I made the comment to someone today that I don’t think that I have ever seen a more pathetic job of officiating than I did this past weekend when Arkansas got cheated, on several occasions, by the officiating crew. I am not for sure if these guys were extremely bias towards Florida, or maybe have some sort of man-crush on Tim Tebow, but combined with our missed field goals, it was enough for me to almost go nuts!
I am not for sure if I can remember any other instances where officials were actually suspended by the SEC, wonder why they didn’t just go ahead and fire them? Do they think that with some encouragement that these officials might not be stupid or bias next week? Give me a break! At least they did do something about it, had they not taken some sort of action I would have been dissapointed.
Here’s an article from Today’sTHV about the story:
The SEC announced Wednesday afternoon the SEC crew that worked the Arkansas/Florida game has been suspended.
The officiating crew from Saturday’s Arkansas at Florida football game will be removed from its next scheduled assignment on Oct. 31 and will not be assigned to officiate as a crew until Nov. 14, Southeastern Conference Commissioner Mike Slive announced Wednesday.
"A series of calls that have occurred during the last several weeks have not been to the standard that we expect from our officiating crews," said Slive. "I believe our officiating program is the best in the country, however, there are times when these actions must be taken."
Following each weekend, the conference office reviews games from the previous week, using video replays as well as interviews with officials, coaches and administrators. "While only a few calls have been identified, the entire crew shoulders responsibility for each play. I have taken this action because there must be accountability in our officiating program," added Slive. "Our institutions expect the highest level of officiating in all of our sports and it is the duty of the conference office to uphold that expectation."
In addition, there will be an impact on eligibility for post-season bowl assignments for the crew. Arkansas head football coach Bobby Petrino issued a statement following the Southeastern Conference’s announcement.
Coach Petrino said, "We took the appropriate steps to address any issues we had with the league regarding this matter earlier in the week. Our focus as a football team has been and remains on this weekend’s game against Ole Miss."
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