Can somebody answer this question? Because I doubt you can. I can't, either.
If baseball has an umpire issue, so does football with their refs. Unlike most professional sports in the States, there are only 16 games. When a bad call occurs on a losing team, most of the time, it's a critical one. This is how teams make or miss the playoffs. Either what is an obvious penalty is missed or one little tap results in a thrown flag. There is no consistency and the rules are not clear. We have seen too many games get determined by the refs and it's only a matter of time.
Obviously, this is the result of what happened in January between the Rams and Saints. Replay has been around for 20 years. Challenges around that time. Many rule changes. And yet, the refs find ways to screw up. I don't buy into Troy Vincent's argument that they are held accountable. I don't think that's true. If it was, guys like Jerome Bogar would not call a game ever again. The fans get a clear view of it on TV. Mistakes are admitted, but not all of them.
I'm going to end with a story I read. There is speculation that North Carolina may lower the number of games played in high school football because of refs. They are afraid of getting visceral hate. With older ones retiring, it's dwindling down. I've mostly learned my lesson on that kind of stuff, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to criticize officiating. The South loves their sports a lot more than most. I honestly expect robots in professional leagues at some point. The human element is not a valuable excuse like it was back before the Internet existed. Either find a way to fix issues or start punishing the bad umps and refs. That one call can be like what happened back in January.
Showing posts with label refs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label refs. Show all posts
Thursday, November 7, 2019
Tuesday, April 4, 2017
NCAA Men's Basketball Championship Recap 2017
For most people, a championship game of any sport is great when it moves with a great flow. It has plays that become unforgettable, and feels clean for the most part. An effort is put up on both sides and there is confidence to be in the clutch and make those plays count. I did not see any of that with last night's NCAA Championship game between the Gonzaga Bulldogs and the North Carolina Tar Heels. That game has got to be one of the worst games I have ever seen of any sport. For me, this rivals the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos Super Bowl game and a Monday Night Football game between the Jacksonville Jaguars and Baltimore Ravens in 2011, though those two games were for different reasons.
I'll try to keep it short, but that first half was okay. There was some mediocre shooting, but there was a flow to it. North Carolina should have been up and had more than 32 points at halftime. So many in and outs, one would wonder if they could get a shot off that would swish into the basket at certain points of the game. The refs called it a little tight, but they let that first half go and allowed both teams to play through without responding to a bunch of ticky tacky fouls. You would think with the second half there would be a little more effort, but that never happened.
When one team was cold, the other was hot and vice versa for those first five minutes of the second half. Gonzaga played very poorly. They couldn't make a shot to save their life, yet they were still in it until the final minute. North Carolina was extremely poor in three point shooting the entire game, and it showed with only a few actually going in late in the half. What killed this game, however, was the referees. It got so tight that by the time there was 10 minutes left in the game, there was nearly 20 fouls. Some fouls had to be called, but there was quite a bit of ticky tacky calls that it ruined the flow. Even the CBS announcers noticed the frustration of fans and mentioned the foul calling a few times. An NBA game has a better flow than this, even when there are a lot of fouls with two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.
I went to a JV basketball game at my high school around either 2009 or 2010. By the time that game was finished, there had been nearly or at 50 fouls committed by both sides. Roughly 45-50 fouls were called for this championship game. About 30 were in that second half alone. The refs are going to be roasted and rightfully so. When you have NBA veterans criticizing them for the numerous calls, you know you screwed up. I can't think of any time in any sport where refs or umpires dictated a game by being so tight that anything can be called.
The NFL has endured a lot of criticism about refs and their poor calls. It can be said as well for the NBA depending on certain situations. For MLB, it depends on the umpire and if they have notoriety like Joe West. This NCAA Championship game outrivals a lot of the poor calls in those three sports and a lot of other sports. I'll end by saying that while these referees are human, they should not be the X factor to a game. Changes have to be made to ensure things like this last night (or tonight, depending on the time region), don't happen again. These referees are going to catch a lot of hell from now until November when the next season approaches.
I'll try to keep it short, but that first half was okay. There was some mediocre shooting, but there was a flow to it. North Carolina should have been up and had more than 32 points at halftime. So many in and outs, one would wonder if they could get a shot off that would swish into the basket at certain points of the game. The refs called it a little tight, but they let that first half go and allowed both teams to play through without responding to a bunch of ticky tacky fouls. You would think with the second half there would be a little more effort, but that never happened.
When one team was cold, the other was hot and vice versa for those first five minutes of the second half. Gonzaga played very poorly. They couldn't make a shot to save their life, yet they were still in it until the final minute. North Carolina was extremely poor in three point shooting the entire game, and it showed with only a few actually going in late in the half. What killed this game, however, was the referees. It got so tight that by the time there was 10 minutes left in the game, there was nearly 20 fouls. Some fouls had to be called, but there was quite a bit of ticky tacky calls that it ruined the flow. Even the CBS announcers noticed the frustration of fans and mentioned the foul calling a few times. An NBA game has a better flow than this, even when there are a lot of fouls with two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.
I went to a JV basketball game at my high school around either 2009 or 2010. By the time that game was finished, there had been nearly or at 50 fouls committed by both sides. Roughly 45-50 fouls were called for this championship game. About 30 were in that second half alone. The refs are going to be roasted and rightfully so. When you have NBA veterans criticizing them for the numerous calls, you know you screwed up. I can't think of any time in any sport where refs or umpires dictated a game by being so tight that anything can be called.
The NFL has endured a lot of criticism about refs and their poor calls. It can be said as well for the NBA depending on certain situations. For MLB, it depends on the umpire and if they have notoriety like Joe West. This NCAA Championship game outrivals a lot of the poor calls in those three sports and a lot of other sports. I'll end by saying that while these referees are human, they should not be the X factor to a game. Changes have to be made to ensure things like this last night (or tonight, depending on the time region), don't happen again. These referees are going to catch a lot of hell from now until November when the next season approaches.
Wednesday, March 29, 2017
Kentucky Wildcats: 2017's Worst Fanbase (For Now)
There are bandwagon fanbases like the New England Patriots (Cheatriots). You got fanbases with nut jobs like the Alabama Crimson Tide guy who poisoned trees that Auburn University had for a very, very long time. Then there is the Kentucky Wildcats for basketball. Ever since John Calipari took over, they have had a good run under his tenure despite one and done players who go into the NBA very quickly like Anthony Davis. Like any teams in the North Carolina area (Duke, UNC, NC State), they have a very ravenous fanbase that is ultra excited. Unfortunately, that doesn't mean much now in the wake of what is going on with referee John Higgins.
This past weekend, Higgins refereed the Kentucky game against North Carolina. It was a nail biter, and both teams were down a bit and came back a number of times. Less than 10 seconds in the game, the Wildcats put up a three and tie the game 73 to 73. The Tar Heels go on to the other side of the court, shoot a jumper and take the lead 75 to 73 with 0.3 seconds left on the clock. Ultimately they won, and whatever comebacks Kentucky had was all for nothing. You would think we wouldn't stop talking about the game, but in the eyes of the Wildcat fanbase, it pretty much stunned them and then turned into anger.
I've just learned of the constant death threats that Higgins was getting. I wish I could tell you that I've never done that, but that would be a lie. Usually 99 percent of the time, I have second thoughts and get rid of whatever I said. It's not worth it. What is going on with the referee goes beyond e-mail and phone calls to his home. He has a business and the "fans" are putting up negative reviews not even related to what Higgins does and putting up very bad threats that I will not show. It doesn't stop there. His business was getting called called constantly. Friends and family were getting some of the threats. The fact that he had to go to the cops and the FBI really shows how dangerous and bad the situation is.
It reminds me of something I read about a few years ago regarding a nut job feminist's views on video games.I pretty much don't care what Anita Sarkeesian has to say since most of what she says is pathetic and anybody mentioning her is just adding fuel to the fire. She found herself in the crosshairs of many gaming fans who harassed her and wanting to kill her. She went to I think the FBI for some convention that she was she going to speak at and someone was thinking about killing her at wherever that place was. That really was a black eye for video games.
Back to Kentucky, this is not the first time, nor will it be the last time someone in college sports gets threatened with deaths. There was a field goal kicker for Boise State who missed some critical field goals around 2010. Because of that, fans were putting up death threats over those misses. I think people go into these games expecting players to be exactly like professionals. They got yips just like everybody else, especially if you're on television. With money involved with fantasy sports, it's hard to know if some are actually fans or if they are just hoping for the team in fantasy they want to win and make 100 dollars.
Two games come to mind in professional sports in a pre-Internet era. The 1985 World Series for MLB featured one of the biggest missed calls with Don Denkinger calling a guy safe instead of being out.It ended up with the Kansas City Royals winning the rest of the series and the title. That really hurt his rep and the death threats were were very high. Denkinger shrugged it off and continued umpiring for at least another decade, but that's his legacy. The other one was in 2001 with the Cleveland Browns, long before social media was a big thing. While I'm not sure if this one had death threats, the amount of stuff thrown could have seriously hurt not just the referees, but players, too. Long story short, the Browns convert on fourth down. They try to get a first down play done immediately. As they start that, the refs looked at the previous play. This was just when instant replay was back following a playoff incident in the 1999 season. They reverse it, and Browns fans start throwing bottles as the discussion was being made.
Higgins is not the only person that makes the calls. He's not the one who makes every decision. There are a few other referees who have to make those choices on whether there is a turnover and whether someone was fouled. Calipari complained about the game being called, which shows how much of a loser he is. That's his M.O. going back to his days of UMass with the infamous fight with then Temple coach John Chaney in early 1994. Even though UMass won, Calpari still whined about the referees and Chaney had enough, going to the other side and saying he'll kill him and beat him up. You would think for a guy that has been sanctioned at two colleges that there would be a little showmanship for officials, but it's stuff that older people know about more than me that will shake their head at this situation.
I have this belief that one day, refs and umpires will be replaced by robots, more so with the NFL considering how awful some of their referees were this year. A lot of judgment has to be made and whether or not to make a call or keep the game going. Unless you're a buffoon like Joe West, a lot of those officials are human. Some mistakes you can easily ignore, but some of the blatantly obvious ones are not gonna fly in today's world. I just worry that one day comes and a referee gets hurt or killed by a "fan". I hope that never happens, but the lengths some people take, that could be something to comes to reality and precedence will be made to protect the people who make sure a game goes smoothly.
For other basketball related blogs, check out other blogs I have here:
http://sullivanentertainment.blogspot.com/2017/03/rest-sports-ultimate-decision.html
http://sullivanentertainment.blogspot.com/2017/03/uconn-womens-basketball-boring.html
This past weekend, Higgins refereed the Kentucky game against North Carolina. It was a nail biter, and both teams were down a bit and came back a number of times. Less than 10 seconds in the game, the Wildcats put up a three and tie the game 73 to 73. The Tar Heels go on to the other side of the court, shoot a jumper and take the lead 75 to 73 with 0.3 seconds left on the clock. Ultimately they won, and whatever comebacks Kentucky had was all for nothing. You would think we wouldn't stop talking about the game, but in the eyes of the Wildcat fanbase, it pretty much stunned them and then turned into anger.
I've just learned of the constant death threats that Higgins was getting. I wish I could tell you that I've never done that, but that would be a lie. Usually 99 percent of the time, I have second thoughts and get rid of whatever I said. It's not worth it. What is going on with the referee goes beyond e-mail and phone calls to his home. He has a business and the "fans" are putting up negative reviews not even related to what Higgins does and putting up very bad threats that I will not show. It doesn't stop there. His business was getting called called constantly. Friends and family were getting some of the threats. The fact that he had to go to the cops and the FBI really shows how dangerous and bad the situation is.
It reminds me of something I read about a few years ago regarding a nut job feminist's views on video games.I pretty much don't care what Anita Sarkeesian has to say since most of what she says is pathetic and anybody mentioning her is just adding fuel to the fire. She found herself in the crosshairs of many gaming fans who harassed her and wanting to kill her. She went to I think the FBI for some convention that she was she going to speak at and someone was thinking about killing her at wherever that place was. That really was a black eye for video games.
Back to Kentucky, this is not the first time, nor will it be the last time someone in college sports gets threatened with deaths. There was a field goal kicker for Boise State who missed some critical field goals around 2010. Because of that, fans were putting up death threats over those misses. I think people go into these games expecting players to be exactly like professionals. They got yips just like everybody else, especially if you're on television. With money involved with fantasy sports, it's hard to know if some are actually fans or if they are just hoping for the team in fantasy they want to win and make 100 dollars.
Two games come to mind in professional sports in a pre-Internet era. The 1985 World Series for MLB featured one of the biggest missed calls with Don Denkinger calling a guy safe instead of being out.It ended up with the Kansas City Royals winning the rest of the series and the title. That really hurt his rep and the death threats were were very high. Denkinger shrugged it off and continued umpiring for at least another decade, but that's his legacy. The other one was in 2001 with the Cleveland Browns, long before social media was a big thing. While I'm not sure if this one had death threats, the amount of stuff thrown could have seriously hurt not just the referees, but players, too. Long story short, the Browns convert on fourth down. They try to get a first down play done immediately. As they start that, the refs looked at the previous play. This was just when instant replay was back following a playoff incident in the 1999 season. They reverse it, and Browns fans start throwing bottles as the discussion was being made.
Higgins is not the only person that makes the calls. He's not the one who makes every decision. There are a few other referees who have to make those choices on whether there is a turnover and whether someone was fouled. Calipari complained about the game being called, which shows how much of a loser he is. That's his M.O. going back to his days of UMass with the infamous fight with then Temple coach John Chaney in early 1994. Even though UMass won, Calpari still whined about the referees and Chaney had enough, going to the other side and saying he'll kill him and beat him up. You would think for a guy that has been sanctioned at two colleges that there would be a little showmanship for officials, but it's stuff that older people know about more than me that will shake their head at this situation.
I have this belief that one day, refs and umpires will be replaced by robots, more so with the NFL considering how awful some of their referees were this year. A lot of judgment has to be made and whether or not to make a call or keep the game going. Unless you're a buffoon like Joe West, a lot of those officials are human. Some mistakes you can easily ignore, but some of the blatantly obvious ones are not gonna fly in today's world. I just worry that one day comes and a referee gets hurt or killed by a "fan". I hope that never happens, but the lengths some people take, that could be something to comes to reality and precedence will be made to protect the people who make sure a game goes smoothly.
For other basketball related blogs, check out other blogs I have here:
http://sullivanentertainment.blogspot.com/2017/03/rest-sports-ultimate-decision.html
http://sullivanentertainment.blogspot.com/2017/03/uconn-womens-basketball-boring.html
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