The incident has been replayed or mentioned on ESPN nearly every 10 minutes today. Following the No. 16 Oregon Ducks lethargic 19-8 loss to Boise State Thursday, Blount socked Bronco defensive end Byron Hout in the jaw.
In every case it takes two to tango. Hout yelled in Blount's face and slapped his shoulder pad. You can't tell what Hout said but Boise State coach Chris Petersen obviously took offense to it and quickly tried to step in. Unfortunately, LeGarrette's fist got there first.
I've read and listened to a lot of analysts talk about the fracas, and the reoccurring word of the day describing the incident is "reprehensible." Blount was wrong, but his actions were not unforgivable.
You don't punch a guy -- who probably deserved it -- and it was despicable for him to try and go after Boise fans. But that situation with the fans should never have happened.
Bronco fans were given a second chance to view the confrontation when it was replayed on the stadium's JumboTron. This gave fans the chance to break out into a frenzy and to taunt Blount for reason aside from his big mouth. There's no telling what would have happened if the incident was not replayed, but I think there is a good chance many in the crowd would have missed it.
To me replaying the punch was more reprehensible than the punch itself. The repetition ensured that every Boise State fan saw what happened and incited some to heckle Blount.
In Major League Baseball, controversial plays are rarely replayed on the big screens in stadiums so fans don't become belligerent. The NCAA needs to review its big screen replay rules and look into why the punch seen around the world was replayed inside Boise's stadium.
4 comments:
It shouldn't surprise you that the high class operation there in Boise would do that, should it? I didn't know that the incident was replayed on the jumbotron. That's clearly uncalled for. However, it's more or less irrelevant to the offense that Blount was punished for.
It's a good thing Chris Peterson is a classy guy. Without him it would be hard to gloss over the almost Oakland Raiders like shenanigans that BSU gets involved in. Still, Blount is stupid for throwing a punch. Provoked or not, a cheap shot punch crosses a line that just can't be crossed. Had they gotten into a non-punching scuffle or something I don't think Bount gets suspended at all, much less for the entire year.
Nick, I agree with you on both fronts. The punch was the most egregious action here. However, the fact that BSU replayed it inside the stadium was ridiculous in its own right. Are we surprised that they did it? No way. It is Boise State, after all.
Blount's career is finished, deservedly so. Who does he think he is, Ray Lewis? The man needed to take his anger out on the field, rather than on an opposing player AFTER the game.
One other interesting thing about this game: The win was the first ever for BSU at home over a top-25 opponent during the regular season. In fact it was the first time BSU has played a top-25 team at home during the regular season! This sets up Boise for a tough home game next year. I hope USC, Texas or a school like Wisconsin or LSU steps up and schedules BSU at home and shows them what's up.
Boise has emerged as the Gonzaga of College football. After the "Cinderalla" gimmick win over Oklahoma a few years ago, they have started to gain national attention. And finally, they played a top-25 team during the regular season at home. What comes next year? Two games against top-25 tier schools perhaps? If they want to legitimately be a top-10 school, they are going to have to beat the best during the regular season. It's yet to be seen if they can.
Boise State 4 Year Community College is so terrible there really aren't words to describe how sick this incident is. I wish I could be surprised that they would replay the fight for all the fans, but I'm not.
I must admit I very surprised at the class Boise State coach Chris Petersen showed. He said all the right things after this incident, BUT he didn't do all the right things. Like Pac-10 commissioner Larry Scott, I think Bryon Hout should have seen some type of sanctions.
Actions speak louder than words and there were no actions for Boise. That's what you get from a school that suffers from "little man syndrome". Coach Pete will have to defend his discipline decision all season, and will be a distraction as they chase BYU (who stole their inside track for a BCS bowl).
Post a Comment