🏈 Are they going for Tua's knee?

[rick4bama]

[
Sophomore quarterback Tua Tagovailoa took a hit on his quad muscle and could not get the muscle loose because of the cold weather, according to the CBS Sports television broadcast.

"Tua could have gone back in the game if needed to," Alabama head coach Nick Saban said after the game. "He got hit low a few times out there today, and I think he got hit in the front of the knee, not the back, which is what his initial problem was. I think he's OK."
/QUOTE]

 

[50+yeartidefan]

I don't want to say they were intentionally trying to take his knee out. Maybe they were, maybe they weren't. Regardless of the intent that is clearly targeting though. Forcible contact with the crown of the helmet. And in this case it was only the crown of his helmet that connected to Tua so it's crazy that they missed it. He made no attempt to wrap up.

The sad thing is people will only focus on the phantom block in the back call that negated MSU's TD as if that would have won them the game. At least for that one you can logically see how the official made the mistake. Yes, it was a BAD CALL but this was a bad no call.

At full speed it definately looked like a block in back and when blockerthrough his hands up....thats a "I did it...hope nobody saw" .....

 

['65 Cobra]

Good- D was insane. So much for my concern with them at the first of the season. For us to win, they may have to play at that level in into January.

Halfway Bad- Passing game. Sacks, INT, fumbles, missed passes. They had a good D but we missed a lot of blocks and opportunities. Tua’s knee is what our season hangs on. I still say he has something more than a sprain. Today didn’t help since he was on the ground so much. His mobility is almost gone. His accuracy has taken and doesn’t seem to be recovering. Maybe wrong, but I blame it on the knee. I sure wish we’d forget about Vegas and sit Tua next week. Surely with Mac just handing it off we can win.

Ugly - Mac at QB, just plain scary. And not in a good scary kind of way. And O Line after first 2 possessions. That’s baby far the lowest yardage total we’ve had. Probably the most punts in a game. Funny stat, LSU punted for 388 yards last week, Miss State punted for 294 today. That’s almost 700 yards of punting by our opponents in 2 games.

Could it also be that there have been so many targeting calls with hits around the head and neck area that now coaches are coaching them to hit lower to avoid any risk or a targeting call?

There is nothing about that tackle that is proper form. It is spearing/targeting. It’s directed/aimed at his leg/knee. I have full belief it’s intentional with intend to injur.

Agree on the tackling technique but it is just hard for me to fathom that a competitor would go out and purposefully try and hurt someone. Respect your opponents and go out and compete against him and try to beat him but hurt him? Just not how I was taught to compete so hard for me to wrap my mind around that idea.

I prefaced my statement with maybe I am naive..

@mando - I totally understand your sentiment here, but as someone who played both football and lacrosse - two games with violence and heavy physical contact - some players absolutely do purposefully try to go after other players' known weak spots and, yes, injured areas. I'm not saying all players, but absolutely yes some players do indeed do just that. It's battle, it's gladiators, it's all fair in war type stuff. Again, not saying it's right or that I agree or that I ever even did that. But it does happen for sure.

On that play in particular, you will see the MSU player methodically alter his path and then directly aim his head at Tua's braced knee. He could have wrapped up the other leg and he could have turned his head off to one side, but he didn't. There is no doubt in my mind that the MSU intentionally went after Tua's braced knee with his helmet. No doubt. By rule, that fact that he used the crown of his helmet is also targeting and should have been flagged with an ejection.

 

[ColAngus]

If that’s not targeting, there’s no such thing.

 

[footballer]

# 3 dove, lowered his helmet and targeting Tua's lower body, spearing his quad with the crown of his helmet. He did this instead of going in to make a normal tackle. That should have been a targeting call in my opinion. It was a cheap dirty ass hit no matter how you look at it. Misshitty state was trying to assert that they were a more physicl team than we were. But physicality and cheap shots are two different things. I thought that LSU might go after Tua's knee because of the Devin White sitting out the first half, but I thought they played a much cleaner game than miserable Mishory and Misshitty state.

 

[Sgt. Lincoln Osiris]

I believe they are. Unfortunately the Bama hate is so great now and Tua is a big reason for it. I think that’s the nature of the beast, so to speak, in competition. You go for the other guys weakness.


I remember coach Stallings telling the team not to hurt Brett Favre when we played them. He had been in an automobile accident just prior to the game and was playing with broke ribs(?) or something.
We lost that game btw.

He had 6 feet of his lower intestine removed due to complications from the wreck injuries.

 

[footballer]

If a team's coaching staff is not teaching their players proper tackling technique or allowing for dirty cheap shots, they should be repremanded by the league.

 

[mando]

Hey I am all for hitting the QB for 4 quarters to effect his ability to perform. That is part of the game and what Bama does all the time. It is called effecting the QB and that is part of the strategy for all games. I still struggle with any competitor who honestly tries to go out and injure someone. If we were a coach and I found out one of my players did that they would not play for me ever again.

I did play ball in high school a long long time ago (80's). We were good enough to win a couple state championships. We never ever went out with the intent of hurting someone even against our hated rival school. Beat there butts, absolutely but no intent to injure. At the end of the game if your opponent won you went out and shook his hand and told him a good job and then went back to work.

I do know times are different now and maybe realistically that happens more than I realize. Going after someones knee which could cause them to not be able to play any longer just does not register with how I think.

None of my points are arguing that this was proper technique just intent.

 

[RollllTide!]

 

[Sgt. Lincoln Osiris]

CNS threw out the bug into the NCAA's ear about NFL rules protecting QBs in these types of instances in his post-game presser.

I think he's spot on. Our last 2 opponents KNEW Tua's knee was a potential issue and specifically targeted it whenever they got the chance.

I think a "QB targeting" rule needs to be applied for cases like this.

The hit in question ITT is CLEARLY targeting. Player should be flagged and ejected when he launches like that.

 

[BamaSon25]

Is that a football play?

It was actually targeting by rule...

“No player shall target and make forcible contact against an opponent with the crown (top) of his helmet. This foul requires that there be at least one indicator of targeting (See Note 1 below). When in question, it is a foul.”

It doesn’t have to be to the neck or head area. Should have been flagged and called. Player made forcible contact with crown of helmet AND meets item #4 in note 1.

“

• Lowering the head before attacking by initiating forcible contact with the crown of the helmet”

Refs sucked in the last two games.

CORRECTION : 2 Decades.

 

[mrchase]

 

[UAgrad93]

Cheap shot and this isn't a part of the game. Slowing down to purposely lung efor the lower body and lead with the crown of the headgear was a bitch ass move. I'm all for affecting the QB by hitting him often, hard, and legally. This is just chicken shit!!! I wonder if that little punk ass State player actually came back over last night.

 

[T&B]

Is that a football play?

I could be mistaken, but If you go that low in the NFL it's a penalty.

 

[JoshB]

Is that a football play?

I could be mistaken, but If you go that low in the NFL it's a penalty.

It is but thats not a rule in college. For those saying it was targeting, I'm pretty confident that targeting is only a penalty if it's above the shoulders. It was cheap but clean IMO.

View attachment 10121

An angry Mack is a scary Mack.

 

[ColAngus]

It is but thats not a rule in college. For those saying it was targeting, I'm pretty confident that targeting is only a penalty if it's above the shoulders. It was cheap but clean IMO.

This is not true. Lowering the head and leading with the crown of the helmet to make “forcible contact” anywhere is defined as targeting.

 

['65 Cobra]

Is that a football play?

I could be mistaken, but If you go that low in the NFL it's a penalty.

It is but thats not a rule in college. For those saying it was targeting, I'm pretty confident that targeting is only a penalty if it's above the shoulders. It was cheap but clean IMO.

View attachment 10121

An angry Mack is a scary Mack.

'94 grad posted the language on the first page of this thread. There is nothing in there that says it has to be above the shoulders.

 

[UAgrad93]

Is that a football play?

I could be mistaken, but If you go that low in the NFL it's a penalty.

It is but thats not a rule in college. For those saying it was targeting, I'm pretty confident that targeting is only a penalty if it's above the shoulders. It was cheap but clean IMO.

View attachment 10121

An angry Mack is a scary Mack.

Player was ejected last night in the USC/Cal game I believe for leading with the crown into a players ribcage. The player was going down when he launched as well.

 

[Trob]

For those saying it was targeting, I'm pretty confident that targeting is only a penalty if it's above the shoulders. It was cheap but clean IMO.

That's not true at all. Hang on. Read the NCAA’s targeting rule.

 

[Elderfalsedemigod]

I am sorry but if you believe there are not players in the sport of football that intentionally try to hurt other players you live in a fairy tale world. It happened when I played in the 80s and it is still happening today. When I played (admittedly lower level) you did your best not to show if you had a leg or shoulder or ribs hurting cause they would dang sure aim for it.