A HUGE story that no one's picked up on... (1 Viewer)

[SSOG]

I read this today in the Denver Post, and figured it was relevant. I haven't heard ANYONE else talking about this in the media, though you'd think it would be a big deal.

http://www.denverpost.com/broncos/ci_3419689

Officiating crews no stars in stripes

Blown calls commonplace in world where perfection is the standard

By Bill Briggs

Denver Post Staff Writer

Upon further review, John Elway's final touchdown was a Super Bowl mirage - part gift, part goof by an NFL official.

Seven years ago, as Elway's bright-orange career faded to black during a deboning of the Falcons, the Denver quarterback took a late snap and wormed 3 yards toward the end zone. His scoring scoot pushed the Broncos ahead 31-6, and clinched the Super Bowl MVP trophy for Elway.

"John was happy. The world was happy," remembers Sanford Rivers, the head linesman who made that call in Miami.

Except the call was wrong.

"I gave John Elway his last touchdown," Rivers, now retired from the NFL, acknowledged last week. "He was a quarter of an inch short (but) close enough. It made no difference in the score."

No harm, no foul? In this case: maybe no TD, no MVP. But with Ref-land reeling from a wobbly weekend of blown calls, bogus calls - and, in the case of referee Pete Morelli, threatening calls to his home - Rivers' admission may only inflame suspicions and fuel fury in the stands. Stripes are most definitely out of fashion in 2006.

Now, I understand, the game way a blowout, so this final call didn't make one bit of difference (although I'm sure a lot of people would be pissed if they bet the under and this TD pushed the score over). And I'm a huge Denver and John Elway fan, so don't think I'm not appreciative of the gift... but am I the only one here who thinks that this is a really big deal? Shouldn't the Superbowl... THE SUPERBOWL... be officiated based on what actually happens on the field, and not what makes the best storyline OFF the field? Especially since it's not like an 18 point lead is really an insurmountable lead, here. Remember the Colts scoring 21 in 4 minutes against the Bucs a couple of years ago?Normally, I'm one of the first guys to stand up for officials, but this bothers me. I've always believed that officials make what they HONESTLY BELIEVE to be the correct call, and feel that I'm not one to fault them for not being perfect. I wonder, though, how one defends an official making a call that he honestly believes is incorrect?

What do you guys think? Am I overreacting here? Much ado about nothing?

 

[Odogs]

I read this today in the Denver Post, and figured it was relevant. I haven't heard ANYONE else talking about this in the media, though you'd think it would be a big deal.

http://www.denverpost.com/broncos/ci_3419689

Officiating crews no stars in stripes

Blown calls commonplace in world where perfection is the standard

By Bill Briggs

Denver Post Staff Writer

Upon further review, John Elway's final touchdown was a Super Bowl mirage - part gift, part goof by an NFL official.

Seven years ago, as Elway's bright-orange career faded to black during a deboning of the Falcons, the Denver quarterback took a late snap and wormed 3 yards toward the end zone. His scoring scoot pushed the Broncos ahead 31-6, and clinched the Super Bowl MVP trophy for Elway.

"John was happy. The world was happy," remembers Sanford Rivers, the head linesman who made that call in Miami.

Except the call was wrong.

"I gave John Elway his last touchdown," Rivers, now retired from the NFL, acknowledged last week. "He was a quarter of an inch short (but) close enough. It made no difference in the score."

No harm, no foul? In this case: maybe no TD, no MVP. But with Ref-land reeling from a wobbly weekend of blown calls, bogus calls - and, in the case of referee Pete Morelli, threatening calls to his home - Rivers' admission may only inflame suspicions and fuel fury in the stands. Stripes are most definitely out of fashion in 2006.

Now, I understand, the game way a blowout, so this final call didn't make one bit of difference (although I'm sure a lot of people would be pissed if they bet the under and this TD pushed the score over). And I'm a huge Denver and John Elway fan, so don't think I'm not appreciative of the gift... but am I the only one here who thinks that this is a really big deal? Shouldn't the Superbowl... THE SUPERBOWL... be officiated based on what actually happens on the field, and not what makes the best storyline OFF the field? Especially since it's not like an 18 point lead is really an insurmountable lead, here. Remember the Colts scoring 21 in 4 minutes against the Bucs a couple of years ago?Normally, I'm one of the first guys to stand up for officials, but this bothers me. I've always believed that officials make what they HONESTLY BELIEVE to be the correct call, and feel that I'm not one to fault them for not being perfect. I wonder, though, how one defends an official making a call that he honestly believes is incorrect?

What do you guys think? Am I overreacting here? Much ado about nothing?

It was probably a stupid thing to do, but I don't have a huge problem with it. Although, it was ten times more stupid to admit to it. Nothing good can come out of admitting to it, so I don't understand why he would even say something like that.

 

[thesurfshop19]

Maybe I'm not reading this right, but it seems to me like he's saying that after seeing the replays, in hindsight, he knows he got the call wrong.

He "gave it" to John because he made the wrong call at the time, not because he thought John didn't get in but gave it to him anyway intentionally.

(EDIT: Removed long quote.)

 

[slayer666]

 

[SSOG]

Maybe I'm not reading this right, but it seems to me like he's saying that after seeing the replays, in hindsight, he knows he got the call wrong.

He "gave it" to John because he made the wrong call at the time, not because he thought John didn't get in but gave it to him anyway intentionally.

That's not how I read it AT ALL.He "gave" Elway the TD. That means he KNEW that Elway didn't score, but he "gave" it to him anyway, since it made everyone happy.

Besides, if he thought he made the right call and then saw the replays and realized it was the wrong call (which would be hard, since there are no cameras at the goal-line), they why would have have just acknowledged it last week for the first time? The article made it sound like a big secret that he'd been carrying around and then finally admitted to.

 

[thesurfshop19]

Maybe I'm not reading this right, but it seems to me like he's saying that after seeing the replays, in hindsight, he knows he got the call wrong.

He "gave it" to John because he made the wrong call at the time, not because he thought John didn't get in but gave it to him anyway intentionally.

That's not how I read it AT ALL.He "gave" Elway the TD. That means he KNEW that Elway didn't score, but he "gave" it to him anyway, since it made everyone happy.

Besides, if he thought he made the right call and then saw the replays and realized it was the wrong call (which would be hard, since there are no cameras at the goal-line), they why would have have just acknowledged it last week for the first time? The article made it sound like a big secret that he'd been carrying around and then finally admitted to.

Before we get outraged over this, we really need the context of the comment. This is a one-liner quoted from something from "last week". We all know how telephone works.He could have meant what I think, he could have meant what you think.

(Also, caps = yelling! Knock it off! )

 

[rockbottom895]

Wow, that is abosolutly ridiculous. Wasnt there any debate about it around the time? How can an official like this get away with something like that?

 

[SSOG]

Before we get outraged over this, we really need the context of the comment. This is a one-liner quoted from something from "last week". We all know how telephone works.

He could have meant what I think, he could have meant what you think.

(Also, caps = yelling! Knock it off! )

I don't know. I have a hard time reading that as anything other than "I knew he didn't make it, but I gave it to him anyway".And caps are only YELLING IF YOU TYPE ENTIRELY IN CAPS LIKE THIS, SEE? Using them sporadically is merely meant to provide EMPHASIS and give a general sense of pacing to my posts.

Wow, that is abosolutly ridiculous. Wasnt there any debate about it around the time? How can an official like this get away with something like that?

I don't remember a single word of debate at the time, either during the broadcast or in the weeks immediately following the superbowl. In fact, the first time I'd ever heard ANYTHING to indicate that Elway might not have gotten the TD was when I read this article this morning. Which is why it was such a shock.

 

[Cookiemonster]

As a Steeler fan, I'm happy to finally have something to agree w/ you about SSOG. Too many BIG calls (use of caps is proper) blown/not called/overturned lately. The Elway call, I believe, is w/o consequence. MVP? Who cares. Individual awards are overblown. When was the last time an O-lineman won an MVP? Anyways, the outcome of the game didn't matter to that call, but over the last two weeks, games have/could have been decided by bad calls. Its time to make refs full-time employees w/ rewards & penalties based on review and performance. Human error is part of the game. Personal bias is only for the fans. Time to get it right!

 

[Family Matters]

Ever notice how there has to be some controversy heading into the playoffs and Super Bowl? Apparently there isn't anyone cheating, breaking the law or otherwise TOing right now so a couple of blown calls will have to do. Ever since I was a kid and can remember there have been blown calls. It's part of the game. It's called being human. People make mistakes all the time. And as people we love to point out when SOMEONE ELSE does it, not us. It's just our nature.So each Super Bowl run the media's job is to find some "human" failure or misery to talk about and tie it into the game itself. I guess this year the big story is going to be the officiating. Now that's some boring controversy my friends.

 

[Doug Drinen]

He could have meant what I think, he could have meant what you think.

And a third possibility is that he meant, "I'm bored and lonely, so I'm going to use the fact that questionable officiating in playoff games is in the news right now to get myself some attention."

 

[Cookiemonster]

He could have meant what I think, he could have meant what you think.

And a third possibility is that he meant, "I'm bored and lonely, so I'm going to use the fact that questionable officiating in playoff games is in the news right now to get myself some attention."

Aced the quiz!

 

[rzrback77]

Ever notice how there has to be some controversy heading into the playoffs and Super Bowl? Apparently there isn't anyone cheating, breaking the law or otherwise TOing right now so a couple of blown calls will have to do. Ever since I was a kid and can remember there have been blown calls. It's part of the game. It's called being human. People make mistakes all the time. And as people we love to point out when SOMEONE ELSE does it, not us. It's just our nature.

So each Super Bowl run the media's job is to find some "human" failure or misery to talk about and tie it into the game itself. I guess this year the big story is going to be the officiating. Now that's some boring controversy my friends.

I totally agree with FM about the controversy being contrived, but....If the ref did know that he made the WRONG call to just to award or sympathize with an fan favorite (or his favorite), that is the absolute WRONG thing to admit to. Honesty is an all or nothing proposition, without 100%, you don't have it.

I also agree with Doug, that he may be seeking the spotlight in an otherwise drab life, but absolutely the worse question for officials to face.

We can understand or empathixe missing calls, but making WRONG calls is unforgiveable, whether yesterday or ten years ago.

 

[jkruppe]

Is it irony that a Bronco fan posted this?

 

[jeff_eaglz]

NFL Columnist with a column to fill. Not much more.

 

[cracKer]

He could have meant what I think, he could have meant what you think.

And a third possibility is that he meant, "I'm bored and lonely, so I'm going to use the fact that questionable officiating in playoff games is in the news right now to get myself some attention."

Someone's out to get their 15 minutes.

 

[SSOG]

Ever notice how there has to be some controversy heading into the playoffs and Super Bowl? Apparently there isn't anyone cheating, breaking the law or otherwise TOing right now so a couple of blown calls will have to do. Ever since I was a kid and can remember there have been blown calls. It's part of the game. It's called being human. People make mistakes all the time. And as people we love to point out when SOMEONE ELSE does it, not us. It's just our nature.

So each Super Bowl run the media's job is to find some "human" failure or misery to talk about and tie it into the game itself. I guess this year the big story is going to be the officiating. Now that's some boring controversy my friends.

I totally agree with FM about the controversy being contrived, but....If the ref did know that he made the WRONG call to just to award or sympathize with an fan favorite (or his favorite), that is the absolute WRONG thing to admit to. Honesty is an all or nothing proposition, without 100%, you don't have it.

I also agree with Doug, that he may be seeking the spotlight in an otherwise drab life, but absolutely the worse question for officials to face.

We can understand or empathixe missing calls, but making WRONG calls is unforgiveable, whether yesterday or ten years ago.

I don't know that it's "grabbing the spotlight". Like I said, the only place I've heard anything about this was that one article, and even then it was a little bit buried.

Is it irony that a Bronco fan posted this?

Why's it ironic? I appreciate that he did it, and enjoy the fact that it went in Elway's favor, but that doesn't mean it was right.

 

[Ksquared]

You guys are missing the key part of this in my mind:

"I gave John Elway his last touchdown," Rivers, now retired from the NFL, acknowledged last week. "He was a quarter of an inch short (but) close enough. It made no difference in the score."

The linesmen have enough trouble calling a TD if the ball is +/- a foot. How can you even take this response seriously - a quarter of an inch is impossible to spot exactly. When i first read this quote, I thought he meant a quarter of a foot. The paint for the endzone line is probably off by a quarter of an inch going across the field.

 

[GRIDIRON ASSASSIN]

Sportsradio and Sportscenter is too busy talking about some NFL player going into the stands to make sure his loud mouth wife was OK.WHO CARES!?!?!?Ed Hochuli still hasn't referee'd a playoff game. Something tells me he's doing one tomorrow - and their won't be any bad calls.

 

[Bojang0301]

Sportsradio and Sportscenter is too busy talking about some NFL player going into the stands to make sure his loud mouth wife was OK.

WHO CARES!?!?!?

Ed Hochuli still hasn't referee'd a playoff game. Something tells me he's doing one tomorrow - and their won't be any bad calls.

GO HOCULLI!!! (Looks like the f'n Hulk out there)

 

[Chase Stuart]

Sportsradio and Sportscenter is too busy talking about some NFL player going into the stands to make sure his loud mouth wife was OK.

WHO CARES!?!?!?

Ed Hochuli still hasn't referee'd a playoff game. Something tells me he's doing one tomorrow - and their won't be any bad calls.

He's definitely not doing the Super Bowl?

 

[GRIDIRON ASSASSIN]

Sportsradio and Sportscenter is too busy talking about some NFL player going into the stands to make sure his loud mouth wife was OK.

WHO CARES!?!?!?

Ed Hochuli still hasn't referee'd a playoff game.  Something tells me he's doing one tomorrow - and their won't be any bad calls.

He's definitely not doing the Super Bowl?

If he doesn't do a game tomorrow, he'll DEFINITELY be doing the Super Bowl. The guy who did last year's Super Bowl was an AWFUL ref. Blew a Bernard Berrian TD up in Detroit, and then had a few bad calls to start out the Super Bowl. As far as I'm concerned, Hochuli and Mike Carey should alternate Super Bowls....

 

[Godsbrother]

This is outrageous!!!! The Lomabardi Trophy for Super Bowl XXXIII should be immediately turned over the Falcons and John Elway should be thrown out of the HOF!

 

[thesurfshop19]

I don't know. I have a hard time reading that as anything other than "I knew he didn't make it, but I gave it to him anyway".

And caps are only YELLING IF YOU TYPE ENTIRELY IN CAPS LIKE THIS, SEE? Using them sporadically is merely meant to provide EMPHASIS and give a general sense of pacing to my posts.

What if his entire comments went something like this:"John was happy. The world was happy. You know one thing, though? Looking back at the tape ... I missed the call, man. I haven't blown too many big ones over the years, but I got that one wrong. So in the end, it turns out that I gave John Elway his last touchdown. He was a quarter of an inch short ... close enough. At least it made no difference in the score."

I don't know, you don't find this at least reasonably plausible, considering how badly some writers take things out of context?

Do you think it's any less reasonable than a ref claiming to see, in real time, that a ball is 1/4 of an inch short of the end zone but intentionally granting a TD anyway?

Also, I agree that caps can be used to EMPHASIZE MAJOR POINTS, I'm just playing with ya, buddy.

 

[thesurfshop19]

This is the play in question, for the record (from this gallery).

Of course, he could have moved after being "down", but at least it's something!

 

[Nemesis]

Ed Hochuli still hasn't referee'd a playoff game.  Something tells me he's doing one tomorrow - and their won't be any bad calls.

He's definitely not doing the Super Bowl?

If he doesn't do a game tomorrow, he'll DEFINITELY be doing the Super Bowl. The guy who did last year's Super Bowl was an AWFUL ref. Blew a Bernard Berrian TD up in Detroit, and then had a few bad calls to start out the Super Bowl. As far as I'm concerned, Hochuli and Mike Carey should alternate Super Bowls....

But Hochuli hasn't reffed in several weeks since the end of the regular season and the timing with his crew will be off............I'm seriously worried.

 

[Preacher 1]

You guys are missing the key part of this in my mind:

"I gave John Elway his last touchdown," Rivers, now retired from the NFL, acknowledged last week. "He was a quarter of an inch short (but) close enough. It made no difference in the score."

The linesmen have enough trouble calling a TD if the ball is +/- a foot. How can you even take this response seriously - a quarter of an inch is impossible to spot exactly. When i first read this quote, I thought he meant a quarter of a foot. The paint for the endzone line is probably off by a quarter of an inch going across the field.