Bad sports, good sports: What happened to playing defense?

Posted on October 1st, 2012 by Alan Spoll

I was all set to write about the ridiculous replacement referees that officiated the first three weeks of the NFL season to disastrous results, but the sides resolved their differences and the real refs were back at work starting Thursday night. The beautiful thing about the world of sports, though, is that there is always something else about which to complain. I guess that is because we are so passionate about the subject. This weekend, there were a whole lot of insane numbers put up by some college quarterbacks, the most astonishing of which came from Geno Smith, the incredible quarterback from West Virginia University who is widely considered to be the front-runner for the Heisman Trophy. Smith threw for 656 yards and eight touchdowns in his team’s 70-63 win over Baylor. I guess many people might slobber over those stats, but I just can not get past one simple question: doesn’t anyone play defense anymore?

70-63 is just stupid. It’s Arena Football, not major college football. The Big Twelve has been a defense-deficient league for years, but this is ridiculous. Nick Florence, the signal-caller for the losing team, threw for almost 600 yards and five touchdowns. The teams combined for over 1500 total yards. In the same conference, Texas beat Oklahoma State, 41-36. In the SEC, Georgia beat Tennessee, 51-44. In the ACC, Miami beat North Carolina State, 44-37. The number of points being scored all over the country is enough to make defensive coaches everywhere sick to their stomachs.

Seriously, the defensive coordinators at Baylor and West Virginia should be fired immediately. I know people love to watch scoring, and these were likely exciting games to sit through, but I am someone who enjoys watching defense just as much, if not more, than watching offense. I am sure the West Virginia players were excited after the game, having won the school’s first-ever Big Twelve game (they just joined the conference this year), and having done so in such a flashy fashion, but I have to wonder if the defensive players participated in that celebration? How could they do anything but hide after that performance? They allowed 34 first downs. In one game. They allowed a Baylor receiver, Terrance Williams, to have 314 yards receiving. Two other Baylor wideouts had over 100 yards receiving as well. Did the defenses just stay in the locker room? I wouldn’t think teams could put up that kind of yardage even if the opposing defenses missed the bus to the stadium.

I am not taking anything away from the offensive players here. I’m sure that they are talented guys that made some incredible plays. From all accounts, Geno Smith is the real deal, and pro scouts will be clawing at each other to get their hands on him. I also know that football, both pro and college, has become all about the passing game. Running the ball is becoming a lost art. Still, I am going to enjoy this sport a lot less if the defenses don’t start catching up to these passing offenses sometime soon.

Bad sports, continued:

2) I mentioned the resolution of the labor dispute between the NFL and its referees above. The agreement may well have been accelerated by last Monday night’s game between the Green Bay Packers and the Seattle Seahawks. It was one of the worst officiated games I have ever seen, even before the final play. That last moment, though, was jaw-dropping. Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson threw a prayer into the end zone, down 5 points with no time left on the clock. The ball was caught by Packers defensive back M.D. Jennings. As he fell to the ground, Seattle receiver Golden Tate, who had already shoved a defender out of the way as the ball was arriving, wrapped an arm around Jennings and the ball. The pathetic excuse for officials ruled that both players caught the ball simultaneously, and by rule possession goes to the offensive player. To compound the insanity, the play was reviewed in the booth and the call was upheld. The error was so egregious that I just sat staring, absolutely dumbfounded.

3) Last week, the New York Jets lost star cornerback Darrelle Revis for the season due to a torn ACL suffered during the team’s win over Miami. On Tuesday, Reggie Bush, the Miami running back who still manages to be overrated despite a pretty mediocre career to this point, basically stated that Revis and the Jets got what they deserved, as he felt they had targeted him and tried to hurt him during the game. You stay classy, Reggie.

4) Chris Economacki, a revered journalist in the world of motorsports, died on Friday. He was 91, and had spent most of his life writing about racing. He was commonly known as “The Dean of American Motorsports.”

5) The NFL is apparently not the only football league where bounties on players is a problem. A Pop Warner football league for 10 and 11-year-olds in California saw its president and the coach of one of its teams suspended for allegedly offering players money for big hits and for knocking players out of the game. Revolting.

6) Last season, Ryan Howard injured himself on the final swing of the year for his team, tearing his Achilles tendon on the final strike of the team’s first-round playoff loss to eventual champ St. Louis. This year, he got it out of the way a little sooner. Howard broke his toe on Thursday, almost a week before the end of the season, when he dropped a lead pipe on his foot in the on deck circle. You can’t make this stuff up.

7) Rory McIlroy, maybe the world’s best golfer right now, nearly missed his tee time on Sunday at the Ryder Cup. He apparently missed that his time was listed in Eastern Time, while the tournament was being played in Central Time. He made it by 12 minutes.

Good sports:

1) Chicago Cubs infielder Darwin Barney saw his errorless game streak end on Friday after 141 games. That’s a great accomplishment, even if he fell short of breaking the all-time record for a second baseman by three measly outs.

2) Darrell Wallace Jr. became the first African-American driver to win a pole position in NASCAR’s Nationwide series on Saturday. He also became the youngest-ever pole winner at age 18. He finished 12th in the race.

3) The Europeans pulled off the greatest comeback in Ryder Cup history on Sunday, beating the Americans 14 1/2 to 13 1/2. They trailed 10-6 going into the final day.

Bad sports, good sports appears every Monday

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Alan Spoll

Alan Spoll is a software quality assurance director from the suburbs of Philadelphia where he lives with his wonderful wife and children. He has spent his entire life as a passionate fan of the Eagles, Phillies, Sixers, Flyers, and Penn State. Recent Phillies success aside, you will understand his natural negativity. Follow me on Twitter - @DocAlan02