Sitting in the newsroom watching the game, our little quorum of journalists could not believe when the referees went up to the replay booth and returned a touchdown call on the catch by Michigan's Brandon Minor.
If we understand correctly, it was ruled a touchdown because Minor's foot hit the pylon in the air. Our tiny brains thought that the receiver needed to establish contact with the ground in order for it to be a catch.
Judging by Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio's reaction, he concurs.
Can anyone tell us the ruling on this? Do you agree or disagree with the call?
UPDATE: Looks like ABC has a team working on this. Here's what they came up with:
The plot thickens.
If we understand correctly, it was ruled a touchdown because Minor's foot hit the pylon in the air. Our tiny brains thought that the receiver needed to establish contact with the ground in order for it to be a catch.Judging by Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio's reaction, he concurs.
Can anyone tell us the ruling on this? Do you agree or disagree with the call?
UPDATE: Looks like ABC has a team working on this. Here's what they came up with:
The plot thickens.
I was curious too and was sure the officials were wrong. So, I did what any lawyer football fan would do--I looked at the NCAA rules. You can get them here: http://www.ncaapublications.com/Uploads/PDF/Football_Rulesadc982b5-03fb-4e27-828c-c2d26b95e6c1.pdf
And I would direct your attention to pages FR-80 and FR-81. Rule 4, Section 2 (Out of Bounds), Article 1.b states in full "A player or an airborne player who touches a pylon is out of bounds."
So, I think it is pretty clear that the replay official in charge screwed it up. Granted, I didn't read the entire rule book, but this rule would seem to cover the situation. Bummer for Michigan State fans.