Someone seems to blame a close loss on officiating every week.Now, after LSU has suffered defeat, it’s my turn.These Southeastern Conference refs are terrible, and they have been all season.The latest display of their incompetence occurred Saturday night in LSU’s loss to No. 2 Alabama.With Alabama driving and clinging to a six-point lead midway through the fourth quarter, Crimson Tide junior quarterback Greg McElroy threw an apparent interception to sophomore cornerback Patrick Peterson on a ball intended for sophomore wide receiver Julio Jones.The play was ruled an incompletion on the field, but it called for an additional replay review from the booth.The referees saw the play from a litany of angles, and they were able to somehow determine the play was an incomplete pass despite video evidence suggesting otherwise.The refs screwed this one up plain and simple. Both of Peterson’s feet were clearly inbounds when he made the play. He even dragged one of his toes and created a divot in the grass.
This play may not have mattered in the long run, as LSU would have still needed to drive about 60 yards for a touchdown to win the game, but the Tigers weren’t even given the chance.Instead, Alabama was able to continue its drive and ended it with a field goal to take a nine-point lead.This is at least the third time this season it could be argued the officials’ missteps cost an SEC team an opportunity at winning a game.The first big snafu of the season came in LSU’s game against Georgia. Georgia sophomore wide receiver A.J. Green caught a late touchdown pass and was penalized 15 yards for excessive celebration on a celebration that was anything but.LSU returned the ensuing kickoff to around midfield, and two plays later senior running back Charles Scott scored the game-winning touchdown.Southeastern Conference coordinator of football officials Rogers Redding manned up the following Monday and admitted mistakes were made — as if it helped anyone to simply acknowledge the fault days after the event.The next instance — coincidentally or not — involved the same officiating crew from the LSU-Georgia matchup and took place in Arkansas’ loss against Florida.The officials called a personal foul on Arkansas senior defensive tackle Malcolm Sheppard on a play where he committed no such offense.   The crew was eventually suspended for their mistakes, though SEC commissioner Mike Slive didn’t seem to be fazed by the obvious mistakes and the notoriety that surrounded them.”A series of calls that have occurred during the last several weeks have not been to the standard that we expect from our officiating crews,” Slive said in a news conference days after the Arkansas-Florida game. “I believe our officiating program is the best in the country. However, there are times when these actions must be taken.”How could he possibly feel the officiating program is the best in the country?Too many high-stakes games are coming down to bad calls from the officials in the SEC, and the three prior instances alone should disqualify them from being the best in anything.To make the claim at being the best, you have to catch the obvious mistakes and correct them before it’s too late.The “best officiating program” doesn’t make these rookie mistakes.Calling an excessive celebration penalty when a guy is hugging his teammates or blowing the whistle for a personal foul when a guy is protecting himself from receiving a cheap shot does not qualify as “the best.”These are calls anyone could see were made inaccurately, and for Slive and the other brass up at SEC headquarters to get the message fans are displeased, something more needs to be done by the schools involved in these decisions.Alabama coach Nick Saban had the gall yesterday to say, “Can somebody stand up and fight for these guys and what they do for the game?” in reference to the officials.This coming from the man with one of the shortest tempers in football who would have probably ripped the officials a new orifice if the same happened to his team.I want so badly to believe they’re trying their best to be fair, but the evidence of the contrary is overwhelming.The public will stand up for these guys when they start doing their jobs correctly, not for making a slew of mistakes in key games in key situations.How are we supposed to stand up and defend the actions of perpetual screw-ups in good conscience?I know I can’t, and SEC coaches and athletic directors shouldn’t try to either.Florida coach Urban Meyer had the right idea when he lambasted officials last week and incurred a $30,000 fine.Those at LSU, Georgia, Arkansas and any other school that has been hosed by the officials should stand up for their boys.
And Slive calls them the best in the country.What a joke.Johanathan Brooks is a 21-year-old mass communication senior from Powder Springs, Ga. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_jbrooks.—-Contact Johanathan Brooks at [email protected]