Alabama-SEC conspiracy theorists will have a field day with this stat from Week 11
The Alabama Crimson Tide improved to 10-0 on the season with a dominant 24-0 win over Mississippi State on Saturday night.
However, the game provided plenty of fuel for those who think the SEC is biased toward the Tide, starting with a questionable non-review of what could have been a fumble in the first quarter. Then, there was a block-in-the-back penalty called on a Mississippi State receiver who barely touched an Alabama defender.
What may really drive conspiracy theorists wild, though, is the fact that no flags were thrown on the Tide all game long. In fact, they were the only Power 5 team not to be penalized on Saturday:
Alabama was the only power 5 team to play week 11 and draw zero penalties.
— Cole Cubelic (@colecubelic) November 11, 2018
Obviously, Alabama is an elite, well-coached team, but that stat will certainly raise some eyebrows across the southeast.
For now, though, the Tide have their second-straight shutout victory and continue to roll along as the No. 1 team in the nation.
Not just the penalties stat but the TERRIBLE call that took away a Miss St TD and the fumble that wasn’t. I’m not into conspiracies but I can see where people are getting this from.
Yeah agree, although the td called back from the ref that called it looked like a block in the back. It obviously wasn’t, and cost state.
I wish they could review things like that. Terrible call. Really kept Miss St from making at a 24-7 game. But honestly Miss St looked pretty deflated after that whole series and they have every right to be angry after some of those calls and non-calls.
I completely agree that there were non calls that went Bama’s way but there were several cheap shots on Tua that should have been personal foul calls that weren’t.
I’m not exactly a conspiracy theorist either, but… In light of the so called officiating bias, consider this as well.. Ole Miss beats the Tide two years running and the NCAA effectively dismantles their football program for the most part… Not saying Hugh didn’t cheat. But we ALL know that every body cheats to a certain degree (hooker stuff aside). Why was it the year after the Reb-Sharks won two consecutive against the Tide was the year the NCAA decided to crawl up their a$$ with a microscope??? (Cue Twilight Zone theme music)
1. Correlation does not equal causation. (Ole Miss sanctions)
2. It is more likely that what we saw from the zebras in Tuscaloosa was not further evidence of some grand conspiracy but just another case of good old fashioned home cookin.
3. The correct term is “Bearshark”.
Here’s the problem with that conspiracy: neither of those wins prevented Alabama from going on to the natty, whereas Auburn has prevented them from going twice so wouldn’t it be more likely for them to target Auburn if they were looking for revenge?
The investigation had its origin before the 2014 loss.
SEC refs struggle with PI calls. It’s like they don’t understand them. They need to attend a clinic.
What they think it means: “if the player touches the receiver on the receiver’s home turf, or the receiver’s team is ranked — it’s a penalty. The ranked teams defender, however, can mug the unranked, visiting receiver all he likes — all down the field — all day long. It doesn’t matter when the ball gets there.”
How did Bama have zero penalties? I mean Bama got a penalty for kicking the ball out of bounds on kickoff…
That isn’t a yardage penalty, so I gather it doesn’t count.
It is a yardage penalty. It moves the ball up for the recieving team…
No it’s not, it places the hall at the 35. You can’t say it’s a yardage penalty when you have no idea where the ball would have been…
Is it a penalty?
How can you say it isn’t a yardage penalty? If a ball is not returned it is placed on the 25. Seeing how it is placed at the 35, that’s a ten yard difference. Let’s see what could we call a team having to forfeit ten yards because of a procedural mistake? Oh yeah, a PENALTY
Nobody forfeited anything. You can’t assume the ball will be fair caught. There are no penalties listed in the box score for Bama. This particular infraction has nothing to do with the refs calling anything anyway. It seems like they look at this more as a sideline warning than an actual penalty. Flags are thrown, but that’s it.
Yet, it is a penalty…
Get real BamaTime. Bama did not have any drive damaging penalties and you knew that was what was being discussed.
That is not what the post in the article says… It says Bama didn’t get any penalties which is not true.
And Before you come back with something stupid, read the article next time and don’t assume what’s being discussed.
Getting called out by more Alabama fans? Let me guess, that’s my account too?! LMFAO
You still trying to troll? Go talk sports somewhere.. You don’t have to be a dumba#$ all the time.
Bama fans calling you out!
Kicking the ball out of bounds doesn’t require a decision like PI or holding.
But is it a penalty? It says Bama wasn’t penalized but they were.
Yeah you’re right, I wasn’t disagreeing. Just drawing a technical distinction.
There it is.
There what is, DD2? Are you referring to a normal exchange of ideas in a conversational manner? Oh, I get it, you’re having a hard time comprehending since no unnecessary insults were hurled and two fans from opposing fan bases are communicating without aggressive bluster. Ok, I see now how this can seem foreign to you.
Kicking the ball out of bounds is a penalty. If the receiving team accepts the penalty then the kicking team is moved back 5 yards and kicks off again. If the receiving team refuses the penalty, they get it 30 yards from where the kicking team’s restraining line.
So Mississippi State refused the penalty and got it at their 35 yard line which was 30 yards from Alabama’s 35 yard line. Which most teams do.
Since Mississippi State refused the penalty it was not a penalty against Alabama.
This site doesn’t seem to want to let me post a link, but it is in the 2018 NCAA Rules and Interpretations, Rule 6, Section 2, which is on page 67.
Whether Mississippi State accepted the penalty or not, what were the refs going to do? Not call the kick off out of bounds? No matter how biased the refs were, would they not make that call?
Understand I am not saying the refs were biased, just saying….
MSU didn’t refuse the penalty. My point is it’s a penalty. People trying to rationalize if it counts or not doesnt change the fact it’s a penalty.
Mississippi State had a choice to accept the penalty or refuse it. There is always that choice. If Mississippi State had accepted the penalty, Alabama would have been marked back 5 yards and would have kicked off again, which did not happen. Obviously Mississippi State refused the penalty and took the ball at the 35 yard line. That is why the box score correctly shows 0 penalties for 0 yards against Alabama.
Again incorrect. On a kickoff out of bounds the recieving teams had three options. It can not decline a kick off out of bounds…. The kicking team eithe backs up 5 yards and Ricks, the recieving team takes it at the 40 or adds a 5 yards to where it went out of bounds……
You can make up $hit but it doesnt make it right… There is no declining the penalty
35 in college sorry.
Either way the flag was thrown….
I think we can all agree it wasn’t a block in the back and it cost State a TD, but if you watch it live and in slow-mo, it’s pretty easy to understand why it was called. The State receiver ran right up behind Carter and had his hands up/on Carter slightly, their feet got tangled up, and Carter tripped and fell on his face. The State receiver knew exactly what it looked like, which is why he threw his hands in the air to indicate he didn’t do anything. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what people do when they DO block someone in the back, so it just made him look even more guilty. At the end of the day, it was terribly unfortunate timing and circumstances for State that, when everything is played out live in front of you, looks 100% like a block in the back, even though it wasn’t. I can’t fault the ref for making that call.
100% blown away they didn’t at least stop and look at the could-be fumble. I could see the call standing or overturned, but the fact that it wasn’t reviewed was pretty shocking.
Great post, but I think the call would have stood if it had been reviewed.
I read on Moorehead’s post-game conference that he was going to challenge it, but his guy in the booth said not to because the knee was down. I think the game should have been stopped and an official review done, but I’m guessing the replay booth saw the same thing Miss St.’s guys saw so it wasn’t buzzed.
So if some calls go Bamas’ way than it is a conspiracy. LSU had 3 calls against them last week. All were illegal procedure calls. As stated about the kickoff, they were obvious and had to be called. Right tackle fell back early without being called. No “judgment “ calls. No holding, pi or late hits. Hit the QB purposely low on a dead ball, no problem. When you see a defense that get great pressure and sacks you usually get more holding calls but that is not the case for Bama. 2 bad calls, yes. Conspiracy, no.
Illegal procedure penalties are missed all the time. Kicking the bell out of bounds is not. You are trying to argue a technicality.