Replay official gets death threats, considers resigning

By: William McCall • The Associated Press
Posted: Sep 18, 2006

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Instant replay official gets death threats, considers resigning

PORTLAND, Ore. — The instant replay official whose failure to overturn a bad call led to a narrow Oregon victory over Oklahoma said Monday he feels like he is under siege after threatening phone calls, including a death threat.

Gordon Riese said he would make a decision soon about whether to finish the season, or even whether to return next year.

“I’m struggling with it,” Riese said in an interview at his home. “I feel so bad I missed that call, it’s driving me crazy.”

A former college baseball pitcher in the 1960s who was inducted into the Portland State Hall of Fame in 1997, Riese said he never played football but always enjoyed the game during 28 years as a Pacific-10 Conference official.

“I loved it, I absolutely loved it,” Riese said.

But that was before he became an instant replay official.

“I’ve felt much, much more pressure as an instant replay official than I ever did on the field,” Riese said.

He said the equipment is not as sophisticated as NFL replay equipment, and does not allow the official to freeze the frame. But Riese lays the blame on himself after replays showed that an onside kick was touched by an Oregon player before it had traveled the required 10 yards. The Ducks went on to score the go-ahead touchdown.

“I can’t sleep, I can’t eat, my blood pressure is skyrocketing,” Riese said, looking haggard and worn as he sat on the front porch of his house.

His wife is a registered nurse, and has been checking his blood pressure every four hours, he said.

Riese said he has stopped answering the phone, and police are investigating the threatening calls while keeping an eye on his neighborhood.

“They not only threatened me, they threatened my wife and kids,” Riese said.

Riese has endured plenty of physical pain in his career. He said a torn rotator cuff ended his pitching days, all the ligaments in his right knee were torn when he was hit by an Oregon defensive back at Autzen Stadium in a 1984 game against Washington State, and he suffered a separated collarbone when he was run over by opposing linemen trying to block each other in the 2005 Fiesta Bowl.

The knee and the collarbone still bother him, occasionally, he said.

But not as much as his ruling from the booth last Saturday, Riese said.

“I don’t know how to deal with it,” he said. “I guess it’s just one of those things.”

My comments: Someone went way to far! I feel sorry for the man and his family and my thoughts are with them. Debating, criticising, griping and being upset is one thing, but threatening the man and his family? That is very disturbing and unnecessary . Come on people keep it together!  

Matt Zemek breaks it down.

http://cfn.scout.com/2/557921.html

What more can be said?

Footbal Farce!

I’m not sure how to describe what I saw Saturday. A travesty? A farce? A sick joke?
The three calls made late in the OU-Oregon game by Pac-10 officials were both wrong and inexcusable. There’s no other way to say it, and some severe explaining needs to be done.The Oklahoma – Texas Tech instant replay controversy last year was like a misdemeanor compared to this felony of a bungling by the officials. The plays were no-brainers. After watching a tape of the game over and over again, the truth still remains the same. OU was screwed.

On the onside kick, the Oregon player clearly touched the ball first before it went 10 yards. The illegal contact was then proven on what seemed like eight different camera angles.

But in a surreal moment right out of George Orwell’s 1984 — or any other futuristic novel where the people in charge dictate the “truth” to the masses — the referee came out and said, and I’m quoting here, “There is conclusive video evidence that the ball was touched by a receiving team (OU) player.”

Conclusive? Did the official in the booth somehow flip his channel to the LSU-Auburn game? Because he sure as heck wasn’t watching what I was watching.

Here was the referee, telling millions of people watching on television that they didn’t see what they just saw.

And lost in all of the confusion was that OU’s Allen Patrick actually recovered the football. Once again, the tape clearly shows the ball squirt out of the bottom of the pile — well away from any Oregon player — and Patrick simply picks it up and shows it to the officials, who proceed to ignore him.

Seconds later, seemingly to rub it in, a pass clearly deflected by an OU lineman was not acknowledged because the video was “inconclusive.”

The whole sequence was mind-boggling.

So what should be done?

First, there needs to be an investigation, because the game was handed to Oregon on a silver platter. Whether this was intentional or not, I don’t know. Basically, there needs to be open explanation to OU as to how this situation was permitted to occur under a system that was brought in to keep situations like this from occurring.

Second, instant replay has officially been proven a sham and needs to be discarded or drastically changed. If referees won’t overturn calls that are obviously incorrect, then why have the system at all? In reality, the plays weren’t even that close, yet somehow they befuddled the officials.

Third, college football’s timing changes have also taken a hit. With 45 seconds left – under the old rules – the Sooners would have had plenty of time to get into better field goal range. Under the new rules, where the clock starts at the kick and as soon as the ball is spotted, the Sooners managed one measly run and nearly let the clock run out before spiking the football.

And finally, the national media’s anti-OU bias was clearly displayed by an unwillingness to defend the Sooners.

“Well, if the Sooners would have played better defense, or made the field goal, they still could have won,” one national talking head said.

Bull.

They shouldn’t have had to keep playing defense, and Hartley shouldn’t have had to hit a field goal.

And trust me, I’m not one to make excuses. I hate excuses. Can’t stand ‘em. I usually I just tell people to get over it and move on.

But in this case, I have to make an exception. The Sooners, who many predicted would lose to Oregon (including myself), came out and played extremely well for a young team on the road in a stadium as formidable as Autzen. Yes, they made plenty of mistakes. Too many to count, really. But they played well enough to win, and that’s all that matters. It’s a shame that a hard-earned victory from a young team had to be so obviously taken away.

So, in the words of Ricky Ricardo, “Somebody’s got some ‘splaining to do.”

Zach West is the sports editor and a journalism senior. His column appears every Monday.Photo: The football seems to be recovered by an OU player after an onside kick from Oregon during Saturday’s game. Photo provided

Sound Off!!!!!

“The instant replay was brought up to eliminate issues like this. And here, there are a number of issues that are clearly — looking at video — wrong,” Stoops said Sunday.

Let your comments be heard Football Nation!!!

Matthew Zemek “Oklahoma: don’t riot or do anything destructive tonight … “

“Memo to the people of the fine state of Oklahoma: don’t riot or do anything destructive tonight … even though you’d be justified to feel like doing something violent. After all, this game was violently taken away from a deserving bunch of Sooners by inept officiating and even more inept replay evaluators.”

 Trust me Matthew, my neighbors probably thought we were having an earthquacke after hearing me stomping around and roaring like a rogue elephant……

Pac-10 commissioner reviewing the plays!

“Pac-10 commissioner Tom Hansen said Saturday night that both the onside kick and pass interference call will be reviewed by the league.”

Well that is reassuring! If it’s anything like the review the Pac – 10 officiating crew saw, we can count on them swearing that it was Elvis who touched the ball first!

Cold Pizza on ESPN

“The Sooners got robbed! The officials won that game for Oregon!”

 The whole world knows the Sooners got robbed. It is fowl play to steal a win! A win is fought on that football field with blood and guts. Then to have a win plucked from a deserving team when instant replay is available and obvious is outrageously wrong. Not just for the Sooners, but for all college teams and their loyal fans.

More evidence

http://www.newsok.com/video/39145

Petition the Oregon and Oklahoma game!

http://www.petitiononline.com/OU3327/petition.html

Proof Oregon touched the ball first and OU recovered!

http://www.zshare.net/video/robbed3-wmv.html