General

Shanoff’s WUC: NFL OT Reform Here. Any More?

Mar 24, 2010, 12:01 PM UTC

Today’s Calls: NFL vs. Overtime, West Virginia vs. Truck Bryant’s foot, Busted Bracket vs. Perfect Bracket, Jimmy Clausen vs. Sam Bradford, Gilbert Arenas vs. the Prosecution, Paul Hewitt vs. St. John’s, Jose Canseco vs. the FBI and More.â†µâ†µThe Opening Pitch: What a week for reform. First, health care. Now, NFL overtime.â†µ

â†µâ†µThat the OT reform is “only” the postseason is fine; it’s a start. Better still — It mitigates one of the league’s biggest flaws: That a game might come down to who wins a coin flip.â†µ

â†µâ†µWe had come dangerously close to the worst-case scenario — the “Coin-Flip” Super Bowl champ — two years ago. Then I think everyone — league, owners, players — got shocked into sensibility with this past NFC title game.â†µ

â†µâ†µImagine that game under the new rules: Sure, the Saints might have scored first, with that “game-winning” field goal. But then the Vikings would get a fair shot — score a TD to win or bust. But at least they get a turn.â†µ

â†µâ†µNo more games decided simply because of “heads” or “tails.” And the NFL avoids the ignominy of random chance deciding a Super Bowl champ. The next step is to apply it to the entire regular season; call it a more “public” option.â†µ

â†µâ†µEven though it seemed to take some parliamentary maneuvering by Roger Goodell and the pro-reform camp, the vote was decisive: 28-4. And I will take any overtime reform where we can get it.â†µ

â†µâ†µNext up: So, now that we’re on a roll, anyone want to try to tackle getting us a college football playoff?â†µ

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â†µTournament Injury Watch: WVU PG "Truck" Bryant is out for the Tournament with a broken foot, coming out of yesterday's practice. It is a huge loss for the 'Eers — not just for a potential regional final with Kentucky, but for the Sweet 16 game with Washington, which loves to force a fast pace.â†µ

â†µâ†µWomen’s Tournament: What a run for San Diego State. First, they beat No. 6 seed Texas — in Austin. Then, the No. 11 Aztecs knocked off No. 3 West Virginia to advance to the Sweet 16. For those of you who had San Diego State in your Sweet 16 on your men’s bracket, you simply picked the wrong SDSU team.â†µ

â†µâ†µBracket Update: If you haven’t heard about it yet, you have to check out the story about the autistic teen in Chicago who has a perfect bracket, even after all the insanity. That has to be worth some kind of pay-out. (Alas, the kid has Purdue winning it all — enjoy it while it lasts.)â†µ

â†µâ†µNIT Mania: Wouldn’t it be ironic if UNC — which went through one of its most frustrating seasons ever — ended up winning the NIT?â†µ

â†µâ†µArenas Update: Prosecutors recommend that Gilbert Arenas receive a three-month prison sentence. Yikes. The big question is whether that is enough for the Wiz to void his contract (if that’s what they want to do).â†µ

â†µâ†µNBA Talking Points: Yikes, what happened to Kevin Pritchard? One minute: The league’s super-GM; the next: about to be bounced out?â†µ

â†µâ†µNFL Draft: Let’s play “Over/Under.” Will Jimmy Clausen have a better or worse NFL career than fellow Golden Dome QB Brady Quinn? I’ll say “same” — which makes his status as a Top-10 pick iffy, at best.â†µ

â†µâ†µNFL Offseason: Anyone want T.O.? No one?â†µ

â†µâ†µCFB Great Read: This is a fascinating glimpse at the essential recruiting pitches of the six most notable college football coaches working for new teams.â†µ

â†µâ†µCBB Coaching Carousel: Paul Hewitt from Georgia Tech to St. John’s? Hewitt, a New Yorker himself, has long claimed that the city is a recruiting gold-mine (and St. John’s, before they hired Norm Roberts, wanted Hewitt). Seems like this is going to come together.â†µ

â†µâ†µMLB Previews: The Rockies look like the team to beat in the NL West (even if their situation at closer is a little dicey).â†µ

â†µâ†µTiger Watch: Apparently, No. 15 has come forward with allegations of a long-running affair with Tiger.â†µ

â†µâ†µPop Culture: In case you missed Erin Andrews’ performance on “Dancing With The Stars.”â†µ

â†µâ†µI Stand Corrected: Yesterday, I argued that Wisconsin has a better defense than Kentucky. But as reader Trent pointed out, on a pace-adjusted, per-possession basis, Kentucky plays even better D than the Badgers.â†µ

â†µâ†µThe Last Word: “The fbi will be at my house in 20 minutes kind of scared will let u no what they want if I can after they leave” — Jose Canseco (via @JoseCanseco), breaking his own news of receiving a federal subpoena to testify to a grand jury about Roger Clemens.â†µ

â†µâ†µDan Shanoff writes The Wake-Up Call every weekday morning for SportingNews.com and blogs daily at DanShanoff.com. Got any comments, questions or feedback? Email Dan at shanofftsn-[at]-gmail-[dot]-com. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/danshanoff. â†µ

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