thread, a lot of this has to do with a coach being accosted leaving the press box. That's why Byrne hasn't room to talk.
I would like to shed some light on SEC officiating. When I moved to Nashville I decided to support the home team which is Vandy. These fans here really want to support their team but they just get tired of the losing. Before this years Bama game a fan called a talk radio show and said very carefully that Vandy would loose the game on bad calls. Officiating crews always make calls against Vandy when they are close big games. I laughed and said to myself another hollow fan complaint about officiating. Early in the first quarter against Bama Vandy had two huge plays called back that would have given Vandy the ball close the Bama goal line. One was a phantom face mask call that has never showed up on replay. The other was a pass interference call against Vandy's Earl Benett for pushing off on a long reception. The replay indicates the call questionable, Bennet did not push off, just put his hand up. I've seen Bama and other schools put an arm up the same way with no call, it rarely gets called. So do officials favor the more prominent programs? Yes they do. We see it in pro basketball, NFL, MLB, across the board. I don't know that it will ever change. It's just so disheartening for teams like Ole Miss and Vandy when it happens. It happens to LSU when they lost to USC many years ago. LSU had USC's best team ever beaten back in the 80's in Tiger Stadium and lost on a phantom face mask call. The SEC wants every SEC school to be successful. Now who do they want to be more successful, Bama or Vandy? Obviously Bama. They bring more money from their fan bass then Vandy. Business is business and it happens everywhere, even in government. I have to believe it goes on in college football.
I think it's ok to talk about your own fan base in those terms, just not another teams fan base. All it's going to do is generate more hostility between teams. I'm just saying with all that CNS has been through I'm surprised he would say that. It's not ok for any coach to talk about another teams fan base like that. It will only cause more problems. I sure would like to correct other folks kids at times in public. But I don't do it cause it's not my place. Of course there are extremes to this but this certainly is not one of them.
i dont buy it. bad calls are random, luck. usually they are more or less even, but some bad calls have more impact than others. fans will forget the ones with less impact and forget the ones that hurt the opponent. they can say officials call against the lower tier teams, but then how do you explain the several questionable or clearly wrong calls/no-calls against the #1 team last week. theyre barking because their backs are against the wall and the best shot for them to start winning is to play the "us against the world" card
What's missing is the point he was making about the Ole Miss fan base treating the team better when he was at LSU vs how they reacted after the reversed call Saturday. What's not included in these reports is how he praised the Ole Miss officials on how they handled the situation. As to Scarbinsky's column...who cares? :lol: His track record speaks for itself. Like you, I hate to see this type of behavior. It isn't new, but it is becoming progressively worse around the nation. Quite frankly, it's not surprising. We've been watching this type behavior for years now.
