Monday, February 06, 2006

Reporters' Notebooks

Jason King, Kansas City Star: They passed the hat in Lawrence and the $31 million needed to construct a new football facility for Kansas has been secured.

Mark Snyder, Detroit Free Press: Longtime Michigan offensive coordinator Terry Malone is leaving to become tight end coach of the New Orleans Saints. Other staff moves might be coming.

Scott Wolf, L.A. Daily News: USC has lost defensive line coach Jethro Franklin, who will have the same duties with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Wiz hears Iowa assistant Ron Aiken might be in line to replace Franklin.

Barry Pump, Cedar Rapids Gazette: Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz says the NCAA should adopt the NFL rule that allows coaches to challenge a call and get a review of a play (subscription, so story is in comments).

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Ferentz favors NFL replay system

By Barry Pump
Cedar Rapids Gazette

IOWA CITY — Kirk Ferentz said Sunday he hopes the Big Ten Conference will adopt coaches’ challenges in the same mold as the NFL.

The Iowa football coach’s comments were in response
to several questions by fans at the conclusion of the 2006 Fan Fest at the Sheraton Hotel and Conference Center.

‘‘I’d rather have that challenge, because as it stands right now, we have to burn a timeout when we think it’s necessary,’’ he said. ‘‘You take a timeout, and you’re not guaranteed that they are going to review.’’

Although Ferentz has always been supportive of official replays, he has previously been against the idea of a coach’s challenge.

‘‘I’m at the point right now so this May when we have our Big Ten meetings, I’m going to advocate that the coaches have the right to challenge,’’ Ferentz said. ‘‘My position has changed a little bit.’’

For the last two seasons, Big Ten officials have replayed close calls on the field using television camera angles, so a technical advisor can ultimately make the final decision from the press box. Calls on the field are overturned if the technical advisor finds ‘‘indisputable video evidence’’ to the contrary.

Reviews happen only when the technical advisor sees reason to stop play in the short period between one play ending and the next play starting. As a way of giving the technical advisor more time to fully examine a disputable play, coaches have adopted what amounts to a de facto challenge by calling a timeout.

‘‘Two things can happen,’’ Ferentz said. ‘‘During the timeout, they review the play and you get a judgment on it, or they don’t have to review.’’

There is already some support among Big Ten coaches for a challenge system.

After his team’s loss to Nebraska in the 2005 Alamo Bowl, Michigan Coach Lloyd Carr renewed his longstanding support for such a device.

‘‘I think in terms of the rules going forward that a (coaches’ challenge) has to be a part of it, because it’s only fair,’’ he said.

Only the Mountain West Conference allows coaches to challenge calls on the field, while other leagues that use replay rely on a technical advisor in the press box to make the final call.

Both Iowa and Michigan suffered in their respective bowl games after what each team thought were questionable calls by officials.

And the Hawkeyes’ 31-24 loss to Florida in the 2006 Outback Bowl last month was still fresh in the minds of many attending the Fan Fest.

One fan asked Ferentz whether he would support changes to the way officials are assigned to bowl games. A Conference USA officiating crew called the Outback Bowl, between teams from the bigger Big Ten and Southeastern Conferences.

‘‘The bottom line is that you’d certainly like to think in a prominent bowl game that the officiating is going to be up to the task,’’ Ferentz said. ‘‘My son (Brian) said it pretty well, it’s up to the players to perform during the season to make it to a good bowl game, and it should be incumbent upon the officials too.

‘‘I’m not saying that’s not the case, but there are a couple of examples this year that would leave that open for discussion.’’