December 10th, 2021 at 8:20 AM ^
Not "fun while it lasted."
The refs should have thrown the flag at the time, for Unsportsmanlike Conduct. That's what it was.
December 10th, 2021 at 8:23 AM ^
I agree.
December 10th, 2021 at 8:55 AM ^
Everything is fun… until someone gets a bloody nose. Happy for the new rule.
Imagine if a QB did this regularly and then got hammered by a tackler when he actually slid. 15 yard penalty for the dude making the tackle.
December 10th, 2021 at 8:26 AM ^
Agree, mid-to-low level quality tweet by SI... HOWEVA...
I really feel like this might have been an athletic guy making a "bang-bang" decision at full speed in the moment of the game. I don't think Pickett went into the game/play planning to abuse a loophole in the rule, I think he made an in-play decision, then changed his mind (while running at full speed) and the result exploited a loophole that should have been closed years ago.
But I don't think the refs could throw the flag on a rule that should be a rule, but isn't.
Honestly, applause to the Rules Committee for acting decisively and quickly.
December 10th, 2021 at 8:41 AM ^
I don’t know, it seems to me they could have called unsportsmanlike conduct. The slide rule is designed to protect the QB. It penalizes a defender who hits the QB after he gives himself up. Faking giving yourself up necessarily will cause an alert defender to ease up. So you are basically taking a rule designed to protect the QB and using it to gain an advantage. It isn’t like a juke, or a fake pass, for example, designed to fool the defense. It’s saying, “hey, the play is over, you can’t touch me.” But the ply isn’t over, because you faked the slide. In the case of a juke or fake pass, for example, everyone knows the play is still unfolding.
December 10th, 2021 at 8:45 AM ^
they should take the entire slide and your safe rule OUT, if a QB is going to take off and run he is fair game just like a running back PERIOD.
if they are in the pocket I understand the over protective way they call roughing
HOWEVER, there are a LOT of athletic QBs who abuse this rule by flopping right before contact and try to draw this penalty and it is BS.
protect them in the pocket but if they run they are fair game, are they Football players or not?
they can continue to slide but if they have someone about to make a tackle and then slide they don't automatically get a free 15 yards.
the defense has to know how to react and making them LIVE once they cross the LOS makes sense.
December 10th, 2021 at 9:00 AM ^
If theres a botched punt or field goal and a kicker picks it up and runs, does he get protections?
December 10th, 2021 at 9:05 AM ^
Any ball carrier can slide and get the same protection.
December 10th, 2021 at 9:35 AM ^
If Haskins slid, Corum would be the primary RB.
December 10th, 2021 at 9:44 AM ^
It's actually funny thinking that Haskins would rob himself of the chance to inflict pain on a hapless defender.
Unless of course he took pity on the poor sap and hurdles him instead.
December 10th, 2021 at 10:21 AM ^
When Haskins is running with the ball, the defenders slide.
December 10th, 2021 at 12:12 PM ^
PERFECT!
In Soviet football, defender slides to avoid Haskins
December 10th, 2021 at 12:42 PM ^
Chuck Norris doesn't slide to avoid the tackle, the tackler slides to avoid Chuck Norris.
December 10th, 2021 at 10:57 AM ^
Or if he didn’t want to catch the flu.
December 10th, 2021 at 9:06 AM ^
Emphatic all-cappsing rants aside, I don't have a problem with the QB slide rule. QBs are important enough to the game that they have decided to put some rules in place to try to protect them.
And I feel like I watch a pretty high-volume of football, I haven't seen this rampant "abuse" by athletic QBs and their late flops. I think there are bad plays that happen. I think some guys try to go down at the last second, but it's pretty rare, and replay is there specifically for that. It's not an "auto 15" but bad refs/calls will always exist.
Ultimately, it's fine. Good that they changed this rule too. The slide rule has been around since what the early-90's? And this is the only instance of something like this I'm aware of... appropriate reaction is appropriate.
December 10th, 2021 at 9:09 AM ^
except the rule doesn't reference quarterbacks. the actual rule defines a "defenseless player" as "a ball carrier who has obviously given themselves up and is sliding feetfirst."
December 10th, 2021 at 9:32 AM ^
Ok, I won't dispute the fact that anyone can use the rule. But let's not split hairs to just split hairs here... The rule was put into place to protect a scrambling QB from getting murdered down field, which is exactly how it's used... 999 out of 1000 times it's a QB that uses the slide.
December 10th, 2021 at 11:11 AM ^
I believe the rule originated in the NFL where one sliding without contact does not end a play, so you were free to blast the quarterback. In CFB, you do not have to be down by contact, so you are saving yourself the shot while going down. I have seen many instances where the QB began his slide after a defender made a move into the QB and a penalty was not called....but I am sure there are plenty of times where it is called as well. At any rate, it is a silly rule in college because you don't have to be down by contact and shouldn't be called if you start your slide as you are about to be lit up.
December 10th, 2021 at 9:24 AM ^
I totally agree and have been banging this drum for years.
Football at all levels has tried over the last 10 years to eliminate head shots and encourages tackling low. The slide puts the runners head directly in the strike zone for the defensive player.
Eliminate the slide and make QBs be live runners once they cross the LOS.
December 10th, 2021 at 9:43 AM ^
I have also been really wanting QBs to avoid sliding if they are trying to get down and not take a hit. Remember Rudock against Minnesota? He slid early but was hit anyway and had his head bounced off the turf like a basketball and had to leave the game. The Minnesota player was flagged for it but now we are down our QB.
Compare that with what Cade did on the QB draw Saturday where he dove head first and got the hell down and out of the way. Sliding inherently leaves your head in a vulnerable position and makes it very difficult to protect yourself.
December 10th, 2021 at 9:59 AM ^
FWIW, I'm guessing Cade's dive on Saturday had more to do with the experience of him sliding against OSU when he scrambled up the middle and having the ball (correctly) brought back short of the first down.
Totally agree with the above, though.
December 10th, 2021 at 10:21 AM ^
Very true. Plus being a 3rd and long it's harder to know exactly where you are on the field when running in the middle of the field
December 10th, 2021 at 11:46 AM ^
I believe the rule is an old wooden ship.
December 10th, 2021 at 11:47 AM ^
I’ll take it a step further: if you step outside of the quarterback pocket, you should be considered a potential runner.
December 10th, 2021 at 9:43 AM ^
I don't know if it should be taken out, but I generally think it is dumb to slide. You're probably going to get a bad spot, and you're probably going to get hit anyways and you're in a bad position to defend yourself from a hit since you've given yourself up. If a QB is scrambling and wants to go down, pick a spot of open grass and dive forward.
December 10th, 2021 at 10:14 AM ^
It could easily have been called “intent to deceive “
December 10th, 2021 at 10:18 AM ^
No, he admitted afterwards he planned it
December 10th, 2021 at 11:01 AM ^
They could have said he began the slide at the point he began the slide.
December 10th, 2021 at 11:49 AM ^
Agree, I don't think it was unsportsmanlike in the course of the actual play. But I thought that he should have been ruled to have begun his slide motion at that point and been ruled down at that point.
December 10th, 2021 at 12:19 PM ^
Mostly I agree with you but with two qualifications.
Unsportsmanlike conduct IS against the rules.
Making a split-second decision is an explanation, not an excuse.
("Honest, officer, I usually stop at red lights but I made a split-second decision that the light would stay yellow till I hit the intersection." "Professor, I never cheat on tests but, in this case, it was a split-second decision to take a quick peek at his exam.")
December 10th, 2021 at 8:38 AM ^
I dont think it would be unsportsmanlike conduct. I think it would be the one Harbaugh got a few years ago. "Intent to Deceive"
December 10th, 2021 at 8:46 AM ^
agree, that is what I would call it for sure.
December 10th, 2021 at 8:50 AM ^
Mrs. Seaver told me that it was actually "Unsportsmanlike Conduct - Substitution with Intent to Deceive" So, you're both correct.
December 10th, 2021 at 9:14 AM ^
Intent to deceive? We're talking football! Damn near everything about offensive play design is deception. What about "disguising" coverages? If you want to make what Pickett did illegal because of player safety, OK. But to invoke "intent to deceive" as a justification is preposterous.
December 10th, 2021 at 8:55 AM ^
Intent to deceive would have been called if it was Cade....
December 10th, 2021 at 10:50 AM ^
"fun while it lasted."
Yeah it was really strange to see people praising this. Same goes for this:
(BTW I get that scoring here actually gave Buffalo a non-zero shot to win, but ... really, man?)
December 10th, 2021 at 11:16 AM ^
Is there bad blood between BG and Buffalo? That was just bizarre.
December 10th, 2021 at 11:38 AM ^
Yeah, I don't know. Wouldn't be surprised if there is now
December 10th, 2021 at 11:00 AM ^
"Intent to deceive"
December 10th, 2021 at 11:42 AM ^
Or have blown the play dead at the very least.
December 10th, 2021 at 8:23 AM ^
This is the right move, so I'm shocked the NCAA did it.
December 10th, 2021 at 9:07 AM ^
I agree, I'm glad this was changed before Michigan got burnt by it. Honestly shocked it took this many years for someone to pull it off in a game.
December 10th, 2021 at 8:23 AM ^
Good riddance. We don't need guys getting hurt while sliding because the defender can't be sure he's actually going to slide.
December 10th, 2021 at 8:28 AM ^
In watching the replay dozens of times - that wasnt much of a fake and the defenders never even came CLOSE to him. #6 seemed to give up before the fake slide, and the guy in the best position to tackle him was 7 yds away when he faked the slide.
Yes, ban the fake slide for all the obvious reasons. But also as a defender MAKE the guy slide and assume you need to tackle him when you are still 7 yards away. This was bad defense, and Pickett may have just realized the guys quit before he was committed to sliding. He may not have even intended to fake a slide.
EDIT: Pickett did say after the game he intentionally faked the slide.
December 10th, 2021 at 8:50 AM ^
#6 could have taken his head off and let up when he did the fake slide.
he at least would have made a tackle from behind
December 10th, 2021 at 8:57 AM ^
I agree with you on this.
I also feel like it would have been a self-correcting dynamic. A QB who performs a fake and doesn’t execute well would be murdered. QB injuries/fumbles would be more likely.
It kind of reminds me of hurdling fools. Unless you are really good at it, coaches will tell you not to do it.
I am happy that the ruling was clean and decisive. That is definitely a first for the NCAA.
December 10th, 2021 at 10:06 AM ^
On the other side of the argument is one step closer and a late slide by Pickett and you just picked up a 15-yard penalty. Players have been coached to pull up.
December 10th, 2021 at 8:28 AM ^
I really don't blame Pickett, but yeah, that play had to go, it's completely unfair to defenses. And eventually some linebacker was gonna murder a sliding quarterback after having been burned on a fake once.
December 10th, 2021 at 8:33 AM ^
More subjective rules for ref to enforce because they’ve done great with what they are already responsible for. Just get rid of the slide altogether and if you get popped you get popped.
December 10th, 2021 at 8:42 AM ^
Yeah, that won't happen. NCAA (and NFL) will err on the side of safety over avoiding subjective rules that are tough to enforce evenly.