A referee’s decision regarding a targeting call in the Ohio State-Penn State game left fans as perplexed as they were angry.
During the second half of the Buckeyes’ 38-14 rout of Penn State, Ohio State safety Caleb Downs launched himself at the head and face area of a Penn State receiver in what appeared to be the textbook definition of targeting.
A flag for targeting was thrown, and, as is the practice, the referee went to review and confirm the call.
However, after review, the ref said there was no targeting.
NFL rules analyst Terry McAuley seemed apoplectic about the referee’s decision to pick up the flag.
“An absolutely ridiculous ruling by Replay to determine this is not a targeting foul. He literally launches and makes forcible contact to the head/neck area of a defenseless receiver. It would be Level 2 DQ in a 2-tier model,” McAuley wrote.
McAuley wasn’t alone in his bewilderment.
“Caleb Downs with the most BRUTAL targeting hit (overturned), launching himself into the head or neck area of a defenseless receiver. Nobody knows what targeting is. None of us,” another wrote.
“If we aren’t ejecting Caleb Downs for that hit, let’s just get rid of the ejection aspect of targeting,” another opined. “It’s dumb.”
Many other fans said they would love to hear the referees’ reasoning for not calling targeting on the play. Then again, it’s unlikely that any explanation for that call would make any sense.
