Give the Raccoon a T, get a trip to Cancun

[atljar]

News from Goodman that Pac12 official Ed Rush offered cash or a free trip to Cancun for the first person to issue Sean Miller a technical. "he touched the ball, he touched the ball, he touched the ball!"

WOW!

[nuts4xu]

That was a BS technical in my opinion. He didn't curse, it was a close play, and it was a critical part of the game.

Officials seem to get worse every year.

[atljar]

Yes clearly a BS technical, but now with a background story on why it may have been called. There will be some heads rolling in the next few days

[coasterville95]

Worse than that is public perception. I mean if we have this one case where somebody got caught offering bribes to influence a game, and I think the game in question ended with Racoon losing 66-64, then yes this bribe may have affected the outcome of a tournament game.

Public perception issue - how do you now reassure the public that college basketball officiating is fair and on the up-and-up.

[bobbiemcgee]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lv37N06T1b8

[GoMuskies]

I hit a big parlay partly because of that call. Thus, I think the double dribble and resulting technical were ABSOLUTELY the right calls!

[PMI]

My biggest concern is that it really seems that basketball has the worst, most subjective (partially by nature) and most corrupt officiating of any team sport. I mean we already have an NBA ref in prison, and even though I think that was an extreme case, I kind of buy the idea that other refs have or still do purposely affect the outcomes of games/spreads. It's just so easy to get away with with the level of subjectivity in so many basketball calls. It's not that other sports don't have subjectivity too, but basketball, being such an offensive game by nature (as well as the fact that fouls put players on the bench) just seems to be the worst to me. That's why this story makes me uneasy, even if that moron was just joking.

[xubrew]

I'm pretty sure that the moron was just joking.

That's the problem, though.

It's not the joking part that's the problem. It's the moron part. Anyone who makes a joke like that is clearly a moron. This means that we've got a moron in charge. That's the problem.

[danaandvictory]

My biggest concern is that it really seems that basketball has the worst, most subjective (partially by nature) and most corrupt officiating of any team sport. I mean we already have an NBA ref in prison, and even though I think that was an extreme case, I kind of buy the idea that other refs have or still do purposely affect the outcomes of games/spreads. It's just so easy to get away with with the level of subjectivity in so many basketball calls. It's not that other sports don't have subjectivity too, but basketball, being such an offensive game by nature (as well as the fact that fouls put players on the bench) just seems to be the worst to me. That's why this story makes me uneasy, even if that moron was just joking.

There's been a massive investigation underway in European soccer into these very issues - the nature of that game means a single call (a penalty, a red card, whatever) can decide the game and one crooked referee can move a ton of gambling money. With international sports gambling as easy as it is and given the sheer number of games in D-I, many played under no scrutiny whatsoever, it's somewhat surprising to me we haven't seen a Donaghy-style scandal in college basketball. In some ways it would be easier and "safer" for the gambler than point shaving.

[Masterofreality]

Obviously, I have issues with the desert raccoon, well,......I just have issues, but there is no way that Mr. Lexus driver deserved a T. It was unadulterated Bull Sheet.

[paulxu]

I probably missed this in all the nonsense...but why was that guy joking, if he was, about T-ing up Miller?
Had Miller done something to piss off the body politic of refereeing?

[MADXSTER]

I probably missed this in all the nonsense...but why was that guy joking, if he was, about T-ing up Miller?
Had Miller done something to piss off the body politic of refereeing?

And why isn't Huggy Bear T'd up a hell of a lot more often?? He goes off on Ref's more than he coaches his team at times.

[waggy]

Yeah, this obviously runs a little deeper than just a joke.

[blobfan]

I'm pretty sure that the moron was just joking.

That's the problem, though.

It's not the joking part that's the problem. It's the moron part. Anyone who makes a joke like that is clearly a moron. This means that we've got a moron in charge. That's the problem.
If an underling says it, it's a joke. If the boss says it, it's policy.

This guy was the head ref for Pac12, right? So either he goes, or Pac12 has a really strange reffing policy.

[Cheesehead]

This guy should thank Rice for taking the headlines away. Otherwise, he might be out of a job too.

[X-band '01]

This guy should thank Rice and a certain 4-letter network for taking the headlines away. Otherwise, he might be out of a job too.

Fixed that for you.

[BMoreX]

Rush resigned.

[waggy]

Resign or else I'm sure. No way that guy could ever be effective again. And the guy that actually T'd up Miller could be in trouble too. One things for sure he's gonna hate his job more than ever now.

[RealDeal]

Rush resigned.

Next stop, head of A-10 officials. The A-10, where shitty refs go to die.

[nuts4xu]

I thought the refs were assigned games based on geography, and no longer affiliated with a specific conference.

Did I dream this up?

[boozehound]

I thought the refs were assigned games based on geography, and no longer affiliated with a specific conference.

Did I dream this up?

I think I have heard this before as well. Not sure what is most accurate, although geography would make sense.

[bjf123]

I thought the same thing.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[wkrq59]

Let's get a lot of thing straight. Consider:
1)Ed Rush is a former NBA ref (retired) who was a respected official in "the league."
2)He was a PAC12 supervisor of officials, not a working ref or that is what most of the stories before his resignation said.
3)He claimed he was joking or at least that what he was quoted as saying. The working PAC12 officials said, like Big Daddy, 'Bull'"
4)Anytime any official, supervisor or officials or someone in a conference "jokes" like that, a terrible perception occurs. And we all know that most of the time, perception is reality.
5)Officials in all levels of basketball--especially college men's and women's games where the emotions and consequences are so high--are the constant objects of abuse and questioned as to their integrity, so NO OFFICIAL, at any level, should ever joke or make such a ridiculous comment. I don't care what the circumstance.
6)Ed Rush obviously had some issue or --and here is the worst of it--had something to gain from singling out Sean Miller.
7)If he did have an issue with Sean or if he stood to gain financially from Sean receiving a "T" and his team losing the game, then there is really something to be concerned about. And if there is, the law enforcement officials at the highest level and down should investigate and issue a public report in the simplest language.
8)No mattter the circumstnces of his leaving Xavier, no coach deserves to be impugned like that. Lexus, Buick or hotrod, it's bad, very, very bad. Joboo not like it.
Oh, and remember forever, 77-66 and 76-53. Go Muskies.

:slapfight::pissedoff::whew::neo:

[coasterville95]

Well written Q, as always:

Too bad that this whole issue seems to have gotten swept under the rug - well except for Rush resigning. (I do wonder if that was a Quit or be Fired deal, probably was). No word about the ref who dealt the T?

I know the What If game is dangerous to play, but had Arizona won that game - perhaps Arizona would have won Pac 12 champion. I recall from when Sean Miller's contract was revealed (thanks FOIA sunshine laws), there was a significant cash bonus he would receive for winning the tournament, much less the $25,000 he got fined for bringing the whole thing to light. That's grand theft type of numbers, I wonder if lawyers are chewing on that. As it was the Pac 12 supervisor of officials who is looking pretty bad, could the Pac 12 be held liable for all that jack,. OF course they will boil it down to a "he said" type argument. Not a sane man alive would think he was joking, but proving that legally. Which is the real crime, this shows refs can rig a game, and suffer nothing. And once public perception is that college basketball is about as fair and honest as pro wrestiling...

Continuing on the What If train - what if that meant a change in seeding for Arizona in the NCAA, what if that changed UCLA's seed, or removed them from the tournament altogether. Just goes to show one corrupt call at the wrong time can have lots of consequences.

[paulxu]

And I still have no idea why this Rush guy had a gripe with Sean Miller.

[waggy]

Probe: No further Pac-12 sanctions (http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/9335514/investigation-pac-12-officials-issues-calls-no-further-sanctions)


According to sources, the investigation and the subsequent issue has strained the relationship between Byrne, Miller and Scott.