I questioned whether I should write this or not…
After all,
Coach Long did get off with a “public reprimand” from the MWC for his
comments
after the Lobos were the recipient of one of the worst calls in many a
year
from the officiating crew after last Saturday’s game vs. the BYU
Cougars in
Provo UT.
In
case you have been living under a bridge and don’t have
The Mtn., ESPN, or any of the local channels you missed the play where
Lobo QB
Tate Smith hit Bryant Williams on a WR screen play that went into the
end zone
to bring the Lobos within striking distance of then #8 BYU.
As
the team was celebrating the “yellow flag” was thrown.
When I first saw a flag was thrown, I believed it was a “celebration”
penalty on UNM.
However, reality came quick as an illegal block in the back on Lobo
Hitmen
Byron Bell was called nullifying the touchdown.
The
Mtn. Network showed the replay of the “illegal block”
and both commentators were at a loss for words as it was obvious that
Bell did
not touch or help the BYU defender to the ground in any way. What made
the play
look even more nefarious was the fact that the flag was “thrown late”
as
Williams was crossing into the end zone.
For
many Lobo fans sitting at home watching the game, myself
included the idea of UNM receiving a penalty that would screw the Lobos vs. the Cougars
wasn’t
a surprise… Shoot most teams that play vs. BYU have felt that same sort
of
“screwed” feeling. In fact, prior to the “phantom block” there was that
familiar feeling of impending doom. But we are fans at home. We don’t
really
have a voice. The players don’t really have a voice… Or do they?
After
the game Coach Long was on the 770 KKOB post game show
when he unleashed against the “criminal call” and the fact that his
players
felt “cheated out of an opportunity to win.” For those of us listening
it was like
music to our ears. Now if you don’t know Coach Long or haven’t listened
to him,
you don’t know that he is an honest guy. He tells it like it is and
punishment,
reprimands, and fines be damned.
In
his post game interview Coach Long went off once again.
If you missed it, here is the clip on The Mtn.’s website
Click
here for the link
on The Mtn’s website
You have to go down a little. Look for the New Mexico
icon to hear The Rock's post game presser.
If
you missed it here
are some quotes from The Rock!
"But
the officials obviously blew a call that changed
the entire momentum of the game. It's criminal that they changed the
momentum
of the game like that. It's ridiculous that one call can change all the
momentum of the game and take the game away from one team.
"Once again, I'm going to say we might not have won anyway. We might've
still lost the game. But it should've been a hell of a game right to
the end,
and the officials took it away from us."
I must admit I am one
of those conspiracy theorist
out there that felt that with the game close The MWC was going to do
everything
they possibly could to not allow UNM to win. Let’s face it with the
BCS’ big
money out there the MWC like all non-BCS conferences are willing to sell
their
souls and integrity for that dollar. Rudy C. on our message board
roughly used
a quote from the Mel Gibson movie Braveheart to sum it up
perfectly.
Non-BCS teams scramble to get the
scraps from Longshanks’ table and we are dumb enough to accept it.
So while it was no
shock to see the call it is still
infuriating to all concerned as the Lobo football players and coaches
work just
as hard as the BYU coaches and players and they deserve a fairly called
game.
Of course ESPN who is a BCS partner and would love nothing better then
seeing
non-BCS schools tossed out of the process picked up on this and Coach
Long’s
comments were seen all over the nation.
That
night I and all other Lobo fans felt sure that
Coach Long was going to be fined and severely reprimanded for his
comments and
once again Coach Long said, “He wasn’t worried about that.” The Rock
knew what
he was doing was right! He was standing up for his players and rallying
his fan
base and this fan for one totally appreciates it.
So
imagine Lobo fan’s surprise today as MWC Commish
Craig “The Hair” Thompson issued a “public reprimand” today:
COLORADO SPRINGS,
Colo. - New Mexico Head Football Coach Rocky Long has
been issued a public reprimand for his comments critical of the
officiating in
the New Mexico at BYU contest played Saturday, October 11. Those public
remarks
were in violation of MWC Sportsmanship Rule Sections 4.2-e and 4.4.5.
The Mountain
West Conference expressed appreciation for the support of
the MWC Sportsmanship Policy by the UNM administration. The MWC will
have no
further comment regarding this case. The provisions of the MWC
Sportsmanship
Policy can be found in Rule 4 of the MWC Handbook - which can be
accessed via
the www.TheMWC.com website.
What? No fine? No probation? No suspension? No anything? “The Hair”
just
slithered back into his ivory tower praying that this little “incident”
would
just go away.
Not that I want Coach Long to suffer any kind of huge fine, or worse
suspension, but Thompson and his cronies didn’t give any consequences
for Coach
Long’s words because they like Coach Long. Nor did they not punish him
because
they felt that the Lobos got screwed or the official made a bad call.
The MWC honchos didn’t punish Coach Long for his comments because
they just
want it to go away. They don’t want replays of “The Phantom block in
the back”
on any TV screens where the “BCS Longshanks” might see them. They don’t
want voters
to know that maybe there were shenanigans at the end of the game. They
don’t
want anyone questioning the integrity of the MWC, and in this
“conspiracy
theorists’” mind… They want it to go away just in case it happens again…
The scramble
for the scraps from Longshank’s table
continues…