Having trouble shaking the Bama game...

[HomeBoyDawg]

...and I think what bothers me the most are the comments I keep hearing that the officiating errors in no way impacted which team would win the game. Well, that's crap. Everyone seems to be in agreement that the halftime score would likely have been 14-7 Bama if not for the missed fumble on Bama's first drive or the phantom block in the back on State's scoring drive just before half. The mentality of the team is totally different if down 21-0 at half vs. 14-7 (with us receiving the opening 2nd half kickoff). 21-0 is seemingly and likely insurmountable. But 14-7...totally different story.

Note that I didn't say State is the better team. The way our offense has played all season, absolutely not. Had our offense played to their potential this season, quite possibly. Nonetheless, this past Saturday, could State have one the game without the officiating absurdities? Absolutely!

Thanks for allowing me to rant. I feel better. I think we'd all feel better if we knew what, if anything, was going to be done to discipline the Phil Dunphy officiating crew.

 

[TwoDawgs]

I am with you...and it is the SECOND fumble that is the most irritating to me. It was a clear fumble on a routine tackle with a very early whistle and a scoop and score. Forget 7 points we could have 14 points. https://twitter.com/kylemparks/status/1061384837049839616?s=12[FONT=&quot]&fbclid=IwAR0-l5Xccx6qvKJVsgmg61_RP9Cvl1VEwA-nj84SIV8iDMyK21ErkKkBaH8 [/FONT]

 

[thatsbaseball]

IMO the Kentucky game was just about as bad.........

 

[Lawdawg.sixpack]

Note the quick whistle on that play vs the LATE whistle on the first fumble, which didn’t come until AFTER we came out with the ball. SAME REF’s call on both.

 

[TheStateUofMS]

Think about this: If we recover the fumble on their opening drive, maybe our defense settles in right there and not half way through the 2nd Q. I won't say our offense would have scored, but perhaps we move it 10-15 yards and get a FG and it's 3-0?

Take all that crap away and say we make it 21-7 going into half with momentum and D playing well (not called for block in the back). Maybe we make it 21-10 or 21-14 after first possession of 2nd half.

I'm not saying we win the game, but it for sure affected the outcome of the game in a major way. On the flip side, Bama could have just refocused and given us their A game the rest of the way and won comfortably still, but there is no way of knowing how a fairly officiated game would have turned out.

We got cheated though. No ifs, ands or buts about it. We got cheated. Oh yeah, Bama also had 0 penalties. Take away the BS ones against us, review the fumble and actually throw a few flags on Bama..it's a different game my friend.

 

[coach66]

Listening to Bounds this morning he seems to believe there is going to be a

stronger Dick Pace rule put in place that says you can't officiate games of a school if you have any known fandom or family attachment to that school. I think that's a good rule, that Bama ref couldn't wait to make himself the hero on preserving that shutout, it was pretty obvious. It's hard for people to stay objective when they are fans of a school, human
nature wins.

 

[o_HuntDawg]

If they game is 21-10 or 21-14, Bama likely plays their Heisman QB and not their 3rd stringer the last 18 minutes of the game.

I, for one, am tired or moral victories or the such. The calls might have made the game closer, but we don't win and that game showed how far we still are from winning.

 

[rem101]

How in the hell is that not a rule already?

I do know you can't ref a game of a school you attended. Seems being a fan would just be an addition of that. An easy addition.

 

[Indognito]

My opinion is that a referee should not be assigned to any game in these circumstances:

-If the referee or any member of their immediate family is an alumnus of one of the schools or are a "fan" of either of the two schools

-If the referee resides in the home state of either of the schools

This would go a long way toward mitigating any biases and/or any pressure which might be brought to bear on the referees pre or post game. I would think the referees themselves would want this to take off some of the pressure of a high pressure job.

 

[MSUDawgFan86]

If they game is 21-10 or 21-14, Bama likely plays their Heisman QB and not their 3rd stringer the last 18 minutes of the game.

I, for one, am tired or moral victories or the such. The calls might have made the game closer, but we don't win and that game showed how far we still are from winning.

He got knocked out of the game. His *** could barely walk. They didn’t take him out to keep him safe.

 

[missouridawg]

The officials changed the entire complexity of the game. I’m not sure who wins, but we played well enough to be in a one score game in the fourth quarter at arguably the best team in NCAA history.

 

[Drebin]

If they game is 21-10 or 21-14, Bama likely plays their Heisman QB and not their 3rd stringer the last 18 minutes of the game.

I, for one, am tired or moral victories or the such. The calls might have made the game closer, but we don't win and that game showed how far we still are from winning.

Did you watch the game? Their Heisman QB was done. They weren't moving the ball. He was hurt. He looked like absolute garbage in the entire third quarter.

Since we're playing the IF game, what if we don't muff the punt? You take that away, change the non-fumble, and remove the block-in-the back, and it's an even closer game in the 4th quarter with our defense gaining confidence and their offense a mess with an injured QB. I know it's stupid to play the "what if" game, but it's useful to remind folks of the margin for error in big games. It magnifies bad calls, mistakes, and coaching decisions.

 

[maroonmania]

My opinion is that a referee should not be assigned to any game in these circumstances:

-If the referee or any member of their immediate family is an alumnus of one of the schools or are a "fan" of either of the two schools

-If the referee resides in the home state of either of the schools

This would go a long way toward mitigating any biases and/or any pressure which might be brought to bear on the referees pre or post game. I would think the referees themselves would want this to take off some of the pressure of a high pressure job.

The deal with Skelton was not just that his Father attended Alabama but that his Father actually played football there. In my view, after what happened last year, having the same crew assigned to the MSU-Bama game again this year is enough for me to want Steve Shaw removed from his position YESTERDAY. Shaw, another Bama graduate, and the rest of the SEC is so far up Saban and Bama's rear end they can't even see what's obvious with the bias of the officiating situation for all of the crap they are looking through.

 

[tbaydog]

stronger Dick Pace rule put in place that says you can't officiate games of a school if you have any known fandom or family attachment to that school. I think that's a good rule, that Bama ref couldn't wait to make himself the hero on preserving that shutout, it was pretty obvious. It's hard for people to stay objective when they are fans of a school, human
nature wins.

It's a shame for after fact Decisions.........

Any comments from SEC Office??

 

[T-TownDawgg]

Don't forget the terrible calls in the NC against Georgia. Facemask, not called. Blocked punt, negated.

This is an epidemic that has been allowed to fester for years.

 

[o_HuntDawg]

Guess thats where we disagree. He was walking up and down the sidelines, in the pre-drive huddles. It was 24-0 and everyone knew we weren't scoring, so why take the risk? Saban has done this a few other games too if Im not mistaken, think he did it an entire half one game.

We hit him, and hit him hard, but if the game is close he plays. Saban said as much after the game.

Regardless, shows how far away we are from the elite.

 

[HomeBoyDawg]

Agreed on "Their Heisman QB was done." I think it would likely have been advantageous for State had Saban elected to keep him in.

 

[jdbulldog]

The officials changed the entire complexity of the game. I’m not sure who wins, but we played well enough to be in a one score game in the fourth quarter at arguably the best team in NCAA history.

The best team in NCAA history? No freakin way.

 

[cowbell88]

It should also be illegal for any official or officials family members to place bets on game in which they work. Surely this is a rule already, but it seemed like the point spread was the most determining factor on Saturday.

ACCOUNTABILITY is what I really want. When a coach makes a questionable decision, they get asked about it at the press conference. Same as players that make or fail to make plays.

Officials always get wheeled away in a van with a police escort like they are royalty or a top political figure. A microphone in the face and questions about calls would put a stop to some of the questionable judgements.

 

[Dog.sixpack]

One more thing I can’t shake that no one has talked about. Our Center snapping the ball multiple times before Nick was ready. JoMo said after the game that the center said he heard a clap every time. This has not happened to us all year (that I recall), so something is fishy here. Add on top of that, I heard clapping (not cheering clapping....but “snap the ball now” clapping) multiple times during the broadcast when we had the ball on offense usually with 10-15 seconds left on the play clock. Never heard it any other times. Did anyone else hear clapping on the TV broadcast?

 

[o_HuntDawg]

He was 4 for 6 in the 3rd quarter before being removed.

Even if he was "done" he would have been far better than the 3rd stringer. Who finished the game with NEGATIVE passing yards.

Point is.... had the game been close, we would have gotten a better Alabama offense. Would they have scored, who knows. But if we are all playing the what if game here, need to look at it from all angles.

 

[thekimmer]

I agree completely about the 'no impact' dodge...

...and I think what bothers me the most are the comments I keep hearing that the officiating errors in no way impacted which team would win the game. Well, that's crap. Everyone seems to be in agreement that the halftime score would likely have been 14-7 Bama if not for the missed fumble on Bama's first drive or the phantom block in the back on State's scoring drive just before half. The mentality of the team is totally different if down 21-0 at half vs. 14-7 (with us receiving the opening 2nd half kickoff). 21-0 is seemingly and likely insurmountable. But 14-7...totally different story.

Note that I didn't say State is the better team. The way our offense has played all season, absolutely not. Had our offense played to their potential this season, quite possibly. Nonetheless, this past Saturday, could State have one the game without the officiating absurdities? Absolutely!

Thanks for allowing me to rant. I feel better. I think we'd all feel better if we knew what, if anything, was going to be done to discipline the Phil Dunphy officiating crew.

I started to draft a message about it yesterday but never posted it. We do need to put it behind us but it does grind my gears when I read gumps rationalizing that yeah there were bad calls but it doesn't really matter because it wouldn't have changed the outcome. Even State fans who for some reason feel led to add that disclaimer for some reason. Well who says it wouldn't have make any difference? If had gotten that fumble call right who knows what kind of difference it would have made? Maybe the D that absolutely shut the elephants down wakes up a little earlier. Just those two calls alone could have made a HUGE difference much less the 2 or 3 others that went their way.

 

[Bulldog45]

Also, don’t forget about the play later in the game when our defense had the running back and forward momentum stopped. No doubt the whistle should’ve been blown on that one. Our guys let up assuming the play is over then the guy breaks out for several more yards. Bama fans react like he’s some sort of bad-a$$ when the play clearly was over and should’ve been blown dead.

 

[o_HuntDawg]

Things that bothered me about the game:

Pre snap penalities again, think we had 5
Bad snaps, think we had 2-3
Terrible in the kicking and return game yet again
Why our HC didn't challenge the first fumble call
Why the people in the box didn't want him to challenge the first call
Why we never took 1 shot down the field the entire game
Why our receivers can't catch

^ this is why I don't blame the officiating. Lots of things in our control we could have fixed to play a better game. And sad thing is, these mistakes have happened all year

 

[Drebin]

He was 4 for 6 in the 3rd quarter before being removed.

Even if he was "done" he would have been far better than the 3rd stringer. Who finished the game with NEGATIVE passing yards.

Point is.... had the game been close, we would have gotten a better Alabama offense. Would they have scored, who knows. But if we are all playing the what if game here, need to look at it from all angles.

He was done. Every time he went back to pass he had three guys on him and he couldn't move laterally because he was hurting.

 

[o_HuntDawg]

Again we disagree... which is fine... however a 1 legged Heisman candidate is better than a 3rd stringer, which was the point

Tua in 12 mins of the 3rd quarter, 4-6 37 yards
3rd stringer in last 18 mins of the game, 3-6 for -1 yard

I was a the game. He was in the pre-drive huddle every drive. Had his helmet on. Saban said after the game, he was banged up, but could have went back in the game, but he didn't see a point in risking it. Had the game been 17-14, or 21-14, saban would have likely felt the need to risk it.

 

[KingBarkus]

One more thing I can’t shake that no one has talked about. Our Center snapping the ball multiple times before Nick was ready. JoMo said after the game that the center said he heard a clap every time. This has not happened to us all year (that I recall), so something is fishy here. Add on top of that, I heard clapping (not cheering clapping....but “snap the ball now” clapping) multiple times during the broadcast when we had the ball on offense usually with 10-15 seconds left on the play clock. Never heard it any other times. Did anyone else hear clapping on the TV broadcast?

Sometimes you see the guard tap the center letting him know it is ok to snap the ball. That would alleviate the inadvertent clapping. Something was going on for it to happen twice in the game.

 

[KingBarkus]

I am with you...and it is the SECOND fumble that is the most irritating to me. It was a clear fumble on a routine tackle with a very early whistle and a scoop and score. Forget 7 points we could have 14 points. https://twitter.com/kylemparks/status/1061384837049839616?s=12&fbclid=IwAR0-l5Xccx6qvKJVsgmg61_RP9Cvl1VEwA-nj84SIV8iDMyK21ErkKkBaH8

Those screenshots and twitter vids have my blood boiling. Yet, they missed one too. On the Fitz sack just before the missed FG, multiple Bama guys were offside. The line judge has ONE job there.

 

[Shmuley]

Are we suggesting that Saban has an IDF-style pre-snap clapper sound machine disguised as sideline equipment. Or do we think it was their midget?

 

[philduckworth]

Those screenshots and twitter vids have my blood boiling. Yet, they missed one too. On the Fitz sack just before the missed FG, multiple Bama guys were offside. The line judge has ONE job there.

Yep, but did you notice the blitzing Bama LB's took off on a full sprint the second they saw Fitz clap his hands? We make it too easy to time the snap. That's not the first time that has happened this year. Just completely out of synch from Joe to Fitz to the Oline. That's why we are last in the conference in offense.

And the block in the back was horse manure but Fitz had Aeris wide open doing jumping jacks in the left of the endzone on 2nd down. We could have overcome the bad call.

 

[KingBarkus]

Yep, but did you notice the blitzing Bama LB's took off on a full sprint the second they saw Fitz clap his hands? We make it too easy to time the snap. That's not the first time that has happened this year. Just completely out of synch from Joe to Fitz to the Oline. That's why we are last in the conference in offense.

And the block in the back was horse manure but Fitz had Aeris wide open doing jumping jacks in the left of the endzone on 2nd down. We could have overcome the bad call.

Yeah, I recall seeing Aeris too. Also, #2 wide open running a deep post on the flea flicker. Fitz never looked down the middle of the field. I thought one purpose of a flea flicker was to hit the big play.

 

[philduckworth]

Yeah, I recall seeing Aeris too. Also, #2 wide open running a deep post on the flea flicker. Fitz never looked down the middle of the field. I thought one purpose of a flea flicker was to hit the big play.

There were definitely plays to be made. We had 2 big drops, one was for a 3rd down conversion. Obviously, we had another 3rd down conversion where Fitz slid short of the sticks. We would have lost to a lot of teams Saturday, not just Bama. That game should have been much more interesting than it was.

 

[Junction John]

Since you were at the game, I'd suggest watching a replay.

The high-flyin hawaiian was hurt, fella. He was on a bike the whole 4th quarter, and was wincing in pain. I know because they cut to him 1,000 times during the quarter, I'm sure because Gary Danielson needed more footage for the bank.

Point is, Saban may have 'risked it' and put him back in if it was closer, but in no way was he at full strength. Hell I wish he would have kept playing. It would have given Sweat and Abrams another chance to body slam his ***, plus the added bonus of shutting idiots up who think they pulled him because Saban took his foot off the gas. He took him out because he was getting pummeled.

 

[kired]

The second one didn't bother me so much. It's possible his left knee hit, and the official would have had a better view of that than the camera. But regardless - his forward progress had been stopped by three tacklers, and the ball was stripped as he was being pushed back. In that scenario I believe the play is dead once forward progress is stopped, which is a complete judgement call by the official and I don't think it can be reviewed.

 

[o_HuntDawg]

I don't have to watch the TV. I was about 7 rows behind Alabama bench. Yes he was on the bike. But he was also standing with his helmet on, he also was in every pre-drive huddle, and after the game Saban said he was beat up, but COULD have played.

But your missing my point. A beat up Tua was better than the 3rd string the last 18 minutes. Crazy to think otherwise. And while we are playing the what if game... might as well realize that had the game been closer, you are for sure going to get a better shot from Alabama down the stretch than a 3rd string QB

 

[missouridawg]

The best team in NCAA history? No freakin way.

Any other team won every game by 22 points or more? They’re now 10-0 cover first half spreads. They’ve tested their players in almost every 4th quarter this year.

 

[Junction John]

Well if they had tried harder, we would have tried harder even harder. Checkmate**

 

[JoMo MoJo]

Note the quick whistle on that play vs the LATE whistle on the first fumble, which didn’t come until AFTER we came out with the ball. SAME REF’s call on both.

Have you heard anything back from the email you sent? Curious to know how they are spinning then officiating.

 

[o_HuntDawg]

Well thats whats great about the what if game... you can what if it to whatever you want to make yourself feel better or the story how you want it to end.

At the end of the day, we are a long ways from the level of the elite in the conference and the country, and this game yet again showed this.

 

[bruiser.sixpack]

I don't have to watch the TV. I was about 7 rows behind Alabama bench. Yes he was on the bike. But he was also standing with his helmet on, he also was in every pre-drive huddle, and after the game Saban said he was beat up, but COULD have played.

But your missing my point. A beat up Tua was better than the 3rd string the last 18 minutes. Crazy to think otherwise. And while we are playing the what if game... might as well realize that had the game been closer, you are for sure going to get a better shot from Alabama down the stretch than a 3rd string QB

Well, Saban is an *******. So there is that.