What's the controversy about the final play in the NC game?

CrimsonForce

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Another question is why didn't we have our corners jam the WRs at the LOS? There's no room to play read and react coverage at the 2 yard line. If Tony Brown jams Hunter Renfrow there's a good possibility that Watson has to throw the ball away..
 

CrimsonForce

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So was the Norte Dame play flagged incorrectly?


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The Notre Dame play was flagged correctly IMO. The ND WR was locked onto the FSU defender for about 5 yards. That's not what happened in the Clemson game..
 

Nolan

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I hate that they scored on two plays like that. I don't like it. But it's done, a terribly tough lesson to learn.

More to your point, CF, we should have known better than to be in cover zero on the last second touchdown. Roll a man underneath or towards the flat and you may have a pick there.

Then again, DW may have just ran it in. Just not good defense. We were clearly on our heels at that point, while Clemson was going for the kill.
 

CrimsonForce

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I hate that they scored on two plays like that. I don't like it. But it's done, a terribly tough lesson to learn.

More to your point, CF, we should have known better than to be in cover zero on the last second touchdown. Roll a man underneath or towards the flat and you may have a pick there.

Then again, DW may have just ran it in. Just not good defense. We were clearly on our heels at that point, while Clemson was going for the kill.
True, but the advantage we had at that point was time. If we hard jam all their WRs then Watson probably throws the ball away. If he started to scramble around and improvising then they wouldn't have time to kick the FG if they didn't score. Almost a guarantee that Watson was told if the pass isn't there right off the bat then throw the ball away. A quick slant pass or something like Clemson ran was about the only play they had time for. Makes it even more puzzling why the DBs were playing soft at the LOS..
 

PA Tide Fan

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Another question is why didn't we have our corners jam the WRs at the LOS? There's no room to play read and react coverage at the 2 yard line. If Tony Brown jams Hunter Renfrow there's a good possibility that Watson has to throw the ball away..
I was thinking about that also. That would have been better. Watson might have been able to run for the TD if nobody was open. He was rolling that way and it looked like he might have had some space to run if he wanted. We'll never know.
 

Al A Bama

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Several refs and officials have ruled the pick plays as legal after reviewing the tapes.......which I never thought that was legal all these years.
It sure looks like that big WR for Clemson went low on Humphrey, I think, to block him out of that play. How can that be legal? That opened it up so no one could even get close to the receiver catching the ball.
 

pigsinspace

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Does anyone really expect Rogers Redding to admit his officials blew the biggest call of the game?
All of this "not a pick" talk is parsed worse than a political speech. They knew they could get away with it, so they ran it. They could have had 20 men on the field, and the officials would not have interfered with the last play. Under the circumstances, though, they could have run a legal play and still scored against a tired defense. All water under the bridge. Use this game to get hungry for #17!
 

Al A Bama

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Another question is why didn't we have our corners jam the WRs at the LOS? There's no room to play read and react coverage at the 2 yard line. If Tony Brown jams Hunter Renfrow there's a good possibility that Watson has to throw the ball away..
Jam them; why didn't we just TACKLE them! (Of course, that big time QB may have run it in for a TD.) With time run off, that would have given them only one play left and that would have more than likely been a field goal to tie it and move the game into OT.
 

Al A Bama

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Does anyone really expect Rogers Redding to admit his officials blew the biggest call of the game?
All of this "not a pick" talk is parsed worse than a political speech. They knew they could get away with it, so they ran it. They could have had 20 men on the field, and the officials would not have interfered with the last play. Under the circumstances, though, they could have run a legal play and still scored against a tired defense. All water under the bridge. Use this game to get hungry for #17!
And I appreciate honesty in a person. Didn't the QB say they had been practicing that "pick" play all year?
 

BamaMoon

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Apr 1, 2004
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A couple more thoughts:

1. I'm still wondering why we didn't call a timeout to let our players get a breather and to warn about this. This play is on obvious one on goal line situation. I especially don't understand not calling a timeout when we saw their play set.

2. When I say the play set, I thought DW was just going to rush the right side, when he started to roll out, he could have probably scored without even passing the ball to Renfroe.

3. OK, three: I think the only way we beat that play is for the players to switch and/or for Tony Brown to jump the route on the high side...the way you would work over the pick in basketball
 
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Al A Bama

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A couple more thoughts:

1. I'm still wondering why we didn't call a timeout to let our players get a breather and to warn about this. This play is on obvious one on goal line situation. I especially don't understand not calling a timeout when we saw their play set.

2. When I say the play set, I thought DW was just going to rush the right side, when he started to roll out, he could have probably scored without even passing the ball to Renfroe.

3. OK, three: I think the only way we beat that play is for the players to switch and/or for Tony Brown to jump the route on the high side...the way you would work over the pick in basketball
I think Watson's only choice was to throw the ball to get a TD. With 6 seconds left, if he had not made it into the end zone, time would have expired and no time for a field goal to tie it and move to OT.
 

BamaMoon

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I think Watson's only choice was to throw the ball to get a TD. With 6 seconds left, if he had not made it into the end zone, time would have expired and no time for a field goal to tie it and move to OT.
Technically I agree, but instinctually, he could have decided to run and score the way the our dbs got "blocked." Ironically, if he runs it in there's nothing controversial about at all because the "pick" became a block.
 

Krymsonman

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The first one was probably illegal by the rules. Leggett threw his hands up super late after the job was done to make it appear like he was "making a receiving move" but he blatantly sought out a defender and turned his body into him. The GWing TD was probably legal because it appears that the defender engaged the contact and Williams just grabbed ahold then took him for a ride. Maybe offensive holding rather than offensive pass interference, but even then the throw was in the neutral zone area where offensive players can get away with a "block downfield" on the pass.
I don't know. I keep looking at it and I don't see our guy initiating the contact. I see a clever Clemson receiver putting a strategic shoulder into our guy to knock him back a little to free up the space. Pushed our guy back and Tony had to run around him. It is what it is and nothing going to change it so time to move on to next year. Krymsonman
 

USCBAMA

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Funny that no one else saw it this way. ( Except for Dabo of course). This guy is describing the play in a way that it simply did not happen. Taking up for the officials because they knew the call was blown. Not buying this at all.
There is the guy from the clemson site Shakin' The Southland, but that guy has the football IQ of my pet hamster, but acts as if he's some sort of football strategy guru. His breakdown of last year's title game was priceless, and about as inaccurate of an analysis as was possible.

The idea that the BAma guy initiated contact and pulled the clemson receiver into the endzone causing him to block the other Bama defenders is comical, puzzled that anyone is looking at the video and seeing that. Putting your hands out or up in reaction to someone attempting to plow you into the back of the endzone is not initiating contact.
 

TideMan09

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Jan 17, 2009
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Not picks. The receivers have every right to run their routes, without impedance to a certain point. On the first, Clemson's tight end ran a short slant and turned to receive a pass - perfectly legal.

On the second, the Alabama defender clearly makes the initial (this is key) contact with the inside receiver and drags him into the end zone. That defender should have switched to the outside receiver. If anything, that one should have been defensive pass interference or holding.
Congrats on the win & enjoy being NC's until we reclaim the Crown next year..It looked like that Clemson WR had one intention in mind on the last play & that was to make sure the other Clemson WR was to get open..It worked & was a well executed Pick Play by the Clemson players..
 
Last edited:
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It's a play in which two receivers cross routes, with one of the receivers getting in the way of the DB trying to cover the other receiver. If you look at our winning play in OT against LSU from a few years ago, you see a legal rub play--one of our receiver gets in the DB's way, but does not initiate any contact.

In both of Clemson's plays, one receiver took a few steps and jammed his hands into the DB's chest; ie, the receiver was clearly trying to block the db to free up the other receiver, not run a pattern. That, supposedly, is illegal. ND tries to that against FSU to score the winning TD, but got (correctly) called for OPI.
That explains it. Thanks.
 

pigsinspace

1st Team
Jan 26, 2011
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There is the guy from the clemson site Shakin' The Southland, but that guy has the football IQ of my pet hamster, but acts as if he's some sort of football strategy guru. His breakdown of last year's title game was priceless, and about as inaccurate of an analysis as was possible.

The idea that the BAma guy initiated contact and pulled the clemson receiver into the endzone causing him to block the other Bama defenders is comical, puzzled that anyone is looking at the video and seeing that. Putting your hands out or up in reaction to someone attempting to plow you into the back of the endzone is not initiating contact.
Baghdad Bob is doing football analysis for Clemson now.
 

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