The Oregon Ducks scored their biggest win of the regular season last Saturday, but they didn’t emerge without “controversy.”
Oregon won 32-31 over the Ohio State Buckeyes. On Ohio State’s final possession, the Ducks exploited a loophole and earned a 12-man penalty. It didn’t alter them too much, but it put the Buckeyes in a disadvantageous spot. Will Howard and Ohio State couldn’t escape it, as prior errors loomed large in the final moments.
The NCAA quickly closed that loophole this week. Everyone seemed to have an opinion on the matter, and on Friday, that finally included Nick Saban.
Saban joined The Pat McAfee Show and discussed the controversy that swept through college football this week.
“I think that this happened at some point–you guys know more about this than I do–a few years ago in the NFL where they had a similar situation where — and they just changed the rule to 12 guys on the field was a dead ball foul. So, no time went off the clock,” Saban explained via On3.
“Which, I feel like that’s the way it should be. I don’t think that you run a play with 12 guys on the field, which minimizes your chances on offense of having success even though you still could have success and then you lose time in a game and the time is more important than the plays. So, can’t fault the coach for trying to take advantage of the rules,” he said.
Saban explained later that he never tried to purposely create an advantage because he relied so much on execution. Still, it doesn’t sound like Saban has much of an issue with what Lanning and Oregon did. Nevertheless, wins are wins, and Oregon is better off after the victory. The Ducks take the field again Friday against Purdue.
[On3]
