AJC > Sports > Blog > Archives > 2006 > September > 20
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Replay rules can be improved
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
So we now know the instant replay system isn’t perfect. No one ever said it was. But from the fiasco that took place at the Oklahoma-Oregon game, there is a chance to learn. Here are some changes that could be made to improve the system.
1) Expand the standard officiating crew to include the replay official. Some leagues use retired officials and frankly that’s not fair to them. Except for the running around part, the job of the replay official is now under more pressure than the guys on the field.
2) It would cost some money, but the replay official probably needs to be neutral. If he represents either conference it opens up charges of favoritism-even if it’s subconscious. I don’t know if it’s practical, but I’m not sure it’s fair to be putting all of this on one man. I’m not real big on doing things by committee, but it might be wise to have more than one guy making the call.
3) Any game changing play in the final two minutes of the game is automatically reviewed. In basketball a winning shot at or near the final buzzer is automatically reviewed. Should be the same in football. And in the final two minutes ALL plays can be reviewed-even calls of pass interference.
4) In games with controversial calls the referee and the replay official must be publicly accountable immediately after the game. In many cases the referee will talk to a pool reporter representing the media and that’s fine. But the replay official must do so as well. If the teenage cornerback who got beat for a touchdown has to explain his actions, so do the officials.
5) The NCAA left it up to the conferences to pick their own replay equipment. That needs to change. Decide what the best technology is and mandate that everyone who plays Division I-A football use it. A replay official should never use the excuse that his equipment wasn’t good enough.
