OT: Sparty clappy, Pelini unhappy.
Honest question because I don't know. Is Sparty being Sparty and Pelini is right to be upset or is Pelini being whiny and needs to worry about his own team?
October 7th, 2014 at 5:42 PM ^
Ya aint cheatin Ya aint tryin'
October 7th, 2014 at 5:42 PM ^
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October 7th, 2014 at 8:03 PM ^
Simulating the cadence is a penalty on the defense. Ive only ever seen it called though when the defense audibly says something. I assume the same rules would apply to clapping ot simulate the snap count. Either way its a bush league move by State.
October 8th, 2014 at 9:22 AM ^
I think you mean it's a "State" move by state.
October 7th, 2014 at 5:42 PM ^
The rules do clearly state that the defense cannot disrupte the cadence for the offense. So they can't yell "hike" or anything like that. But is a clap a cadence? That is what needs to be answered. Spartan D is known to bend the rules at all costs, yet Pelini is always a whiner.
October 7th, 2014 at 5:43 PM ^
Sparty's got the clap
October 7th, 2014 at 11:36 PM ^
October 7th, 2014 at 5:44 PM ^
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October 7th, 2014 at 5:45 PM ^
Can we report Brady Hoke to the Big Ten for excessive clapping?
October 7th, 2014 at 5:45 PM ^
Rule 7-1-5-a-3:
"No player shall use words or signals that disconcert opponents when they are preparing to put the ball in play. No player may call defensive signals that simulate the sound or cadence of (or otherwise interfere with) offensive starting signals."
I didn't listen to the game, although I did have it on in the background, so I don't know if there is any basis in the accusation.
October 7th, 2014 at 6:02 PM ^
So what if the offensive cadence was "Right, strong-right, Right strong-right". The defense wouldn't be able to call out the alignment to their own teammates?! I know, a bit extreme but still. Clapping seems to have become a cadence-thing only over the past decade or so...and now that it has, technically a defense shouldn't be allowed to do it? Weird stuff; as I say below, the offense should figure their own stuff out and use something that the defense can't replicate.
October 7th, 2014 at 7:12 PM ^
however, in a shotgun some QBs use a clap to signal the snap; sometimes they lift their foot. so if the snap is a count or two after the clap, a LB who claps could clearly disrupt the timing of the snap.
i would be curious if NE had some false starts as a result.
October 7th, 2014 at 7:35 PM ^
I think it's more in the rhythm that the words are said in rather than the words themselves. Obviously the defense needs to be able to call its own signals.
I would imagine that officials would have to take an "I know it when I see it" approach to this, and I would also imagine that the defense needs to get the benefit of the doubt.
October 8th, 2014 at 10:26 AM ^
Actually, MSU will call out opponent's audibles and shift defenses accordingly. They did it nearly every time Armstrong audibled on Saturday. I posted about it below.
October 7th, 2014 at 5:47 PM ^
uh huh! Maybe there is some methodology to Hoke's clapping.
October 7th, 2014 at 5:56 PM ^
Grey area. What if its confused with a show of enthusiam ("C'MON GUYS *clap/clap/clap/clap* "LETS GOOOO")?
Narduzzi is known for placing the burden on the refs for calling this stuff. Just another example.
October 7th, 2014 at 5:57 PM ^
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October 8th, 2014 at 9:24 AM ^
Yeah, like riding the opposing receivers down the field like bucking broncos, certain it'll only get called once or twice a game.
October 7th, 2014 at 5:59 PM ^
Telling the defense they can't clap is ludicrous. The offense needs to figure their own shit out.
October 7th, 2014 at 10:42 PM ^
God, Barry Manilow has aged badly
October 7th, 2014 at 6:00 PM ^
Is this the first time Pelini has heard clapping. Doubt it. Is this the first time he got his arse handed to him by Sparty. Yup.
October 7th, 2014 at 6:01 PM ^
Nebraska did have some weird instances where the center snapped the ball when the QB wasn't looking. It's not odd to see it happen once in a while, but this was three or four times a game. I wouldn't be surprised if MSU clapping was the cause. In any event, I'm sure Urban Meyer will be all over the officials before their game to prevent the same problem.
October 7th, 2014 at 6:21 PM ^
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October 7th, 2014 at 6:36 PM ^
Anybody want a peanut?
-Fezzik
October 7th, 2014 at 7:09 PM ^
The key thing for me is that Pelini called Dantonio out, very publically, for cheating. Since it involves no team from Ann Arbor, I approve - truth of the matter notwithstanding.
(Although under the no-simulation rule, it does seem like cheating.)
October 7th, 2014 at 7:27 PM ^
I think we could shut their offense down.
But I'd worry if we had to face Chuck Barris. He seems unfazed by it.
October 7th, 2014 at 7:18 PM ^
Yup, Hoke is gearing up for MSU - now we know
October 8th, 2014 at 9:28 AM ^
Sadly the best thing Hoke can do to prepare for MSU is to put a cork in his butt (not that Butt).
October 7th, 2014 at 8:07 PM ^
because Michigan was playing like shit on Saturday, and I do remember noticing (for some reason I want to say it was the linebackers) clapping a few seconds before the snap.
I didn't really think anything of it at the time -- it is unusual, but I don't think the commentators even said anything about it during the game. (I could be wrong -- I had the Michigan radio feed on while watching part of the Sparty game).
October 8th, 2014 at 10:24 AM ^
What you noticed was the MSU LBs reading audibles and changing defenses accordingly. The defense puts a large amount of time into studying opponents' audible calls and adjusting accordingly to different coverages. It's fairly simple to do with a young QB like Armstrong, same philosophy as flipping CBs and having Waynes play to Armstong's right hand which MSU rarely does.
They have a variety of hand signals to change defenses--palms to the helmet, back of the hands to the helmet, certain number of hand claps, etc. Everyone on the defense makes the same signal to acknowledge the change. It worked really well against Saturday. Nearly every Nebraska audible went for little gain.
As to whether or not the clapping is intentionally done to "cheat" or throw off the offense, I'm assuming nearly everyone on this board will agree that it is.
October 7th, 2014 at 8:28 PM ^
MSU is like that dickhead on Jeopardy who won by using dickhead strategy and dickhead psychology (and great... congratulations... very smart... lovely) but still looks like a dickhead to most people who believe there are rules to be followed even if you probably won't get punished for violating them.
October 7th, 2014 at 9:04 PM ^
October 7th, 2014 at 9:22 PM ^
A couple bad snaps were the least of their problems. Clapping had little impact on the fact Abdullah only had 45 yards on 24 carries which seems to be the strategy to beat Nebraska. In the game against McNeese he only had 54 yards on 17 carries while he has had three games over 200 yards.
October 9th, 2014 at 8:16 AM ^
October 9th, 2014 at 8:37 AM ^
Bo didn't bring this topic up or start complaining about itafter the game. His comments were in response to a question raised specifically about the hand clapping, apparently one of the press noticed the MSU defense clapping and asked Bo about it.
That being said, nobody on the Nebraska side thinks the game was won or lost on this. Sparty was the better team that night.