Criticizing the broadcasters: Gary Danielson and the Louisville timeout
CBS analyst Gary Danielson was wrong at the most critical point of Saturday’s game between Auburn and Louisville, and we’re here to both scold the color commentator and set the record straight.
As we all watched the clock melt away on Auburn’s 31-24 win against the Cardinals on Saturday, many of us were baffled by head coach Bobby Petrino’s management of Louisville’s final timeout during an attempt to regain possession of the ball for a potential game-tying effort.
Danielson was quick to be critical of Petrino’s decision to use a timeout following a holding call on Auburn’s offense with 52 seconds remaining in the game.
Let’s review the tape:
Danielson believed that the clock would remain stopped due to the offensive penalty.
As it turns out, Danielson was wrong. And he probably owes Petrino a public apology for wrongfully roasting his decision on national TV.
In the aftermath of this bizarre ending to a telecast, the Louisville media did a very nice job of getting answers to all of our questions.
First, there is The Courier-Journal’s Steve Jones transcription of the post-game discussion with Petrino.
Here is what he found out about Petrino’s decision to use his final time out when he did:
Q. You got within seven that final possession as the clock ran down. What was going through your mind?
BOBBY PETRINO: Well, we were working to try to stop them on 3rd down and call timeout and force them to have to punt the ball, and then when they got the 1st down but had a holding penalty, we had no choice but to call the time out, and they ran the clock out. It’s unfortunate.
Q. Would the clock have started after —
BOBBY PETRINO: They would have started it right away.
Q. After the holding penalty?
BOBBY PETRINO: Yeah, and I asked the official that on the sideline. I said, ‘Now because he’s tackled and it was a run play, the clock starts immediately?’ And he said, yeah.
And if that’s not enough, WDRB’s Eric Crawford took it a step further by contacting the SEC’s coordinator of officials for some clarification.
Just spoke with Steve Shaw, SEC coordinator of officials, he confirmed that clock restarts on officials signal after the holding penalty.
— Eric Crawford (@ericcrawford) September 6, 2015
Not only did Shaw say it was the right ruling on the field, but he also added some commentary in Crawford’s piece:
It’s a tough decision for coaches. But the call was right. The clock does restart on the official’s signal after a holding call. But it resets at 25 seconds. Coaches have to decide whether to take the timeout there, or try to get a stop then take the timeout (when the play clock goes to 40 seconds assuming a run on that play).”
Now, to be fair to Danielson, it still appears as though Petrino may have made the wrong decision. Had he let the 25 second play clock run instead, he likely gets Auburn to punt the ball with just under 20 seconds remaining.
By using the timeout in advance of the clock restarting, he missed out on that opportunity, as Auburn was able to run the clock out after a third down run and a fourth down heave downfield to run off the final few seconds.
What? Commentators coaching from the booth? Say it isn’t so!
They need to stick to calling the game and leave the coaching to the sidelines.
I’d rather be wrong than be Bobby Petrino.
That’s complete BS and you know it. I was living in Lexington when rumors were going on that Petrino was going to replace Joker. All the UK hypocrites swore they’d disavow UK football if he was hired because he’s not a stand up guy and blah blah blah. I told them every chance I got that if he did come to UK you’d blabber all that BS, then, after one win in Gainesville, you’d contribute to Petrino’s life-size statue outside Commonwealth. Same is true now, after Stoops gets fired after a few more 5-win (at best) seasons.
Ha one win in Gainsville!!!! dream on lol u had your shot while Muschamp was there those days are over..
P.S stick to basketball
Hey genius, that’s a Carolina fan. Literally all you had to do was read three words and you’d have seen that.
But to make you feel better, UK beats Florida next weekend.
Are you crazy? How were we hypocrites? Every-single-one of us are still glad UK hired Stoops and not Petrino. Even if they hadn’t hired Stoops, still would’ve wanted any other coach other than Petrino. The dude has no integrity.
Hell, he’s dominated him in recruiting these past couple years, especially for in-state talent. The streak will swing back UK’s way starting this season. Watch and see.
Not even close. Not. Even. Close.
Not only is your comment incorrect, but it attacks a central point in my comment that literally doesn’t exist.
What I said is that I wouldn’t want to _BE_ Bobby Petrino.
Read it again. It’s only eight words long. You’ll figure it out.
Publicly apologize? You even end the article by saying Petrino probably made the wrong call…I’m about as anti-Gary and Verne as can be but a public apology for criticizing a bad decision?
Yeah who really cares what Ace and Gary think, esp after the whole Mccarrons girlfriend thing in 2013. Embarrassing.
Just add it to the hundreds of reasons these 2 should be fired. They are complete air heads. Don’t do their homework and make terrible game calls. Wake up CBS
An accelerated version of Bevis and Butthead!
Well, he never shuts up, that’s his problem.
The last two paragraphs indicate that Petrino made the wrong decision. Louisville could have had a small chance of blocking the punt, or a nice return, or a hook-n-lateral-the-band-is-out-on-the-field-! type of play, but due to Petrino’s timeout, they ended up with zero chance.
Danielson was right.
Plus: Verne called him “Bobby Trevino”… lol.
Gary’s call was right, but the explaination was wrong, but heck that’s the norm with these two. Heck they change the team rosters every game they call Lol.
In most things, those that cannot do…teach. In sports, those who cannot do…commentate.
Relax. Is this the first time anyone has been critical of Petrino?
“My God”
I got a lot of reasons for hating the CBS crew, but this don’t even smell the long list.
Gary Danielson is so bias toward Alabama it’s sickening. Both him and poor Verne Lundquist have no place on national tv.
Don’t forget UGA
So this bs is what it takes to realize that Danielson doesn’t conduct himself like most legit color guy / analyst?
His most annoying and unprofessional actions only come out every other week… as he covers alabama games. I guess his producers STILL haven’t gotten the memo that nationally televised games on CBS are to be handled differently than at (perhaps their previous employer…) “KWLQZ Bumbleham Radio.” And despite how it appears, I don’t think CBS/Danielson is [at least supposed to be] “The Voice of the Tide.”
For God’s sake, it’s like listening to Finebaum pretend to be objective, except Finebaum is at least calculated enough to arbitrarily rip Saban/bama at regularly scheduled intervals so that his “leading opinion maker in college football” self promoting intro doesn’t get replaced with “leading homemaker on the bama bandwagon.”
Just keep your ears open next time you hear him cover bama (Danielson…that is)- please prove me wrong, I’d prefer that be the case, anyway.