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Trickery On The Football Field: Like Child Abuse? (NPR barf alert)
NPR ^ | 11/17/2010 | Frank Deford

Posted on 11/17/2010 4:31:12 PM PST by llevrok

By now, you may be among the millions of people who've seen on YouTube the trick football play pulled off by the Driscoll Middle School of Corpus Christi, Texas.

If you've been watching President Obama abroad or otherwise wasting your time, here's what happens: Driscoll breaks out of the huddle, and the quarterback lines up over the ball. From the sideline, the assistant coach calls out that Driscoll deserves a five-yard penalty.

At this point, the Driscoll center casually hands the ball over his shoulder to the quarterback. This is perfectly acceptable, even though we know that the center invariably delivers the ball through his legs.

The quarterback then takes the ball and starts to walk off five yards himself, as the opponents look on, confused. Then, clear of the opposition, the quarterback suddenly breaks into a run and dashes 67 yards for a touchdown.

The play is legal, and just about everybody who has seen it gets a real hoot out of it. In one online poll, 92.1 percent of those who voted said the play was genius.

Well, it isn't funny, and it isn't right.

Sure, athletes often employ gamesmanship, and I will now give you a lecture on situational ethics.

Remember this summer, when Derek Jeter, the all-American boy, idol of millions, faked getting hit by a pitch and his acting was so good he was awarded first base?

Well, Jeter is a grown-up, playing other grown-ups, in a game umpired by grown-ups. So are wide receivers who pretend to catch a pass that really hit the ground first, and basketball players who flop back as if they were fouled.

Just like the Driscoll Middle School quarterback, it is perfectly legal to act in a game. But the players who do that in the pros are not embarrassing the opposition. They're just trying to con the umpire. It's a benign bit of hustle that would've made for some good Aesop's Fables if old Aesop were around writing a sports blog nowadays.

But the Driscoll team didn't act instinctively to try to put one over on a ref. The middle schoolers didn't even come up with the ruse. Their coach dreamed up the play, and even participated in it, hollering from the sideline. The referees weren't victimized. In fact, they had to play along.

No, it was only the other team's kids who were embarrassed and belittled by a children's coach being a wise guy, a bully of sorts. It wasn't genius at all; rather, it was a form of child abuse. Sure, it was legal, but it wasn't fair.

Laugh at kids being outslicked by a grown-up, and you're cruel. That isn't sport.


TOPICS: Culture/Society
KEYWORDS: liberalidiots; notsoccer; npr
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To: llevrok

Franny, did you skip your Midol?


41 posted on 11/17/2010 5:27:43 PM PST by ConservaTexan (February 6, 1911)
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To: Alberta's Child

The rule wouldnt surprise me, especially seeing how intricate NFL off and def packages are. I imagine there is some lobbying because def coordinators tend to package their def based on personnel.

Id love to see the play get called dead and hear the ref. I usually dont like to see people screw up, but some of the ref’s give entertaining explanations. There was one this season (I think preseason) where on a KO, 2 cover guys and 1 return guy all had penalties. And it was number 57, 95, and 97. It took the ref about 5 minutes to get it right, because they all had similar numbers, and there is hardly ever a 3 penalty play. But he had the biggest grin n his face knowing that this was happening on tv. He was a good sport.

My favorite is when a ref threw an unsportsmanlike and said “15 yd penalty - Giving him the Business”


42 posted on 11/17/2010 5:35:13 PM PST by Raider Sam (They're on our left, right, front, and back. They aint gettin away this time!)
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To: llevrok
What if the strong safety realized what was going on and came flying in from the blind side a just blew up the quarterback who was in a pretty defenseless position standing straight up; the same parents that thought the play was pretty cool would be calling for the coach's head.

I'm a head baseball coach in high school but did 20 years in junior high football, we had some trick plays but I would not have run this one. Others can, its not child abuse, but in my personal code this exceeds what I would be comfortable doing.

43 posted on 11/17/2010 5:40:58 PM PST by fungoking (Tis a blessing to live in the Ozarks.)
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To: llevrok

Frank DeFord——Just another idiot liberal who should be locked away for its own protection. NO more tax dollars to NPR


44 posted on 11/17/2010 5:47:45 PM PST by jesseam (Been there, done that)
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To: Hunton Peck
I think Wikipedia is confused. First they say Deford is openly homosexual, then they say he is living with his wife in CT, then they say he left his wife in 1985 because he was gay. Recent info suggests he is still living with his wife in CT, hardly "openly homo". There seems to be nothing else online indicating he is gay.

Other than this sissy article that is.
45 posted on 11/17/2010 6:05:16 PM PST by over3Owithabrain
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To: llevrok

There is a huge difference between misleading the referees and misleading the opposing players.


46 posted on 11/17/2010 6:09:03 PM PST by rogue yam
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To: Alberta's Child

Its also illegal in many youth leagues for anyone on the sideline ( coach, players etc ) to be part of any trickery. With the coach yelling that there was a penalty this play would have been illegal in many youth leagues.


47 posted on 11/17/2010 6:12:28 PM PST by dcar99
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To: Raider Sam
Oh, what a great moment in football history, LOL:

Giving Him the Business

The rule wouldnt surprise me, especially seeing how intricate NFL off and def packages are. I imagine there is some lobbying because def coordinators tend to package their def based on personnel.

Good point. I wasn't even aware of the rule until I saw a penalty called on a play some years ago (I think it involved the Seattle Seahawks). There wasn't even a deliberate attempt to confuse anyone in that case. They simply lined up for a punt on fourth down, and someone on the sideline finally realized they only had ten players on the field. So the 11th player came running in from the sideline and got about three steps onto the field when the ball was snapped. The punter alertly realized what had happened, saw that the player from the sideline had come in behind the line of scrimmage and was completely onside when the ball was snapped, and tossed the ball out to him for an easy first down. That's when the flags flew, a penalty was called, and the announcer explained the ruling and the rationale behind it.

48 posted on 11/17/2010 6:19:40 PM PST by Alberta's Child ("If you touch my junk, I'm gonna have you arrested.")
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To: SkyDancer
Doing something other than what the opposition expects is not cheating.

Please, let's leave the redefining of words to the liberals.

49 posted on 11/17/2010 6:25:02 PM PST by 70times7 (Serving Free Republics' warped and obscure humor needs since 1999!)
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To: over3Owithabrain

It wouldn’t be the first time Wikipedia was confused. Or maybe it’s DeFord who’s confused.

Actually, I was as disgusted with Benjamin’s association with the America-hating, Charles Manson-sympathizing (seriously!) Bryant Gumbel as with anything else. But then, those two pompous self-worshipers probably belong together.


50 posted on 11/17/2010 6:28:18 PM PST by Hunton Peck (Endowed by my Creator with certain unalienable Rights)
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To: llevrok

I’d say “Lighten up, Francis”, but this guy may be light enough already....

In the olden days even the a HS middle linebacker would salivate at the prospect of the QB coming at him this way, and would “take care of business.”


51 posted on 11/17/2010 7:00:23 PM PST by mikrofon (Frank DeFoo)
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To: Bud Krieger

I bet he always got picked last too


52 posted on 11/18/2010 3:26:28 PM PST by Mr. K (TSA Sexual Assaulters: "You dont get on until we get off")
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To: llevrok

I wish the Gators would have tried that against South Carolina last Saturday, nothing else was working.


53 posted on 11/18/2010 3:31:12 PM PST by dfwgator (Texas Rangers -Thanks for a great season.)
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To: dfwgator

beat the ‘noles !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


54 posted on 11/18/2010 4:47:30 PM PST by llevrok (Born a ham but never cured)
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To: Hunton Peck
The references on Wiki to Deford being gay are completely gone now from the site.

I think someone put those in there as a response to this article about the trick play. I don't condone it but pretty funny!
55 posted on 11/19/2010 5:07:45 PM PST by over3Owithabrain
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To: over3Owithabrain

Then I got tricked, too! I’ve been abused!


56 posted on 11/19/2010 5:47:05 PM PST by Hunton Peck (Endowed by my Creator with certain unalienable Rights)
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