Yes, bad calls don’t guarantee the game would have been won by the Huskies.

But NO, none of that is a valid defense for the refs’/replay officials’ bad calling.

Polk’s TD was too close to be overturned. The original ruling should have been upheld, and it happened to have been a touchdown. If the original ruling was not a touchdown, then I’d agree that the hypothetical “not TD” ruling in this case should have upheld. Things being as they are, the original ruling was a TD and there was no indisputable evidence to overturn that.

I can see why people say the 2 pt conversion has no indisputable evidence based on the photo here, but look at this: http://www.bustersports.com/blog/pac-10-news/2009/10/05/pac-10-week-5-report-card/

Like I said, lots of blown calls.

This photo is conclusive evidence that the 2 pt. conversion was no good.

don’t whine about it.

Another matter to consider, though: After ND took the lead, on a 3rd and 10, Locker completed a long pass to get near FG range. Watch the replay. The UW WR loses the ball as he comes down and it hits the ground. UW hurried to the LOS, and the next snap came before anyone had any notion it was an incompletion.

As a ND fan, I cringed when other ND fans cried about refs after the UM game. We had our chances. We didn’t make the plays. Were there bad calls? You bet. It was atrocious. But ND had its chances anyway.

Same deal with UW. Hughes was down. I agree. But the Huskies should be looking at themselves after the game. You can’t get 1 yard in 8 tries? You can’t bring down a RB when he’s wrapped up at the 4 by 5 guys? Blaming the refs is easy. It’s why fans do it.

You’re such a tough guy on the internet. “$#!^ like me eh?” Get a grip, and realize it’s a forum for opinions. If you don’t like it, don’t read it. But if you want to call names, then hide on a forum, that speaks to your lack of testicular fortitude. Anytime you want to man up, I will be happy to slap the taste right out of your mouth. My seats are in DJC, and I park in E11. Just start asking for Big D, and you’ll get pointed in the right direction. I’ll be sure you get taken care of really nice. CLOWN.

ND played great, UW played great, looking forward to seeing how we respond against Arizona.

GO DAWGS!

The key for the Washington program is being competitive on a national stage, as they have been in 3 huge games this year. The LSU game was on ESPN and everyone saw what Sark was going to do to this program. The USC game was shown to about 52% of the country and they all saw the camera shaking every time USC touched the ball. This game was on national TV again and showed that Washington is back as a relevant program.

Every one of these games is huge for recruiting purposes. This program needs more athletes who are bigger, faster, and stronger than what we already have. Washington wins that game (and probably the LSU game as well) if they’re faster on the perimeter. They were killed on short passes wide that turned into BIG plays. This is a function of guys on the outside who aren’t ready or physically gifted enough to play on the next level.

If you look at the elite programs, they all have perimeter players who will play on the next level. Right now, I don’t look at any of our guys out there and say “He’s a lock to play on Sundays.” That’s where these games are going to benefit us. Sark and Holt can walk into a living room this off season and say “Look at what we did in big games. You’re going to get exposure. You’re going to play big programs. We’re a big time program and you’re going to play on Sundays if you go to UW.” That hasn’t happened in a long time. Our last big perimeter recuit might have been Reggie Williams. We missed out on Taylor Mays because we’d fallen so far.

I died a little during the ND game, only because we really should have won that game, and that has nothing to do with the officiating. However, I really like the direction we’re headed and these nationally broadcast games will play a big part in that process.

First, this picture does not meet the standard of indisputable evidence necessary to overturn the ruling on the field. While you can see a knee down (both in this photo and on the moving replay) it is not clear whose knee it is or where the ball is when the knee goes down. Remember, it was called a good two-pointer on the field.

Second, Fig Jam incorrectly says that coaches cannot challenge plays. In fact, coaches in NCAA may challenge a play once per game if they have a timeout. Sarkisian had not yet used his challenge, as Charlie Weis noted in his post-game conference. Thus, the Huskies have no one to blame but their coaches for the lack of review about whether Hughes was down. For the NCAA rule on challenges, see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Instant_replay_in_American_football#NCAA_football

Third, some mentioned that Pac-10 officiating is poor. Yes, there have been historic problems, but those have been in favor of the Pac-10 team (ask Oklahoma about that). Pac-10 officials on the field called the two-point try good.

Fourth, I have read some comments about whether Hughes was pushed into the end zone. The rule on pushing has been changed since the famous “Bush Push” of 2005. Players are not penalized now for pushing the pile, so long as they do not lift, pull, or grab their teammate. The Pac-10 officials actually threw a flag on the conversion play, but then picked it up, probably because the head official corrected the lower official who was calling the old penalty.

Fifth, a much better argument for the Huskies is the reversal of the Polk touchdown. From the review, it is difficult to tell whether the RB is in. He looks like he might be a little short. But it was called a touchdown on the field, and you need indisputable evidence to overturn. Not sure I saw something indisputable on the replay.

Sixth and finally, this win is no more tarnished than several this season. College football referees are not as good as the pros, and unfortunately close games often come down to a few plays. To the extent that ND receives less than full credit for the UWash victory, they must receive less than full blame for the Michigan loss, in which a touchdown by Armando Allen was reversed on replay that showed no indisputable evidence.

I think the Huskies are an up-and-coming program, and I welcome them to the membership of the PTWSD club, aka the Post Tyrone Willingham Stress Disorder club.

Go Irish!

You know the one, the one where the player’s knee is behind the foot of the opposing player and blocks the view.

Let me guess, you got your credit card out and couldn’t slide it under the photo?

I hope you’re not an attorney.