What rule changes would you like to see in the major sports?

Agree with 1 and both 4s.

I also would like to see 6 fouls in the college game.

Make the NHL go to 3 on 3 in overtime with no shootouts.

Allow defenders in basketball to physically block people from driving past them.

Allow a player to get strong armed while attempting a slam dunk.

Easy: intent to blow in hockey is the worst rule in all of sports and should be dropped immediately in favor of the objective "when the whistle actually went" rule.  Second worst rule in sports is the puck-out-of-play rule in hockey, where it is a 2-minute minor.  The rule should be the same as icing - face-off in your own zone & you can't make any changes.  Since I'm on hockey, for good measure get rid of the stupid trapezoid in the NHL & let goalies handle the puck wherever they like.

I like these kinds of discussions. So I'll take yours in order:

1. I like this. I don't care about the Bo Ryan issue; I prefer the college game in many ways, but I think there are a number of NBA rules that are superior, and the shot clock is one of them. A reduction would be good.

2. Not sure I'm a fan of the 3-point line move. I like that they've bumped it back a bit, but I don't know that it's necessary at the college level. 

3. Intriguing idea. Not sure if it's necessary, though--having the alternate jump ball seems a bit random, but it's still a good play for defense and a not-so-good play for offense regardless of the result. If you're on defense and you don't have the arrow, getting a jump is still good since it switches the arrow without jeopardizing your own team's possession. 

I think making the call always benefit the defense would have unintended consequences.

4. I like how the pros handle fouls as well. Obviously, they use quarters and limit fouls to 5. I also prefer having the extra foul available (granted, both games have a "1 foul per 8 minutes" proportion) because it eliminates the chance that a bad call or two could eliminate a key player for 10-15 minutes of the first half. On the other hand, having a 1-and-1 does make the penalty for excessive fouls gradually more severe, which seems nice. 

5. I don't think limiting a holding penalty to 5 yards would be sufficient. We'd see a lot more holding in that case; the average sack may be only a bit over 5 yards, but the sacks prevented by holding tend to be on the long end of it. Tackling a defender from behind would be an easy play on any 7-step drop.

6. Isn't this basically just a "Super Bowl" rule? Not sure the impact warrants a change in the rules. What I would support would be more discretion for the offended team to adjust time in late-game situations when a team with the lead commits a penalty on a play that has used up time. 

And 6. I also think that they should let at least one penalty to be reviewed, that is close enough to the play that might make a difference in crucial downs. Blatant pass interference or such that reffs miss.

that allows a suspension for a match penalty to be extended until the other party can return. Normally I would say penalizing based on injury is not a good practice, but in a situation where the officials on the ice determined that it was a legitimate attempt to injure an opponent and the leauge agrees (does the NHLPA have a voice in the review process or is it only Shanahan?), there should be a provision for keeping the offending player off the ice longer for causing a more severe injury.

Also, along the lines of a match penalty, there needs to be a football penalty more damaging to the offending team than fifteen yards. From a purely game-theory standpoint, Michigan opponents would have benefited from intentionally injuring Denard these past few years, and that doesn't make sense.

This counts as two:

I think that the NCAA refs should call intentional fouls on the fouls at the end of the game.  Mostly I think this because they aer intentionall fouls.

Indiana won today because their guy smacked the shit out of Glen Robinson while he was going in for a dunk to put us up 6 with less than a minute to go.  

I don't think you should be able to break the rules to benefit your self.

A Relegation/Promotion System in college and pro sports.  Think about having the top 2 or 3 MAC teams moving up to the BIG 10 while the lower 2-3 teams in the BIG 10 move down. 

It would be interesting  having the top AAA teams in the Major League while teams like the Houston Astros would move down  a league. 

The NFL needs to fix pass interference. There are times a defender totally mauls a guy that would otherwise make an easy catch, but just as often (or more often) a mild bit of contact on a barely catchable ball results in a PI call that advances the football 20-30 yards on a play that may well have been incomplete anyway. I much prefer the college 15-yard rule, with only the narrow exception that a flagrant takedown in the end zone should get a spot on the two.

I always found it annoying that offensive players can face mask in football (by stiff arming)

I also hate the jump ball in college... i'd be okay with giving the "tie" to the defender, but i'd also be okay with making them actually jump for it.

In baseball, they really should let the players play the game (w/r/t warning both sides without at least letting the other team retaliate once.)

I think that's all i got.

make the shot clock 25 seconds. Dont need any more than that.

1. Agree 1000%

2. I don't think this is a problem in cbb. 3-point %'s seem where they should be (no longer sky-high, not too low), and I don't think enough players are ready to take that extra step back.

3. Definitely the most interesting rule change in my opinion. It is always frustrating when you work so hard to get a jump ball, and yet have no chance of getting the ball back. Would be interesting to hear stephenrjking elaborate on bad unintended consequences of this rule change.

4. I do think this should be changed, and I think the NBA does a better job of it...not sure how to articulate the differences, but definitely start there.

5. I hated the 1-and-1 today, but the possibility of choking/being captain clutch is an exciting part of the game that I don't think needs tinkering.

6. Not sure holding needs to be changed penalty-wise, I just wish they'd be more consistent ala the block/charge call in cbb.

7. Meh obscure rules are obscure.

8. Sounds good to me. Or better yet, forc refs to call an intentional foul even if it means the team they are rooting to win will suredly lose.

Excessive celebration penalties in cfb. Some of the best plays of all time would have been called back because of this rule (see: Hello Heisman). I personally don't care when other teams celebrate against Michigan, because I know we can dish it back. It makes cfb more fun to watch when kids can use their creativity and emotions.

Coaches will never let it happen, but they need to reduce the number of time outs in basketball. I like the old school days of three total for a whole game, but I would be happy with two in the first half and three in the second. Having five timeouts in each half is ridiculous. You can tell the players even get sick of their coaches constantly calling end of game time outs instead of just letting them play.

In soccer, make it more difficult to convert on a penalty kick.  This might sound counterintuitive but soccer refs know if they calls a penalty in the box they're basically giving a team a goal, so they tend to swallow their whistles.  Make PKs more of a 50-50 thing and you'll probably see more open play in front of the goal.

1) Change the block/charge in college to favor the offense.

2) Call hand checking in college basketball to go along with a 30 second shot clock.

3) Illegal contact in the NFL should not be an automatic first down.

4) This is the one I am most adamant about: excessive celebration penalties should be only a 5 yard penalty. 15 yards for a 100% interpretive call is excessive.

5) The rule on what is a catch needs to be simplified in football.

Makes no sense. I have never understood how an offensive player tipping in a basket was made illegal if the ball is in a virtually impossible to determine from most angles imaginary cylinder. Defensive goaltending makes sense.

I say make all free throws resulting from non shooting fouls optional. Would rather keep the ball with a fresh shot clock than send a shooter to the line? Coach's call. Just like in football when a coach can accept or decline a penalty. The team being fouled should receive the decided advantage. I think this would result in the better team winning more often*. Would also eliminate hack-a-Shaq strategy and keep the final two minutes of games from dragging out into 30 minute foul fests.



*Not necessarily saying we were better tonight.