By a vote of 8-3, the appeal by Douglass High School to have its controversial Class 3A quarterfinal game against Locust Grove replayed was denied by the Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association board of directors at a special board meeting on Wednesday. The controversy has raged since last Friday night, when a misapplied rule by officials cost Douglass a go-ahead touchdown with just over one minute remaining against Locust Grove. Locust Grove won the game 20-19. Douglass was facing 4th-and-11 at its 42-yard line when quarterback Patrick McKaufman completed a pass to Quasean Sims along the Douglass sideline. Sims cut back into the middle of the field, wove through defenders and into the end zone for a 58-yard touchdown that would have given Douglass a 25-20 lead with 1:04 left to play. However, the line judge working the Douglass sideline had thrown his flag at the Locust Grove 36-yard line for a sideline infraction. The Trojans had been flagged for a sideline warning early in the game, so the second such call resulted in a 5-yard penalty. According to Rule 9-8-3 of the NFHS football rulebook, the penalty should have been assessed as a dead-ball foul and the 5-yard mark-off enforced either on the point-after try or the ensuing kickoff, as chosen by Locust Grove. Instead, the touchdown was wiped out, and the penalty was marked off from the previous line of scrimmage

 

. OSSAA board denies Douglass appeal to replay controversial game vs. Locust Grove | News OK

Do you agree with the ruling? Should an obvious enforcement mistake like this that cost a team a game ever be overturned by a governing body?

Do you agree with the ruling? Should an obvious enforcement mistake like this that cost a team a game ever be overturned by a governing body?

 

I don't think the ruling is fair. Now some will say they shouldn't have received the sideline warning but it is a bunch of kids full of emotion on a big play and it happens. It is the job of the officials to know the rules of the game and enforce them!!! If they don't do there job correctly and it legitimately costs a team a game, then I do think the only fair thing to do is replay the game. The board probably doesn't want to fork over the money to pay for a rematch!

Get this off before Murray High sees it!!!!!

What are the chances 2 games at this time if the year had such an obscure call?

Do you agree with the ruling? Should an obvious enforcement mistake like this that cost a team a game ever be overturned by a governing body?

 

The ruling in this case is about precedent. It is a shame that this happened, but the OSSAA would have opened a can of worms if they had it replayed. What if this happened in the 1st quarter? I would like to know if the coach knew the rule and challenged this immediately. If he did not, it is as much his fault as it is the officials.

Officials at all levels mis-intrepret rules all the time and games aren't replayed. Heck in the old CUSA days for Louisville it was almost a weekly occurrence that there would be a press release saying that a rule in such and such game had been improperly enforced or not enforced BUT after the fact there is nothing that can be done. As much as I feel for the kids I think the appeals board did the right thing.

Didn't Dixie lose a long TD run against CCH due to a sideline infraction against a news cameraman a few years ago?

I don't think the ruling is fair. Now some will say they shouldn't have received the sideline warning but it is a bunch of kids full of emotion on a big play and it happens. It is the job of the officials to know the rules of the game and enforce them!!! If they don't do there job correctly and it legitimately costs a team a game, then I do think the only fair thing to do is replay the game. The board probably doesn't want to fork over the money to pay for a rematch!

 

In looking at the play, it appears that the kids were ok - not running on the field. It looks like the coach was right on sideline and when the side judge ran by him they barely bumped each other. It did not even slow down the side judge - they barely nudged each other. It looks like incredibly poor judgment of an official to throw the flag on (1) a play of that magnitude and (2) for such a minor infraction - the coach was not 3 yards on the field or more - barely on it. In listening to the story, it appears the coach has a history of issues and I wonder if his history played a role in the whole thing. He even volunteered to not coach at the school any longer if they would let the game be replayed from that point on. This was not about the kids being out of control - this is on the coach...and the refs. What a shock -

the adults screwing up things for the kids...

You need situational awareness as an official. In this case short of a coach giving me a forearm shiver I am not calling the sideline infraction

You need situational awareness as an official. In this case short of a coach giving me a forearm shiver I am not calling the sideline infraction

 

#1 rule for officials, no one paid to see you.

#1 rule for officials' date=' no one paid to see you.[/quote']

 

Wait..what?

You need situational awareness as an official. In this case short of a coach giving me a forearm shiver I am not calling the sideline infraction

 

I've looked at the tape about 7 times now. This is ALL on the official IMO. He throws the flag at the 36 yard line, right after going by a coach (not sure if he is the head coach) at about the 40. The coach was NOT on the field, just outside it. There is another coach or member of the staff (wearing all black that IS on the field but he is behind the ref and there is no way the ref can see him and he is not interfering with anything. There has to be something to do with the history of this coach.

 

Total injustice for two reasons...(1) that it was called at all and (2) that it was misapplied. The refs should be suspended or fired for this. This one is really bad...

Wait..what?

 

Completely agree with your statement about situational awareness. Nothing worse than the official that wants to make the big call or all the calls. Screams "Look at me!". They are out there and it's frustrating. Just call the game to the best of your ability but have some sort of clue.

Didn't Dixie lose a long TD run against CCH due to a sideline infraction against a news cameraman a few years ago?

 

True. I still don't understand that one, how a guy not affiliated with the school got a penalty for the school. :whistling: