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Officials concede call was incorrect

Why do you have a BYU-homer like Scott Taylor writing about the Utes? Obviously, Taylor was going to pick something negative to write about, and he did. Next time D-News, try having someone that knows even a tiny, little bit about the team write something.

You are right Scott let's play the what if game...
-What if Ludwig could have figured out before the second half that passing on Navy actually works?
-What if Navy passed for 800 yards and ran for 300 yards?
-What if the nation wasn't at war at this time, would Navy had won?
-What if aliens came down during the game looking for signs of intelligence and you were passed over?
-What if Austin Collie was playing for Navy, would God have blessed the Midshipment with a victory?
-What if you had 3 friends who could sell my "miralce health juice" to their 3 friends, etc.
I think there is one thing we can all agree on, what if you your silly article wasn't published... we would all be better off.

face it the utes can't win unless they get breaks from the stips...but enjoy your spectacular victory over a weak academy football team. harline and collie are still open!

Sounds like the Utes give credence to the phrase "It's better to be lucky than good". How can you criticise the D-News for writing something negative about the officials admitting a major blown call when the utes are endlessly complaining about two obvious calls against them at BYU claiming "that's why we lost". When a call in their bowl game probably made the difference in their lucky win.

Utah didn't score, Navy went 4 and out. And I don't want to hear any of this "well they would have scored if starting from the 20 and not the 1 inch line" from any BYU fans looking to discredit another win. If you really think where the ball was changes Navy's playcalling then I would disagree. I don't think they ran more than 4-5 different plays the whole game anyways.

I'm not saying the call was right, it was obviously wrong...just that it shouldn't taint the win because Navy had more than enough chances.

Hey BYU...quit whining and by the way did you hear Lou Holtz not once, not twice, but three seperate times claim that Utah, "has the best non-BCS personnel in the country". BYU..that includes you, regardless of what your your weak tiny minds might think...

Once again the game is decided by poor officiating and not the players. There is no excuse for the review officals to miss that call. Someone should be held accountable for that blunder.

Hey Anonymous:

Are you serious? I guess I need to remind you of the free 30 yards byu received on its final drive against Utah from 2 horrible calls.

It is nice to have a bad call go our way for a change. Now I know how it feels to be byu.

Everyone one knows, even Andy Ludwig (which it seems he doesn't know much) that play calling at the 1 inch line is much different than at the 20. Navy got hosed on a play call that everyone at home KNEW it was a touchback.

It is unfortunate to see Utah's good win be tainted, but it is, a bit.

I also question why Utah's play calling is so awful. Does anyone think that Whittingham shouldn't have changed the offensive scheme ONE BIT after the Fiesta Bowl run? But, does the offense resemble that one at all?

There are DOZENS of examples over the past couple of years of game officials getting clear, unambiguous replay feeds and still getting the call wrong.

Make them wear microphones and do their deliberations on camera so that the whole process is public. Let's see if they are corrupt, cowardly or simply stupid.

In this case I suspect cowardly. Their lame admission handed to bowl officials after they've collected their check and are on the way to the airport is little solace. There's simply no excuse.

Do replay correctly, or not at all!

Sometimes the calls from the officials are against you and sometimes they go your way, welcome to the imperfect world of sports officiating. I had a basketball referee tell me once �I�ll stop making bad calls when you stop missing your shots, especially free throws�. It is time for the Ute fans to realize that they may have got a break this time and for the BYU fans to realize they may have got a break in the BYU � Utah football game this year. Get over it and learn this one lesson � Life is not always fair, no matter what.

The blown call had no change on the game. The triple option that Navy runs would have had them calling the same plays on the 20 as it does on backed on their goal-line. No body likes to see bad calls but this one had no change on the outcome of the game.

An to Anonymous, BYU should now all to well about benefiting from bad calls, so think twice about what you write next time. As for Navy being a week oponent, BYU has lost to them more than once in a bowl game. Once again think before you write.

Come on, Cougars! Can't we just have a truce during bowl season? Each team needs the other to grab a bowl victory for the good of the conference. I don't understand why some, though I'm sure a minority, of BYU fans have to come complain about the officiating. Navy isn't a top 25 team, but they've had a pretty good year. That Utah win was good for the MWC and BYU.

As for the specific call, it really didn't make a difference. Navy ran the ball just about every play, and it would have been no different on the 20. Utah would have gotten the ball back inside the 30 and scored just the same. In fact, the way Navy struggled to stop the Utes in the second half, the blown call may actually have given Navy a better chance to win. If Utah got the ball on the 29 instead of the 9, it would have taken Utah that much longer to get into the end-zone, and Navy wouldn't have had as much time to get back in the game. The refs had to note the mistake, but it didn't affect the outcome.

If it was the wrong call, too bad. Show me a game in any sport where all the calls are perfect. I'm sure that from time to time a bad call can make a difference but in the long run, it's the team that wins the game. I'm a BYU fan and I loved the Utah win. Great game and I hope that Utah wins every game they play except the BYU game.

Win is tainted, period. It is an obvious DISADVANTAGE to start that deep in one's own territory versus the 20.

it would have made a difference if they did get the call right...they stuffed them on the goal line right after that....which gave them more momentum...get real

Of course their play calling would have been different from the 20, instead of the 1/2.

Just look at the splits their offensive linemen were taking backed up on their goalline. Completely different situation. It was a horrible, horrible call. No excuse for that.

Navy should have had the ball at the 20 which would have changed the whole complexion of the game. Face it Utah you gotta cheat um to beat um! Give the little trophey you got to Navy!

wow who else to write a story like this! right guys! dick harmons my boy!

The rule book is pretty unclear on this and kind of contradictory. Look at the NCAA Rule Book: Section 2. Out Of Bounds: Ball Out of Bounds, Article 3.a. A ball not in player posession, other than a kick that scores a field goal, is out of bounds when it touches the ground, a player, a game official, **or anything else that is on or outside a boundary line.** (pylons are outside the boundary line as article 3.b. will clarify)
b. A ball that touches a pylon is out of bounds.

So really, what should the call be? I think given the circumstances, they called it right. I think the NCAA needs to make the rule a bit more defined.