Weis on “Punt-Gate”, Allen Didn’t Touch the Ball
Ok, this is my last post last Saturday’s most controversial play. As well all know by now, Stanford fans and beat writters and head coach Jim Harbaugh are convinced that not only did they receive an unfair penalty on the interference call at the end of the first half, but also that they should have been awarded possession of the ball because Armando Allen touched the ball. The only problem with their contentions is that their player touched the ball, not Allen, and the penalty was warranted.
When asked about the play on Tuesday, Charlie Weis echoed what I have been posting since Saturday night when I first heard Harbaugh complaining about the “bad call.”
Q. And did the Pac-10 comment on the muffed punt or did they address that?
COACH CHARLIE WEIS: From what I understand, all they said was they got it right. From going back and watching it, there are two issues. And, look it, I’m not going to get into a he said/she said on this game because that game is gone. But, number one, the guy clearly interfered with Armando having an opportunity to catch the ball. And, number two, the ball didn’t hit Armando, the ball hit the other guy. That’s clearly interference if the ball hits the other guy.
So all I can tell you is from what I read and they read that the call was right.Q. And you can’t return a muffed punt; is that correct?
COACH CHARLIE WEIS: No.AdvertisementQ. So it would have been down there regardless of whose ball it was?
COACH CHARLIE WEIS: Right. But it was our ball and they had the call right.
Stanford fans are still convinced they got robbed on this call though even after the Pac 10 reprimanded Jim Harbaugh for criticizing the officials and said in the same statement that the call on the field was accurate. I’m actually a little surprised at just how sure Stanford fans are that they got screwed on this call.
Anyway, I enjoyed seeing Weis say exactly what I have been saying on this subject for the last few days and figured one more post on the matter couldn’t hurt. I promise no more posts on this now (well… maybe I will post some still shots of the play showing the ball hit off of Stanford’s player if the Stanford sites and papers keep saying they got robbed on the call).
Frank Vitovitch has been Co-Owner and Editor in Chief of UHND.com since joining forces with Kyle Flavin in 1999. Since that time, he has written over 2,000 articles covering Notre Dame football, recruiting, and basketball. He also works with all staff and external writers on all articles published on UHND.com. Frank's love for Notre Dame football started at a young age watching Rocket Ismail give opposing coaches ulcers in the late 1980's. By day Frank works in marketing and holds a degree in Digital Media from Drexel University. Frank's work has been cited by online/print editions of NBC Sports, ESPN, and Sports Illustrated and has been quoted on air by ESPN's Collin Cowherd. He's conducted interviews with Notre Dame legends Rocket Ismail, Randy Kinder, Lee Becton, Reggie Brooks, Michael Stonebreaker, and Ned Bolcar among others over his 20+ years of covering Notre Dame football. He's also been published in the print edition of USA Today Sports Weekly and the USA Today College Football Preview multiple times. Other Published Works/Citations for Frank Three Reasons Notre Dame Will Beat Alabama - USA Today Notre Dame Suspends WR Kevin Stepherson, RB C.J. Holmes Indefinitely - Bleacher Report Notre Dame / Ohio State Fiesta Bowl Preview - Eleven Warriors Brace Yourself: The Fighting Irish are Relevant Again - Sports on Earth Interviews with the Enemy: A Q&A with Frank Vitovitch of UHND - Yahoo! Sports Five Good Minutes: Notre Dame Football Preview With UHND.com - BC Interruption Vicious Electronic Questioning with UHND - MGO Blog
Have Stanford fans forgotten how David Grimes was screwed out of a touchdown last year?
In Harbaugh’s case, ignorance is dangerous, but stupid is forever.
As for the Standford fans, they are just mirroring their coach’s firebrand approach.
If they can’t accept the offical final ruling then go
play hopscotch instead of football.