Cook: NCAA rules on taunting topic of much discussion
The college football penalty that is most open to interpretation has to be the rule on excessive celebrations or taunting, both of which are considered unsportsmanlike conduct.
It’s hard to argue that when it comes to taunting, but excessive celebrations are a little harder to call because most players are going to celebrate scoring a touchdown. Who can blame them? But deciding on what is and what is not excessive is certainly open to debate.
What is an excessive celebration in the end zone after scoring a touchdown? Apparently in the Pac-10 it is throwing the ball into the air, something that cost Washington a chance to win a game recently.
How about excessive celebration after a big tackle or a big turnover? Players have a right to be excited, but officials also have a right to throw a flag if they think the celebration is excessive.
Ah, but there’s the rub.
An excessive celebration is not necessarily taunting an opponent but exuberance. But if the flag is thrown taunting is the implication. Taunting can sometimes be obvious and flags should be thrown, but the excessive celebration part is the part that is subjective and often requires that an official make a determination as to what is going through a player’s mind at the time. That’s tough and most officials will tell you they are not mind readers.
Now there is discussion of taking the rule a step further and having it actually wipe out a touchdown if the taunting occurs in the field of play before a player crosses the goal line. If a player who is obviously going to score holds out the ball at a chasing defender and taunts him with it, okay. Throw the flag and wipe out the touchdown and penalize the team 15 yards from the spot where the taunting took place. I’ll guarantee you that player will never do it again. Just think what will await the offending player when he gets back to the sidelines and has to face his coach, say a Nick Saban or a Steve Spurrier.
But taunting is not often that obvious and that’s where the problem comes in if this discussion (and that’s all it is at this time) should actually become a proposal that the rules committee passes. It will require even more subjective decision-making on the part of officials, and they have enough on their plate as it is. But I guess that’s why they get the big bucks. If it does become a rule SEC officials will just have to live with it.
This new rule if it becomes one would not apply to excessive end zone celebrations. They would still be considered a dead ball foul and would be enforced on the kickoff. This only applies to what is judged to be unsportsmanlike conduct in the playing field, which poses a question. Would this apply to a player who dives over the goal line for no apparent reason than to show off? Is the penalty going to negate the touchdown because he actually started his dive in the playing field and ended up in the end zone? Is the taunting aspect starting the dive or finishing it? I have a hunch that it would be considered in the playing field since that is where he was when he started his needless dive.
Again, all of this is just talk right now, but there is talk. It could eventually become a proposal that would go to the rules committee. If passed, it could make an appearance in the rulebook by 2010 at the earliest. It’s an interesting proposition that actually might cut down on some of the showboating that continues to pop up in games now.
Kiffin’s learning curve
If this idea becomes a rule by the 2010 season, will that be enough time for Lane Kiffin to learn it? That is the question they are asking about Kiffin in Knoxville. After his ill-fated attempt to call out Urban Meyer for cheating in recruiting, Kiffin himself has broken three recruiting rules that Tennessee self-reported to the NCAA.
To be perfectly honest, none of the Tennessee violations are big ones but they are still violations. The fact that in 10 weeks as the Vols head coach he has broken three rules and committed one major public relations gaffe has a lot of people wondering if Kiffin might be in over his head. Being the caretaker of a major college football program is a big responsibility and so far Kiffin hasn’t shown he’s up to the task. He had hired an all-star coaching staff, and that’s a good thing, but in every other way the jury is still out on him.
But of course, the bottom line for Kiffin is the same as it is for any other coach-winning football games. If he can do that, he’ll get time to learn the rest of it. If he doesn’t win, his mistakes off the field will be magnified and he’ll be gone faster than he was at Oakland.
