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Celebration penalty costs title (Player raises hand as he scores)
ESPN ^ | 12/7/2011

Posted on 12/07/2011 7:46:17 PM PST by GreaterSwiss

OSTON -- A Massachusetts high school lost a state championship game because a player raised his arm in triumph as he ran for what would have been a go-ahead touchdown, and Boston mayor Thomas Menino doesn't like it.

The penalty for the gesture by Cathedral High School quarterback Matthew Owens in Saturday's Division 4A Super Bowl led to the losing team wondering if the referee's decision could be challenged. The state association said Wednesday that it could not.

"I think sometimes these rules are written by frustrated athletes," Menino said from Cathedral, according to Wednesday's Boston Herald. "They never participated in a sport, and they don't know what it is to be excited. You play in a football game, you run for a touchdown, and you do something special."

Blue Hills Regional Technical School athletic director Ed Catabia told The Boston Globe on Sunday that the referee made "a great call, the right call."

"We try and play by the rules, and the rule is 'no celebrating,' " he said.

The referee was enforcing a sportsmanship rule that prohibits players from celebratory or taunting behavior while scoring a touchdown.

MIAA Statement

The Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association has issued a statement, sent to multiple media outlets Wednesday afternoon, regarding Saturday's Boston Cathedral versus Blue Hills Regional Vocational Eastern Mass Division 4A Super Bowl.

The 18-year-old senior was racing for a score as time wound down in the game against Blue Hills. Video shows Owens briefly raising his left arm and then lowering it as he approaches the end zone. The penalty nullified the touchdown, and Cathedral lost the game 16-14.

(Excerpt) Read more at espn.go.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; News/Current Events; US: Massachusetts
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1 posted on 12/07/2011 7:46:23 PM PST by GreaterSwiss
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To: GreaterSwiss

LSU’s Brad Wing faked a punt and ran it in for a TD but opened his arms up to a Gator before scoring and they penalized the team. Didn’t cost them game, but it did cost him the 6 points. Just score and go back to the sideline.


2 posted on 12/07/2011 7:51:24 PM PST by VicVega (LSU is without a doubt the #1 team in the nation. GEAUX TIGERS, Geaux Saints)
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To: GreaterSwiss
please, it's not like he did the Plaxico or something...
3 posted on 12/07/2011 7:51:58 PM PST by Chode (American Hedonist - *DTOM* -ww- NO Pity for the LAZY)
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To: Chode
please, it's not like he did the Plaxico or something...

Wasn't that awful?

4 posted on 12/07/2011 7:53:32 PM PST by frogjerk (OBAMA NOV 2012 = HORSEMEAT)
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To: VicVega

so another stupid call makes it ok?


5 posted on 12/07/2011 7:55:49 PM PST by GreaterSwiss
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To: frogjerk; Chode

Yeah it was awful. Plaxico had the last laugh when he scored to give the Jets the win. Yeah Johnson had a chance to win for the Bills but dropped a pass when he was wide open.


6 posted on 12/07/2011 7:56:37 PM PST by VicVega (LSU is without a doubt the #1 team in the nation. GEAUX TIGERS, Geaux Saints)
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To: GreaterSwiss

7 posted on 12/07/2011 7:58:36 PM PST by Fiji Hill
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To: GreaterSwiss
Though I can sort of see the need for this kind of rule... nullifying the touchdown seems a little extreme for a penalty.

I think a 20 yard penalty on the next kickoff would have been adequate

8 posted on 12/07/2011 7:59:58 PM PST by TexasFreeper2009 (Newt Gingrich 2012!)
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To: GreaterSwiss
NCAA rules! Coaches wanted them and the got the rules. So you follow them. A good life lesson for the kid.

So to answer your question ?so another stupid call makes it ok?"

Yes!.

The High Schools followed the same rules as the NCAA.

9 posted on 12/07/2011 8:01:11 PM PST by VicVega (LSU is without a doubt the #1 team in the nation. GEAUX TIGERS, Geaux Saints)
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To: GreaterSwiss

This is total B.S. Can’t they leave anything alone. What was he supposed to do, walk over to the over team and tell them he was sorry he scored. Life is a game - sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. Winners should be allowed to celebrate, losers should try and find out how they can win the next time. JUST STOP THIS SH**!! Between the politicians and a lot of parents our kids are being turned into a bunch of pansies.


10 posted on 12/07/2011 8:02:25 PM PST by Grams A (The Sun will rise in the East in the morning and God is still on his throne.)
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To: GreaterSwiss

Wonder if they would assess the penalty if he just smiled. Or would a grin be sufficient? Or maybe just a smirk? Maybe a twitch or a tic of the mouth?


11 posted on 12/07/2011 8:06:15 PM PST by ProtectOurFreedom
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To: VicVega; GreaterSwiss

They take this too far.

I think the saying is though, “Act like you’ve made a touchdown before”


12 posted on 12/07/2011 8:07:08 PM PST by GeronL (The Right to Life came before the Right to Pursue Happiness)
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To: GreaterSwiss

Expressing joy at victory is wrong, apparently. Like the US Olympic team was told to tone it down because being happy about winning might be offensive.

Maybe if we gave the libs a game with no points, but required both teams to cooperate, they’d leave the rest of us alone.


13 posted on 12/07/2011 8:07:27 PM PST by DBrow
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To: Grams A

Finally a sane response. Anyone who has played sports knows some things are said and done on the field that are probably not the wisest move, but hey it’s sports.

People need to grow the heck up. I was ejected once when I played baseball when I was younger. And I deserved it. But costing the whole team a championship is ridiculous.


14 posted on 12/07/2011 8:07:31 PM PST by JosephMama (Huntsman 2012: That other Mormon guy)
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To: frogjerk; VicVega
it was stooopid but i laughed like hell !!!

as a ny fan i hate burress for what he did to the team and what he got away with... he should gone to jail like anybody else

15 posted on 12/07/2011 8:08:22 PM PST by Chode (American Hedonist - *DTOM* -ww- NO Pity for the LAZY)
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To: Grams A

It was a display of taunting by the rules. He could have danced all night in the end zone after the touchdown and gotten a 15 yard penalty. He celebrated before crossing the goal.


16 posted on 12/07/2011 8:08:47 PM PST by VicVega (LSU is without a doubt the #1 team in the nation. GEAUX TIGERS, Geaux Saints)
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To: GreaterSwiss
"Losing a game or having an official's call go against you or your team are all part of sports... Athletes must learn to put these things behind them... During their lifetime they will experience similar situations where they feel 'wronged' by a superior or authority figure and they must learn to deal with that situation."

This rationalization was made by the idiot-in-charge who earlier claimed the ref made "a great call".

Yes kids, life is full of self-important morons who think more of the "rules" than what's right, so you better just get used to it.

17 posted on 12/07/2011 8:11:32 PM PST by CW_Conservative
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To: Chode
NOT a NY fan at all. However, I like Burress. He did do jail time and it was only because Bloomberg wanted to make a point.

I'd rather see touchdowns scored and the ball handed to the ref like Barry Sanders would do.

Packer leaping is fine too. The prime time dances are boring. As a Saint fan, I get aggravated seeing them dance. Thats just me.

NY better beat the cowgirls!

18 posted on 12/07/2011 8:13:39 PM PST by VicVega (LSU is without a doubt the #1 team in the nation. GEAUX TIGERS, Geaux Saints)
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To: VicVega
Just score and go back to the sideline.

I believe that one coach put it: "Act like you've done it before."

19 posted on 12/07/2011 8:15:11 PM PST by Bob
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To: VicVega
Just score and go back to the sideline.

The best advice for these situations is something my dad used to tell me. "When you score, act as if you've been there before. Flip the ball to the ref and head back to the bench. There's nothing cooler."

Plenty of coaches have said it before and it really is the best way to to comport oneself on the ball field.

20 posted on 12/07/2011 8:16:27 PM PST by Bloody Sam Roberts (Attacking Wall Street because you're jobless is like burning down Whole Foods because you're hungry.)
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