T1B

MgoBlue-LightSpecial wrote:Like I said, the D line has been getting great pressure on the QB, so the secondary has acted moreso like a bunch of spectactors. Which is GOOD. I think MSU just needs to continue running right at that red wall and pound away yardage. Hoyer has been serviceable, but he's shown a tendency to try and really thread the needle, causing him to throw into double coverage.

MgoBlue-LightSpecial wrote:Wisconsin had to make a second half "comeback" at home, under the lights, on ABC, to beat Iowa -- which I feel is a subpar team. Wisky has been coasting far too long on these shaky wins. I think the streak snaps here. This won't be easy. Probably won't be pretty. But I think State goes in there and escapes with the W. Some how...some way. And this isn't me being a homer. You can insult me, my mother, and my freakishly large penis. But if there's one thing you can't say about me...is that I'm not rational. I rationally see Mich St pulling this one out.

WolverineSteve wrote:This game has a history of the winner going large....

MgoBlue-LightSpecial wrote:$10 says SEASON OVER has already listed his own team.

L45B wrote:

MgoBlue-LightSpecial wrote:$10 says SEASON OVER has already listed his own team.

$10 more says he listed it after the first week.

SEASON OVER wrote:I have All Teams...eventually...hahhahhahha

MgoBlue-LightSpecial wrote:Anybody see that hit?

MgoBlue-LightSpecial wrote:Like I said, low scoring affair.

Boneheaded penalties...very John L-esque

With time running out in the first half, University of Wisconsin wide receiver Kyle Jefferson ran a shallow crosser; a high percentage throw designed to create a mismatch in space. Releasing off the line of scrimmage, Jefferson came under the route of tight end Travis Beckum and worked his pattern, from right to left, across the middle of the field.

Jefferson barely avoided contact with the umpire (Jim Krogstad) before catching the ball. As he turned up field, Jefferson was flattened by Michigan State strong safety Nehemiah Warrick (No. 3) who clearly led with his head, thus producing the impetus for a helmet-on-helmet collision.

What happened next should not have been open to interpretation during Saturday's game at Camp Randall Stadium. Warrick's hit was illegal and the Spartans should have been penalized 15 yards. But there was no flag, no penalty.

Krogstad, a UW grad and Madison native, appeared to be screened on the play. If that was the case, he could have used some help from his crewmates. But he didn't get any assistance. At halftime, Matt Lepay, the Badgers radio voice, contacted David Parry, the Big Ten's supervisor of officials, and Parry conceded that Warrick should have been flagged for the helmet-to-helmet contact (which was not reviewable).

The rule book isn't vague.

In the 2007 NCAA rules and interpretations, it reads, "No player shall use his helmet (including the face mask) to butt or ram an opponent in an attempt to punish him (A.R. 9-1-2-XVI).'' That leads us to this rendering, "A player, during a live ball, rams an opponent with his helmet or face mask. Ruling: Personal foul -- 15 yards from the basic spot. ...''

The real issue here is not field position, it's player safety; a topic that has generated far more discussion in the National Football League than it has on the college football level. Not that the NCAA rules committee hasn't been put on the spot in the past. During the 2004 season, Georgia wide receiver Reggie Brown was the victim of a helmet-to-helmet hit from Auburn's Junior Rosegreen. Brown was knocked unconscious and suffered a concussion. There was no penalty on Rosegreen. Georgia head coach Mark Richt later told USA Today, "I don't think there was any bad intention. It's a safety issue that we all have to be concerned about, but I don't think it was intentional. I'm just thankful Reggie is fine.''

UW coach Bret Bielema was equally thankful that Jefferson wasn't severely injured. While he was able to bounce up and leave the field under his own power, he didn't play another snap against the Spartans. Jefferson and Brown were far more fortunate than Tennessee Tech receiver Drew Hixon. During that same 2004 season, Hixon was left in a medically induced coma for nearly a month after a helmet-to-helmet collision with a South Florida defensive back. Hixon dropped out of school and after a lengthy rehab and recovery, nearly five months, he was finally able to set foot back on campus for a visit.

While his son was still in a coma, Stan Hixon, the receivers coach for the Washington Redskins, and a former college assistant, told the Associated Press, "I've seen it happen before and guys get up and walk away. It's a collision sport. It's a tough, physical sport. Injuries happen. We know as players and coaches that you're one play away from getting hurt.''

So, where should we draw the line on helmet-to-helmet collisions? Especially those involving receivers who are unable to protect themselves. In 1995, the NFL implemented rules on excessive contact or illegal use of the helmet. Step over the line, and there's a price to pay. Just ask Rodney Harrison, or Kenoy Kennedy or Brian Dawkins or Darren Woodson or any other defensive back who has been fined by the league. That also goes for Denver safety John Lynch, a noted "hitter'' if not headhunter, who was fined $75,000 for a helmet-to-helmet hit on Indianapolis Colts tight end Dallas Clark.

The 2005 fine was based on Lynch being a repeat offender. His earlier transgressions cost $7,000 apiece. Lynch was hardly repentant. He told the Associated Press, "If you make the highlights these days, you're going to get fined. That's pretty much what it comes down to. It's kind of hypocritical. They put it on their 'Greatest Hits' but they'll fine you for it, too.''

Very true. The NFL loves marketing toughness, big hits. And nobody loves collisions more than television, which is giving its audience what it wants. Guilty as charged. I love watching Tom Jackson's segment "Jacked-Up'' on ESPN. But when does a player go too far when he uses his helmet as a weapon? A former NFL linebacker, Detroit Lions general manager Matt Millen told ESPN.com, "For years, we've taught guys to lead with their heads. If you're a defensive player at any level, you have dreams of coaches screaming, 'Stick your head in there.' And now we're telling people that they can't do that.''

That sentiment was shared by Darren Woodson, a former all-pro safety with the Dallas Cowboys, who told ESPN.com, "I have been taught since I was in the third grade, 'Lead with your eyes, go across the body.' You can't change the way people play. They seem to think that I can make a decision in a split-second. If I pull up, miss the tackle and he runs 60 yards for the touchdown, then what? We've got to live with the things that go on, too.''

Was Warrick thinking about hurting Jefferson when he had him lined up for the head shot? We don't know that. In this context, the problem is determining intent. Addressing that dilemma for everyone involved, Gene Washington, the NFL's director of football operations, told USA Today, "There's only one person who knows intent, and everyone else is guessing. It's a tough game and my feeling is there are some accepted and inherent risks of playing football. But that doesn't mean you should be subjected to undue risk.''

And that doesn't mean the aggressor, the defensive back, shouldn't be penalized 15-yards after such helmet-to-helmet collisions, which may help discourage him from using his head as a battering ram the next time. That, in turn, may also avoid the worst-case scenario: when the wide receiver doesn't get up the next time.