The game of college football is one of the best atmospheres. The fans, the student sections, the electric entrances to the stadium.
There is so much to love about the game but there are a few parts of the game that make you scratch your head. We can all complain about officiating but it isn’t just one conference that is worse than another. It feels that way at times because more often than not the SEC has the national stage.
While there is no clearcut answer to fix officiating at the collegiate level, there are two areas of the game that I would like to be fixed immediately. Let’s start with the one rule that I think everyone can agree on.
Fix The Targeting Rule
The rule itself is a good one. Players should be penalized for targeting but there needs to be some modification. Any player that is confirmed by instant replay is ejected from the game. Regardless of the believed intent was there or not. The team is penalized 15 yards and they lose that player for the rest of the game. If the guilty player is ejected in the second half, they have to sit the first half of the next game.
I think that is a bit much. The suggestion here would be to have targeting penalties put into two categories, much as they do with flagrant fouls in basketball.
Targeting 1: The player is penalized for targeting but remains in the game.
Targeting 2: The player is immediately ejected from the game and sent to the sideline. This ruling would be for clear malicious intent based on instant replay.
That rule change is better for the game of football.
Next, a rule that needs an overhaul