I am sitting here watching the Alamo Bowl. What lousy officiating. This is the second time that Michigan has had to take a time out to get a replay review. This is silly. Even if the call is right, they should not have to waste a time out.
[added note: if you see the game with 3:45 to go in the 4th, read Lloyd Carr’s lips when he says: “no time outs, this is b**l s**t”. Check me see if I am not right. I wish that football coaches didn’t have to swear all the time. Wouldn’t “gosh darn it” do the job.]
[36 seconds to go, ESPN Announcer “this is one of the worst officiated games I have ever seen”. It isn’t just me. Time for big officials for big games … there aren’t that many games, why use small college officials? Of course Michigan did have opportunities that they missed, but they had a 12th man on the other team. They still need to take some of the responsibility for the apparent loss.]
[Michigan had Cal/Stanford going with the hook and ladder. Nebraska had too many men on the field. Lousy, lousy ref’ing. Amazing, the entire Nebraska team is on the field and no penalty. That would have given them one more play to get it in the end zone. Screwed, screwed, screwed. Dear San Antonio, TX, I don’t think I will be visiting anytime soon if you cannot organize a better officiating crew than that*. And, I am using my Discover Card. Forget Mastercard. This loss, pricelessly sad. Congratulation to Nebraska. It isn’t their fault and the officials could have just as easily favored them. It wasn’t that they were biased, they were just out of their league.]
*see comment below, I originally said Austin … which is flat out wrong and as the commentor points out, San Antonio is a great city and really had nothing to do with the bowl game officiating and everything to do with the hospitality – added next day.
[Oh and I forgot the 4th down on the next to last possession. The defender clearly hooked and pulled Manninghams catching arm. No call. Sad, sad officiating … it isn’t the loss that gets me … it is the way it happened.]
[update: and the comments … not even leaving your email address or homepage address … are you real people 🙂
I said congratulations to Nebraska, I said it could just as easily have gone against Nebraska — so I don’t agree that I am whining as indicated in one of the first two comments — but when the play is live, and Michael Hart looks up and sees the entire Nebraska team in front of him. My point isn’t that I am upset about the loss, I am upset that such a rookie group of officials are visited on a “major” bowl — and granted this wasn’t a major bowl, who are we kidding, except that every bowl (except maybe the motor city bowl *grin*) is major to the teams involved in it.]
December 29th, 2005 at 5:28 am
Worst officiating ever…Did you see how many people were on the field, that was a joke.
December 29th, 2005 at 5:33 am
WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!
December 29th, 2005 at 5:40 am
Congratulations to Michigan and Nebraska for a well played game, in spite of the officiating. With officiating like that poor sportsmanship usually follows. Two class teams. As a Husker fan I can say that we played a great opponent and when the clock ran determined the outcome of the game.
Larry
[I agree Larry, it was an exciting game from the first series. I really am not upset about the outcome, it is just sad when the athletes efforts are overshadowed by the officiating. In no way am I implying that Nebraska didn’t win or deserve to win. I appreciate your comment and yes, I agree that both teams showed (as near as we can tell with ESPN’s quick cut-away) great class to accept the outcome. Long after the game is forgotten, we would have remembered if someone lost their cool. Don
p.s. I am wondering if Michigan people are sharp enough to use the Internet … Nebraska is up 3-0 on comments I think …. although the first one is tough to read for sure.]
December 29th, 2005 at 5:48 am
Yes the officiating was bad…bad calls on both teams. Agree major conf refs should ref major conf games. BTW…both teams were on the field, so there would have been offsetting penalties…play the down over. And finally, NO. This doesn’t settle anything about the ’97 debate, and anyone suggesting it does doesn’t know football…
[The one (and only) thing I was impressed with on the officials’ side of things was how quick they got out of there 🙂 Thanks for the comment. The funny thing was that if the guy with the ball made one more back latteral, I think they had the touchdown. Great credit to the Nebraska player smart enough to stick with the game and make the tackle! BTW, I thought holdem was a Texas thing, not a Nebraska thing? Don]
December 29th, 2005 at 5:54 am
I’m a lifetime Nebraska fan, but I must say the officiating was pretty sad. I’m still not sure about this Callahan guy, but I really like the New Husker football – Strong defense and a 2-Dimensional Offense means I can actually watch a whole football game. The Osborne era was fun when they were rolling, but they couldn’t stop a passing team to save their lives and when they got behind it was just 2 to 3 hours of misery. Both teams showed a lot of spirit and a great attitude.
[They were exciting to watch … give him a complete team recruited with his style … they won’t be in a rinky dink bowl like the Alamo Bowl next year. I agree. Tom Osborne was a bit like Bo Schembechler to be honest … smash mouth football … wins most of the time, but not as exciting as your new style. Congrats and enjoy the next few years. Don]
December 29th, 2005 at 7:09 am
Officiating was horrible. Michigan would have had a shot to win with two timeouts and the extra 15 seconds. Maybe they still would have lost, but they would have had the chance. The officiating was bad, but Michigan also made many errors that impacted the game.
Get better officials for bowl games. Then we can see the better team, not the luckier one.
[They just showed a replay of Manningham dropping the ball with 2:39 (on his hands) and 2:34 (on his hands). They certainly had opportunities. Due credit to Nebraska. I am trying to find the arial shot or the end zone shot that they showed where you can see Mike Hart running and there is a sea of Nebraska people in front of him.
December 29th, 2005 at 6:09 am
boo hoo! the bad officiating was across the board consistently lousy. suck it up wolverines and lose with some class.
[lol, nice to see you were able to read the whole article …. NOT …. like I said, congrats Nebraska. I have my college championship ring in the drawer … I know what it is like to win a big one. My point since you apparently missed it was how sad the officiating was, not how sad it was that Michigan lost. In fact it is too bad that someone can even argue that the HuskerRed needed the 12th man. We do agree — the officiating was across the board consistently bad.]
December 29th, 2005 at 6:19 am
As I lifelong Husker fan I agree that the officiating was bad. I also saw bad calls. Including those mentioned there is no Halo rule and that was a split second before contact, It was not simultaneous. What I thought it came down to, Is Michigan slacked off with an 11 point lead, and when they had to try to come back, they just didn’t do it. I do believe that Michigan had the best players, but were disappointed with the way their season went. The Huskers are on the rise and were more than happy to be playing in the Alamo Bowl. PS it is not in Austin.
[Thanks for the comment. Yes the “not halo rule” call was definately a bad call as well and going the other way. That was a fantastic hit and special teams for Nebraska outshined Michigan generally but for a couple of good Michigan run backs on punts/kicks. That hit wasn’t simultaneous as you mention. In fact the same play happened seconds later … and no call. Bad officiating – consistently so. The ESPN announcer got out the rule book and read it. The ref’s should do the same 🙂 I am not sure Michigan had the better players either. Both teams were great and it was an exciting game. Your back was fantastic, but too bad they didn’t run him more or it wouldn’t have been nearly as close. Michigan had pass defense dialed in, but your back ran all over the defense when they used him. Congrats on a great win!]
December 29th, 2005 at 6:21 am
Oh yeah, there were Michigan players on the field as well at the end. Off setting penalties game over. YOU LOSE!
[lol so I noticed … it is over … ESPN just called the game #7 on today’s countdown btw.]
December 29th, 2005 at 6:42 am
Didn’t the Sun Belt conference have problems in the other game they officiated too? Such a pity that this game came down to some absolutely horrid officiating on both sides, as I fear that is what most people will remember rather than an incredible game to watch. It seems like they just couldn’t keep any sort of control nor could they position themselves properly. Was this the first time the officials used instant replay…as in does the Sun Belt use it? Props to the only two Nebraska players NOT to stop on the play, and to the effort of Michigan, and yes, too hard to call a penalty at the end with both teams’ players and coaches out there…offsetting???…how many times will we see this play as the only highlight of the game throughout the rest of this bowl season?!
And did anyone else get sick of the comparison to the ’97 season…no link at all really…why not go back to games ACTUALLY played between the two?
Go Huskers!!! Nice to see the big win.
December 29th, 2005 at 6:42 am
GO BIG RED ORDER RESTORED
December 29th, 2005 at 7:09 am
Both teams played with a lot of heart. But, I doubt if either team will return to the Alamo Bowl soon. The officials made a mockery of two outstanding football teams with a ton of prestige. They helped the Alamo Bowl image. But they got tarnished by poor officiating.
December 29th, 2005 at 7:17 am
After Henne ran the ball in for six and the Mich D made Nebraska punt, Michigan had the opportunity to put a nail in it and failed. Had they kept that drive alive, instead of going 3 and out, it would have stopped the surge, IMO. Yet with so much emotion and momentum riding on key plays it really was a shame to see poor officiating making such an impact. The halo call on Shanle was about the only bad one against Nebraska; far more bad calls went against Michigan. I hope Michigan demands better refs next time around. Then again, it’s a little cosmic payback for some of the poor officiating I remember seeing in the Penn State game that Michigan pulled out in the last second…
December 29th, 2005 at 7:34 am
“The Western Athletic Conference and Sun Belt Conference were the only conferences not to approve the use of instant replay for this past season….” Houston Chronicle Dec 20 2005
I think it showed in the game tonight with Carr having to burn so many timeouts. I still don’t understand how the booth official didn’t overturn the fumble call on Henne. Yeah, the halo call on Shanle was wrong, but the majority of poor calls went against Michigan. Of course, after Henne ran it in for six and the Mich D forced Nebraska to punt, Michigan had a chance to put it away and failed. I’ve seen this time and time again with the Maize and Blue. Congrats to Nebraska. They played their hearts out, but with so much emotion and momentum riding on key plays it’s a shame that poor officiating had such an impact on the outcome. Then again I saw some really bad calls in the Penn State game that Michigan pulled out in the last second.
December 29th, 2005 at 9:02 am
I agree that is was 2 Great programs and it is bad that is had to come down to the officals. There were many calls missed/wrong that went both ways. Yes, more for NU. But the last play realize that it would have to be off setting penalities due to Mich players on the field as well.
Lifetime Husker fan. Go Huskers. Thanks to the Wolverines for a Great Game. Hope to play you again.
[Thanks for the post. Remember I was writing it as I saw it. They first showed basically the whole Nebraska team on the field when Michael Hart was still running the ball. Granted I didn’t see a wide angle, and it later appearred as though there may have been a couple of Michigan people on the field. The funniest thing is there is a photographer set up with a “mono-pod” in the middle of the field at the 30 yard line in the middle of the play. There are ball boys on the field. The more I reflect on the game the more I can find bad plays and missed opportunities on Michigan’s side of the field. Avant was clearly stripped in a great play on defense to really win the game. The go ahead touchdown pass to Nunn was a thing of beauty — even in my eyes. Again … remember I was writing as I was watching … but never did I in any way mean to suggest that Nebraska didn’t deserve to win … only that Michigan deserved the chance to compete fully for the win. There will always be bad calls. But it seemed like these guys just didn’t understand the speed and talent on both sides of the ball. I can see how they ruled the Henne pass a fumble (not sure I agree, but it was close) but I cannot see how they called that Halo infraction. That wasn’t close.]
December 29th, 2005 at 4:03 pm
Thanks for the excellent Board here. I will preface my comments by saying I am a life-long Husker. I have tremendous respect for the historically great programs, such as Michigan. I was thrilled–although nervous–when it was announced we would play.
I agree that the officiating was bad bad bad. I think instant replay ought to either be standardized or eliminated. It was a shame that Carr had to burn timeouts to get reviews, but as a team you cannot control officiating and sometimes have to overcome that. I applaud you for pointing that out.
As my Huskers won, I want to focus on the good things in the game. Henne is the real deal. I am disappointed that I feel like I did not get to see Hart at full speed. Maybe I did and the Huskers held him down fairly well. I saw flashes that make me think he is quite a back. Corey Ross is the heart and soul of a program that has had some really rough times the past couple of years. He was one of the team captains this year and what you see on the field is a small percentage of what he has meant to the rebuilding of the program. Taylor is a presence in the pocket. When given time, he can pick a defense apart. Credit to Michigan for noticing this and going after him early and often. That made a huge difference in the game. They knocked him around pretty good and he kept bouncing back.
I will say this was one of the hardest hitting games I can remember in a long time–and I am proud my Huskers were a part of that. I am not as familiar with the Michigan players, but there were a couple that laid some heavy licks. I can point to McKeon and Brandenburgh (both soph LB’s 🙂 ) for dropping the hammer several times. And the two times that we nailed the punt returner (although one was called interference incorrectly) were absolutely great timing and power.
So, knowing that Michigan will be back and tough next year as I think the Huskers will be, here’s to hoping that we have a BCS Huskers-Wolverines match up sometime in the near future.
[great comments … I was way impressed with the toughness of Taylor, he had a big hit night. Ross is indeed the real deal. If I was going to war I would definately want him on my side every time! I was just suprised that they didn’t go to him more often. He is really the guy who softened up the D for the last touchdown pass in my mind. Hope you are right, see you next year in the BCS.]
December 29th, 2005 at 4:20 pm
Well I think everyone agrees the officiating sucked. I think it was equally divided. I also agree this does nothing to “decide” the 97 season….over and done with. Great game Michigan and Nebraska…you are better knowing you need to get around situations in life that are not fair…aka officiating.
[Thanks for the comments. I agree about the 97 season, but I would love to see a big bowl match-up of these two in the next two years. I think it would draw a lot of fans. I learned more in collegiate athletics than in the classroom … probably 2 or 3 to 1 ratio. I was a “minor” sport athlete, but the lessons about hard work, handling adversity, taking your licks, not always being the winner have served me well this far in life.]
December 29th, 2005 at 4:59 pm
I’m not a fan of either team. Too bad a great game has to have the results clouded by bad officiating. NCAA needs to dump replay, or use the red flag system like the NFL. Teams calling timeouts to get replays is ridiculous. The “no call” on what appeared to be pass interference by Nebraska happens sometimes. The worst was the final play with all the laterals. All the Nebraska players leaving the bench shut off half the field. Still, the last Michigan player with the ball made a great effort. He couldn’t lateral because bonehead bowl officials were on the field between the ball carrier and his team-maters.
[Thanks for the comments Don O. I didn’t see the bonehead official in the way, it looked to me like there were two trailers behind the ball carrier, but I hope maybe to get some better film looks today. I like that word, “team-maters.” Thanks for the comments.]
December 29th, 2005 at 6:15 pm
First off, I’m a Gamecock fan. I don’t like nor dislike either Nebraska or Michigan. If it is a game in which I don’t have a team to root for, I root for a well played game. I agree with Don’s original thought. It’s not a matter of who won or lost, it was amatter that we were cheated out of a fair game.
And, Nebraska fan, no, it wasn’t consistently poor officiating. It clearly butchered Michigan. Your first TD came after a clear fumble. Your winning TD came after a clear incomplete pass “recovery.” Michgan’s comeback TD was clearly interfered with. Not even looking at the last play, we’re looking at an easy 21 points the other way. That’s not close, and it’s not fair to either team, and especially not fair to the fans.
That was a joke of a game.
December 29th, 2005 at 8:07 pm
From SA here.
First, the Alamo Bowl is “rinky dink” due to the timing of when it’s played. Common sense says the weekend bowls, especially after Christmas, get more viewing and therefore more money. That ain’t gonna change. About the only “rinky dink” bowl teams are willing to happily accept would be the Hawaii Bowl. Go figure.
Second, as to the comment about “Dear Austin ….”, you might want to check your history books. I’m living here in Texas, but I knew where the Alamo was long before I ever moved here. Haven’t you ever watched John Wayne?
But don’t blame San Antonio. The officiating crew (and it was pathetic) is determined by the NCAA and the various bowl committees. If anything, you should have paid attention to what the commentators were saying about the town. They loved it. The tourist area is all fairly close to the dome and all very pedestrian friendly. Throw in the great food from just about every nationality you could find … maybe that’s why SA is on the “fat” list.
I root for Auburn. Could care less which team won. Michigan certainly blew some great opportunities, and didn’t protect the ball too well at the end. But I hated seeing the game decided that way. There is no way of saying that the officials definitely cost the game, but they certainly didn’t help it too much, did they? I would have liked to have seen what would have happened if Michigan had 2 time outs and closer to 40 seconds left.
Maybe it would have ended with an interception in the end zone just like the MPC Computers Bowl (also rinky dink) ended right when the Alamo Bowl started. Maybe it was just the day for bowl games to end in spectacular (or spectacularly irritating) fassion. It marred an otherwise great game.
[True that on the possible ending. I did realize I said Austin by mistake. I was going to fix that tonight, but you are probably right about it not being the Cities fault and definately not the residents. I agree, the commentators said great things about the city! I actually have spent a fair amount of time in Texas … so I actually knew my geography. Most of my time was what I consider central TX, San Angelo, Dallas, Austin, Midland. I do enjoy TX. I still have not decided about using my Mastercard though … which by the way is ironically a Michigan blue with a maize M card … so maybe I’ll have to use that too. Actually that bit was mostly tongue in cheek to be honest. Thanks for the comments and special thanks for correcting my mistake on location. Don]
December 29th, 2005 at 8:18 pm
Grew up in Nebraska and follow the Huskers, but Michigan fans have every right to complain about the officiating: It was absolutely awful, and the bulk of the bum calls went against the Wolverines.
Nebraska (with the notable exception of the offensive line) played a heck of a game against a terrific team, and several Nebraska players were absolutely outstanding. But what could have been remembered as a classic game was tainted and ends up being a win with an asterisk.
It wasn’t just the bad calls, but a real “good enough for government work” attitude. Simply put, it was manifestly unfair for Michigan to be charged a timeout for requesting review of a TD that the officials themselves determined to be incorrectly called. And, when spotting the football prior to Nebraska’s final punt, why were the officials diddling around for 15 seconds with a little over a minute left?
With the officiating so lousy, there were a couple of Husker-friendly calls that I didn’t think too egregious. The called fumble against Henne looked like a fumble to me and, and, as to Bowman’s goal line (not called) interference, doesn’t aggressive pass coverage almost invariable involve SOME degree of interference?…
With the transparently bad officiating in the latter half, some may overlook the numerous bad or omitted calls in the first. For example, although I didn’t Tivo the game (and thus could take a second look), it looked to me like Cory Ross fumbled on Nebraska’s second possession — the first play in what turned into a successful TD drive. Immediately after that Neb TD, Breaston returned the kickoff for nearly 70 yards and it looked to me like he was hit really late and way out-of-bounds.
Note, however, not one of the bad calls, in and of itself, decided the game. But the game was close and if several wrong calls had been decided correctly, and a couple of the close calls been decided in favor of Michigan, the final score could have been a lot different. Or maybe not — we’ll never know for sure.
In any event, it’s a real shame Nebraska doesn’t play Michigan more often.
December 29th, 2005 at 8:20 pm
Grew up in Nebraska and follow the Huskers, but Michigan fans have every right to complain about the officiating: It was absolutely awful, and the bulk of the bum calls went against the Wolverines.
Nebraska (with the notable exception of the offensive line) played a heck of a game against a terrific team, and several Nebraska players were absolutely outstanding. But what could have been remembered as a classic game was tainted and ends up being a win with an asterisk.
It wasn’t just the bad calls, but a real “good enough for government work” attitude. Simply put, it was manifestly unfair for Michigan to be charged a timeout for requesting review of a TD that the officials themselves determined to be incorrectly called. And, when spotting the football prior to Nebraska’s final punt, why were the officials diddling around for 15 seconds with a little over a minute left?
With the officiating so lousy, there were a couple of Husker-friendly calls that I didn’t think too egregious. The called fumble against Henne looked like a fumble to me and, and, as to Bowman’s goal line (not called) interference, doesn’t aggressive pass coverage almost invariable involve SOME degree of interference?…
With the transparently bad officiating in the latter half, some may overlook the numerous bad or omitted calls in the first. For example, although I didn’t Tivo the game (and thus could take a second look), it looked to me like Cory Ross fumbled on Nebraska’s second possession — the first play in what turned into a successful TD drive. Immediately after that Neb TD, Breaston returned the kickoff for nearly 70 yards and it looked to me like he was hit really late and way out-of-bounds.
Note, however, not one of the bad calls, in and of itself, decided the game. But the game was close and if several wrong calls had been decided correctly, and a couple of the close calls been decided in favor of Michigan, the final score could have been a lot different. Or maybe not — we’ll never know for sure.
In any event, it’s a real shame Nebraska doesn’t play Michigan more often.
[“some may overlook the numerous bad or omitted calls in the first” I overlooked them literally as I was late getting home and listened to that part on the radio and said to my wife “honey I think we are missing a good game.” She continued to miss it as she decided to do something else. Good choice in retrospect :-)]
December 29th, 2005 at 8:24 pm
As a Sooner fan I can say . . the Neb / Mich bowl game was really exciting and a fun college football game to watch. Yes the officiating was miserable but don’t believe any mistakes were intential, rather just plain bush league. Both programs are class and this year both teams evenly matched after experiencing down years. I rooted for Nebraska but really respect Michigan football. Too bad one had to lose such a close game.
[Thanks for the comments, somebody has to lose … odds are it was either going to be Michigan or Nebraska 😉 I also don’t think that the officials made a single call from malice or ill will, nor with any evil intent. I am sure that they are great people. They just weren’t used to a game with that kind of speed and skill on the field from top to bottom. Michigan looked to me much better than they looked much of the season. Having Mike Hart at 50-60 percent of his talent level back and having Breaston at 95-100% for the first time all year certainly added some dimension to their team. Henne also played exceptionally well. I was really impressed with everything on the Nebraska side with the possible exception of their inability to protect the quarterback. In fact, the bit they did on the beat up defensive backs from Nebraska shows that they have some kind of depth.]
December 29th, 2005 at 9:56 pm
Hey! I’m a Nebraskan who has lived in Sweden for nearly 8 years and am spending a couple days in Frankfurt. I didn’t get to see the game, though I did hear it on the radio (Armed Forces Radio carried it). Sounds like it was one heck of a game. Pity that the officiating was so poor. One thing is sure: both programs are proud, traditional powers. They’ll both be back, and though I was personally glad that NU one, I respect Michigan and appreciate their history and tradition. Here’s to 2006.
My post actually was placed just so that I could write that this is a very nice and civil site. For a college football fan so far from home, it is like manna from heaven. Thanks for the site!
December 29th, 2005 at 10:08 pm
i hate michigan. wanted them to lose (and they did). but that being said ,the guy in the replay booth and the officials on the field should be tarred ,feathered,burned at the stake,run over by a truck , and then they should all be FIRED. they should not even get a check for (officiating)standing around with their thumbs in their butt . they were useless out there .as far as people on here saying the bad calls went both ways hahahhahaha WAKE UP .from what i seen neb 1st td was 2 plays after a no fumble call , no replay, nothing . when henne threw the ball and they did call it a fumble the jelly donut eating fat guy in the booth somehow got that wrong too, leads to another neb. td. so as far as it not meaning anything thats 14 points right there they wouldnt have got, anyways see you maize and blue boys next year for your yearly buckeye beating:)
December 29th, 2005 at 10:12 pm
As a maize and blue fan, I must say the whole officiating thing (while it sucked big-time) would not have been an issue if Michigan had played better. So congrats to Nebraska. HOWEVER, I hope that all fans who care about the quality of bowl games will agree that the Alamo crew was an embarrassment to the game — and did a disservice for both teams.
December 29th, 2005 at 10:18 pm
This is one of the most poorly written sites I’ve seen.
Get’s isn’t a word even. Apostrophe s (‘s) is possesive. Gets, yes. Get’s, NO.
[Whew, good thing for the replay, I was able to fix it. Thanks for the comment.]
December 29th, 2005 at 10:59 pm
Referee’s don’t decide the outcome but in this case they failed to throw teh falgs when they had to. The teams play within the the rules. When the rules are not enforced it makes it hard to play.
Michigan did have their cahnces and did what they did all year. However, the last paly should of went this way;
penalty to many men.
First down at the 6 yard line one play.
The point here is that the flag was not thrown. It clearly should of been . Remember the oklahoma scooner peanlty. The rules are the rules.
This game could have been alot better with good officials.
I feel sorry for everyone involved this was very embarrasing for everyone. I’m sure the Nebraska team didn’t want to win like this either.
A sad sad sad day for college football.
I have been a football official for many years. It seemed liek they didn’t care.
December 29th, 2005 at 11:58 pm
That game was just frustrating to watch. I don’t think that there’s any question that the bulk of the blown calls went against Michigan. I also think that Nebraska played a good enough game that they might well have still won even if the officiating had gone the other way.
As it happened, though, I feel like both teams got robbed of the opportunity to play a clean game. I saw it mentioned above that the officials weren’t used to seeing a game with that much speed and skill, but I don’t think that’s it at all: the problem was that the officials were either making amateurish mistakes or failing to use the play review when it was appropriate to do so.
The first time Michigan had to call a timeout to get a play reviewed was bad enough, but once they overturned that touchdown, they certainly should have realized that they needed to start looking at controversial plays more closely.
So, I hope that the next time the Cornhuskers and the Wolverines play that some competent officials will show up for the game too. In the meantime, congratulations to Nebraska.
December 30th, 2005 at 3:50 am
I read a few of the abouve and I agree that there were bad calls agaist both teams, but a majority of them went against Michigan and it probably kept Michigan from winning. I cant believe a ref can be so stupid to just forget that he has instant replay. It isn’t fair to make Coach Carr use a timeout every time he wants to get a play reviewed. Out of timeouts, Carr wanted the refs to review the play when Manningham dropped the touchdown pass on fourth down, but the refs wouldn’t do it. That’s the reason the instant replay system is there! To review plays that could change the outcome of the game. It was pass interference and that would have moved the Wolverines closer to the end-zone, and gave them four more downs. They would have scored! It makes me so mad that those refs ruined a perfectly good bowl game!
December 30th, 2005 at 6:38 am
As a longtime U of M fan, it was agonizing to sit through another nail biter like the game between NU and U of M last night, but what should we have expected (by the way, after this year, I have no nails left). This 2005 team has underperformed all year, but perhaps the bounces we’ve been blessed with over the past years finally caught up to us (and yes U of M fans, we’ve received our fair share of bad calls in our favor), but all in one game???
For Nebraska fans, I applaud your sportsmanship, as well as your teams performance. Bounces or not, all you can control is how you perform as a team on the field and by coming back the way you did in the fourth quarter, Nebraska deserved that victory. Wish the same could be said about Michigan as they didn’t do what they needed to do on the field. Once again, they blew a lead in a game they should have won, and that will sting for the next 9 months. Michigan had every opportunity to put the game out of reach, but again came up short (and not just by 16 yards on the final desperation play).
With that said, and I’m not trying to take away anything from Nebraska (just let me get this whining out of my system), I agree w/buckeyeboy in the fact that that officiating crew ought to be tarred and feathered, and restricted from ever officiating not only another bowl game or college game, but I don’t think they are suitable for a rocket football game. There were a couple bad calls that went against Nebraska, namely the interference on the punts; call it consistently, either there were 2 consecutive interference calls, or none, but both plays looked like a replay of each other. As for the entire Nebraska team being on the field, yes, there were Michigan staff and players on as well, so as hard as it was to admit, you would have to call offsetting penalties, but what about the staff from the Alamo bowl setting up for post-game events when it wasn’t post-game (what the he!! were they thinking?). The instant replay (or should I say the Carr timeout replays) was pathetic and should be blamed on whoever selected this fine Sunbelt crew. Ahh the heck w/it, I can’t go on, but to just say this, congratulations to Nebraska as when you needed to, and had the opportunity to, you took U of M to the cleaners, especially your bruised and battered QB-if I’m ever in an alley fight, I want that guy next to me as he was tough.
Go Huskers and good luck next year and Go Blue-I still love you U of M!
December 30th, 2005 at 8:38 am
First of all – Congrats Cornhuskers, you deserve the victory. Michigan in typical Carr fashion was unable to hold a late lead and put an opponent away for the fourth time this year (every loss with exception to the ND game). It is time for change in Ann Arbor, trade in your fire Millen signs for fire Carr!!! Ironic how the co-national champs from 97 are heading in opposite directions, Nebraska is rebuilding from a handful of miserable seasons and heading north while Michigan has experienced a consistent downturn throughout most of Carr’s reign. Sure Michigan has won the big ten 2 out of the last 3 years and played in New Years bowl games for over a decade, but the Benchmark Michigan Defense that is revered for holding teams to next to nothing on the ground is consistently losing the game on the ground. Heck, they aloud a conference worst Nebraska rushing team to push a tailback for over 150 yards when they have not broke the century mark in any game all year.
Now that I am done venting lets get to the topic. The officiating in this game was the worst piece of work that I have ever witnessed in any sport being played at any level. I think the science teachers that earn a few extra $ coaching the middle school games played up the street from my house would have done a better job. That crew should not only be fired, they should also never again be aloud to wear any clothing with vertical black or white stripes in public again without being beaten. The calls certainly favored the Cornhuskers by about 5 to 1. Before all you Nebraska fans start your whining, wipe your overalls off and read comment #25 above. If a Buckeye fan agrees that Michigan got hosed than its unanimous- Michigan got screwed bad! But lets forgot about all of the crap calls that favored Nebraska except for one, any one, it really does not matter which one you pick because any of them could have drastically changed the game, but thanks to a sun belt redneck and his ensemble of blind followers (oh yeah lets not forget the fat ass in the replay booth that fell asleep at kickoff) we will never really know what that outcome would have been.
I do hope that future Alamo Bowl participants remember this when their team accepts a bid to this joke of an event. Save your money, time, and effort and stay home were you could still flip to comedy central to continue laughing while the game takes a commercial break. MasterCard – save your good name and dump your involvement with this pathetic excuse of a sporting event.
At last, back to the Buckeye fan that commented on #25. As our team will be working hard in the off season preparing for revenge at our annual meeting your team will also be working ever so hard, as it does every year, to keep your players in a classroom and out of a stolen car, a crack house, jail, or an underage girl (or boy). Happy New Year and go IRISH!!!
[geez you forgot to stereotypically insult a couple of regions of the country here … please Nebraska fans when you do get the corn cobs off your heads, don’t judge us by this writer 🙂 ]
December 30th, 2005 at 10:58 pm
Bucks Fan chiming in…
Just to let u all know, the officials all left the field on the final play after the lineman fumbled without blowing a whistle to end the game. SO… those of you wishing they would have called a penalty to give Michigan one last play…well u know how it ended. By the way that was the worst game i have seen officiating-wise in awhile. Too bad the game ended late, because i think more people would have complained if they had seen the whole thing.
December 31st, 2005 at 10:37 pm
Heard yesterday that apparently the incompetent fat a$$ in the replay booth did try to stop the game after the obvious Nebraska fumble but didn’t know how to operate the equipment—-unflippin believable!!!! Also that one ref called the play a fumble and another overruled it-isn’t that what replay is for? Additionally, that all but one ref did leave the field prior to the last play being over. Hope they all get hit by a cement truck on their way to cashing their checks, for which they deserve not one cent, other than from Nebraska for gift wrapping a game that was played by 2 tough teams (not implying that it was intentional, just fortunate). Would have loved to have seen what the outcome could have been, either way, had this incompetence not been involved, but I applaud both schools for still playing an exciting game and especially to Nebraska for taking advantage of their breaks and am disappointed still in Michigan for squelching theirs. Don’t forget U of M fans, Rivas misses an early field goal, then Michigan is forced late in the game to go for it on 4th down for the touchdown instead of kicking the go ahead fg (yes, I know, should have been first and goal after the obvious pass interference that wasn’t called); point is, even w/the ref’s incompetence, M had fate in their hands and for the 4th time this year, gave it away.
Forgot to thank the facilitators on this site last message for the opportunity to share and vent, so thank you and keep up the good work.
Again, congrat’s to Nebraska-you played well, and to Michigan fans, try to forget the phrase: “Remember the Alamo”. I know I’ll try now that my venting is out.
As Forest Gump, who I believe is the original writer of comment #25 once said, “That’s all I have to say about that”.
[Thanks for the note. I think the call of pass interference on Manningham is the type of call that honestly won’t get called most of the time on the field even though in replay you can see the hold kept his receiving hand from getting to the ball. When I saw it live I shouted to the official to make the call. The first replay I said wow was I wrong, what a great defensive play, and the second replay from the other angle I said “hey I saw that right the first time”. We have to remember (and this doesn’t cover most of the inept calls), but on something like this, there are many fewer officials than players. they have to call it from the angle they see it.]
January 1st, 2006 at 6:34 pm
In Ann Arbor you can buy a Maze & Blue shirt that states “Any Team, Any Day, Any Place.” If Michigan plays, it is at an expected level. From the coaches, the players, all the way down to the fans, everyone expects the games to be of the high level enjoyed at the Big House. This is not for the Wolverines alone, but to all who play in the Big Ten. The Michigan football program under Coach Carr has consistently achieved the level of winning or directly affecting the Big Ten Championship for many years. The quality of play at this level greatly depends on all aspects of the game to be at the same level. From field conditions to local weather, everything has an effect on the game’s outcome. Consistency in officiating is an element of the game that should be reliable, not up to the whim or personal ability of a referee. With the instant replay used properly, it changes the outlook on calling fouls.
Case in point. If instant replay was use properly in this game, the fourth quarter interference on Maningham on the 4th and goal would of been called. In the bigger picture, the defender, knowing that if he did hold on the play, would be seen and flagged, would not have tried to illegally hold the receiver, and see if he could get away with it. Or if intentional, to save the touchdown, take the flag and the resulting call. The technology is here and in place to implement instant replay anywhere a game can be televised. The days of accepting an old man’s opinion of what happens on the field, at high speed, is over. It is time to accept what happens on the field exactly as it happens. Cameras can see and capture events faster and more accurately that you or I can. Just look at the ending to the Michigan-Penn St game. I can only wonder if the clock handling and officiating had been correct would Michigan had been able to pull it off. Thanks to the lack of competency of the officials, we will never know.
Michigan and Nebraska both have a rich football history. This was our rebuilding year, as the last few years were Nebraska’s. Had Nebraska had not lost a bowl bid due to rebuilding, they would still hold the most consecutive bowl games record, not Michigan who holds it now.
As everyone has said, it is an outright SHAME the game had to be mismanaged in such a fashion. I believe in what the shirt says, Any Team, Any Where. I just would like the play on the field to determine the outcome.
[Maybe we should reword the shirt … Any Team, Any Day, Any Place, most any officials]
June 4th, 2020 at 3:13 am
Thanks for keeping people up on what’s happening.
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