Review This

For the record, the odds of Notre Dame converting a 4th and 16 were slim. The odds of them converting that 4th down, then driving the field in 2 minutes and scoring a game-winning touchdown were slimmer. I expected Notre Dame to lose, and Pitt deserved to win. That said, the automatic review that overruled the on-field call of an incomplete pass and changed it to a fumble to decide the outcome of the game was terrible.

The biggest problem with this call is the referees immediately blew their whistles, signaling the play dead, and waived their hands for an incompletion. Thus, no Notre Dame player attempted to recover the "fumble" and even the Pitt player who did pick up up did so halfheartedly. This is the exact same situation as the opening drive against Navy where Robbie Parris was determined to fumble after a review overturned the on-field call of incomplete pass. Players are told to "play until the whistle". In both cases, the whistle blew and ended the play and in both cases Notre Dame was penalized for not continuing to play beyond the whistle. So now players are expected to anticipate how calls are going to be reviewed and risk penalties for continuing to play on after the whistle?

The college review system is severely flawed and HAS to change. If every play is reviewed, why are coaches given challenges? If Parris' fumble against Navy was really a fumble and every play is reviewed, why did it take a coaches challenged by Navy to get the play reviewed and eventually overtured? Did the review team look at at, determine the on-field call was correct, then look at it closer after the coach's challenge? If so, not only is this a indictment against the current system, it's an indication that the review teams are unqualified.

Notre Dame has benefited from as many review calls as they have been hurt this season, but that's not the point. The purpose of reviews is being abused and is having widespread effects across the college landscape. If you're going to automatically review every little minutiae in a game, why not review for penalties called or not called? Oh, because it becomes overbearing, slows down the flow of the game, and diminishes the role of on-field referees? Well, what do you think reviewing every f$%&ing spot and tip-toe on the sideline does? Worst still is the mysterious "review man" in his lofty booth, above reproach and scrutiny.

If you want reviews in college move to the NFL system, which seems to work just fine, thank you. Give the coaches a limited number of challenges and penalize with a timeout for those that fail. Make the on-field referees perform the actual review so there is accountability. If the system continues as is, games will continue to be decided in the booth rather than on the field, and that simply cannot continue to occur.