So I know this is already being discussed in a different threat, but I want to keep it going and raise another question.
Instant replay and referee error is a part of sports. At every level since the beginning of sporting time, Referees have had as much to do with the outcome of games as players. And Sports have not collapsed, they have thrived. While Referees have little to do with that, the advent of new technology should be incorporated slowly and with caution because the extreme is something nobody wants.
The Extreme is having 32 nerdy guys play Madden and have the outcomes of those games determine what team wins the Superbowl, at least we know the human element is completely out of it.
The fun of sports is not just the competition but the conversation. That is why there are so many sports shows and radio programs, how else would Chris Berman have a job. How else would we have a blog.
And if you think this is a rediculous point, just watch ESPN Late tuesday nights and tell me it isn't a slippery slope, I have my money on 'House Shoe'
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3 comments:
But how many fans can honestly say that they watch a game to see the contribution the referees make? I know I certainly don't.
In your world, Flip, little kids would be trading cards with pictures and stats of Joey Crawford, or wearing an Ed Hochuli replica jersey. Does this happen?...decidedly no.
Maybe I'm not a big enough sports fan, but I don't watch a game thinking "I wonder who is reffing today and how will that effect the outcome?" I know that I don't choose what game to watch based on that. Most of the time I have no idea who it is, nor do I care. If all rule-enforcement was done by robots, I don't think I'd even notice. Furthermore, I think that is how they are trained.
It does surprise me, though, that you, Flip (a coach and former player) have this opinion. I would have thought you'd feel the other way.
That's why I love you. You're a riddle wrapped in an enigma.
I hate officials with a passion unbridled. And I agree that I would rather have perfectly fair and correct officiating all the time, But I do not want a robot, and that is because there are 3 types of officials:
1. Bad officials who have know idea whats going on and no control over the situation (but that stops after high school and lower levels of college)
2. Officials who know the rules but not the game, and call everything by the book with no interpretation or judgement.
3. Officials who have played before and understand the flow of a game and call games with not just the rules, but judgement as well.
Everyone who has ever played and coached wants the 3rd type of official, and hates the other two. There is nothing you can do about a bad ref, but the robotic ones who call the rules exactly and perfectly are the most frustrating, and that is exactly what you would get with a Robot, and that is why I have this problem with the electronification of officiating.
How is a Computer supposed to know about judgement situations. How can they know the difference between throwing at someone and missing a pitch, how can they judge a play on situation in Soccer.
Ian you of all the people in this blog know the effect when robotic referees take over a Basketball game and do not let the players play, Art Long would have never made it and UC hoops would have been dead in the early 90's.
Besides, I don't know about you guys, but my Ed Hochuli 'Fat Head' is coming in the mail next tuesday.
1) I would DEFINITELY wear an Ed Hochuli replica jersey, with pride.
2) Against my better judgement, I have to say I'm gonna root for PG-13, with Panorama to place.
3) I agree with the Little Giant on this one. I'm still a little uneasy about having those digital lines and crap all over the field. I just don't think there's any reason to drag computer analyzation into things any more than we have to. I don't like the way the BCS uses computers, and I think that instant replay is often a momentum killer for teams in big games.
You've got 300 pound guys tightening up on the sidelines because a 59 year old man is squinting into a portable idiot box on the sidelines for the better part of 5 minutes? How much sense does that make?
The reason we have refs is the same reason we have congressmen and senators. They are the designated body there to make decisions so we can get on with the stuff that we interact with directly. We have agreed to live with their decisions, even if we piss and moan about them all the time.
By that token, maybe at the end of each season, the coaches get to vote out the worst refs? I think that would be as fun if not more entertaining than the BCS selection show.
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