<p>Iowa should have been called for pass interference in the first half. That cost Michigan a long pass and possibly a TD. The real crime was the TD that was ruled incomplete on third down of the last drive. I really like this team though. I think we will finish the season 8-4…perhaps even 9-3.</p>
<p>Last play was pass interference too. Regardless, the play calling of those last 4 plays was pathetic.</p>
<p>The touchdown that they called incomplete was ****ing ridiculous… so was the fact that the refs couldn’t see the pass interference when even I could (and that’s saying a lot)…</p>
<p>What’s also pathetic is Denard’s long pass attempts when he’s off by a ****ing mile and the fact that he’s our qb… he should run… that’s it.</p>
<p>And I don’t care what anybody says, you can go and quote his stats from last season or this season all you want, but when it comes down to a team that doesn’t blow huge ****, he’s below average at best</p>
<p>edit: oh yeah… you know you ****ed up at calling plays when even I wonder why we aren’t trying to run the ball at least once… it’s denard robinson, don’t let him throw the fua;ldkfj ball</p>
<p>SadPanda, the score would have been 22-24 had the third down TD been called properly. Whether Michigan would have converted the two points, we’ll never know, but at the worst, the score should have been 22-24.</p>
<p>The refs didn’t cheat Alexandre, they were/are simply inept. This is nothing new for the B1G10. The refs have stunk for years.</p>
<p>RJK, that was clearly a TD and as such, the ref who reviewed the play cheated, plain and simple. He should be investigated and never be allowed to cheat a team out of a victory. In this day and age, one loss can cost a team millions of dollard and top recruits. He should not longer be retained by the conference. Personally, I think Michigan should sue him. He was sufficiently competent to overturn Vince Smith’s TD but not to overturn the imcomplete rulling? He knew exactly what he was doing.</p>
<p>The problem with officiating is that when they rule with an opinion that they’re just calling as their first guess, and they assume the issue is pretty debatable, the fact that it is debatable ruins it since it implies that the ruling is uncertain.</p>
<p>And since the ruling is uncertain, it comes down to opinion. That opinion should be made, from scratch AFTER all the evidence is reviewed. Throw out the initial ruling, come up with an opinion after the logic has been decided.</p>
<p>uh huh yeah; this isn’t a catch :eek: (watch the whole clip including the last one from the other angle so you can see he also held on to the ball). And yes, kobudnik, the last play was interference and the 1st half interference was a mugging. But, Denard, you have to hit a wide open Roundtree - that may have been a touchdown.</p>
<p>[Did</a> Michigan Get Screwed On This Endzone Non-Catch? | SportsGrid](<a href=“Sport Betting Advice & Tips | Best Sport Bets Today | SportsGrid”>Sport Betting Advice & Tips | Best Sport Bets Today | SportsGrid)</p>
<p>I’m with rjk on this one. Bad officiating ≠ cheating. If the officials were cheating would they have called that Vincent Smith play a touchdown? Could you imagine if there were no replay officials to overrule that one?</p>
<p>It appears that Michigan is still in trouble if we play against a defense that makes Denard one dimensional. Iowa was able to contain him on the ground and his aerial attack was borderline pathetic.</p>
<p>Even if the Hemmingway pass were ruled a catch - I think it was a catch but it was difficult to tell if he had possession when the ball hit the ground - the conversion attempt likely would have failed since a conversion attempt is no different than 4th and goal from the three and we are not able to convert a touchdown from the three on the two succeeding plays.</p>
<p>I don’t fault Hoke for his play calling. We had 16 seconds and he got four chances out of it. Anything other than a pass to the endzone could have run out the clock. I think on 4th down I would have tried something more like a screen or run pass option or a Denard run.</p>
<p>The next week three weeks will be interesting. We could win all three or lose all three. I suspect we will win one or two. Hopefully tOSU will go down.</p>
<p>The team is definitely making progress especially on defense. When Hokes recruits start taking the field I think the difference will be noticeable. I don’t think Denard will see the promised land but he is an amazing athlete, a team player and a wonderful representative for U-M.</p>
<p>res ipsa, I appreciate your sense of fair play. It certainly sounds cooler to rise above accusing some schmuck of being a cheat. But I am sorry,Hemmingway’s catch was a TD. The college football rule is simple. If the WR does not drop the ball and his knee or foot is inbound before the ball hits the ground, it is a TD. In Hemingway’s case, the ball remained in his hands until it hit the ground. It did not wobble or drop, it remained with his hands until it hit the ground. In football, the ground cannot cause a fumble. Since Hemingway’s knee was inbound before the ball hit the ground, it was a TD. The ref saw it as did everybody in the nation. As such, one can only assume that he cheated. And why would a ref who cheated against Michigan in one call cheat in favor of Michigan in another? That would not make sense. When calls favored Michigan (such as the Vincent Smith TD), they were reversed. When calls favored Iowa (such as the Hemingway incomplete pass and a couple of daylight pass interference), they stood.</p>
<p>It is bad enough that Michigan does not have depth to support Hoke’s brand of football. We are playing a bunch of hurt players and a bunch of freshmen on the road against a good team such as Iowa. Having the refs on somebody’s payroll to cheat against us does not help.</p>
<p>I have watched Iowa football for nearly 50 years. I have seen many plays (e.g, offensive pushing off by Wolverine receivers) not called and go Michigan’s way when games have been played in Ann Arbor</p>
<p>I thought it was a touchdown. Alexandre’s description was spot-on</p>
<p>^^^^Which just goes to show that B1G10 refs are awful.</p>
<p>Michigan is definitely improving under Hoke. I’m afraid we really won’t see a marked improvement in our won-loss record until 2013. The schedule for next year, particularly on the road, is just brutal!</p>
<p>I agree RJK. I will be happy with a couple of 9-4 seasons in 2011 and 2012. Even 2013 won’t be great…perhaps 10-3. But look out in 2014 and especially 2015. Same with BBall.</p>
<p>After seeing the replays, I think the refs made the right call about the incomplete pass. The ground supported the ball, as shown at 3:14 in this video.</p>
<p>[Highlights:</a> Michigan vs. Iowa , 2011 - YouTube](<a href=“- YouTube”>- YouTube)</p>
<p>We shouldn’t have even relied on that play though. Not one time did we roll Denard out. On 4th down the best we could come up with was a quick pass? Why not have Denard roll to the right, giving him a few receivers to choose from with the possibility of simply running it in himself? 4 plays and we couldn’t complete a pass for two yards. We didn’t only lose because of cheating refs, although that 4th down play was pass interference as I said.</p>
<p>^^^^Hoke saw the replay too. I am sure he feels differently than you do too. As a matter of fact he said so:</p>
<p>[Michigan</a> Wolverines | Junior Hemingway’s play was a catch, Michigan’s Brady Hoke says | The Detroit News](<a href=“Detroit Local News - Michigan News - Breaking News - detroitnews.com”>Detroit Local News - Michigan News - Breaking News - detroitnews.com)</p>
<p>Brady Hoke doesn’t strike me as a whiner. Refs make mistakes. That was a bad call.</p>
<p>Kobudnik, Hemmingway caught the ball, he had control of it and he scored a TD. That’s a fact. If it was not a catch, you would have seen the ball move in the air. It didn’t. It was stationary. Just because the angle showed part of the ball protruding does not mean the ball was not caught. Iowa is a strong team with a great Defense. Iowa City is a tough place to play. Michigan is very young (5 freshmen playing on D) and pretty banged up. The fact that were were just 1 TD down is pretty impressive. It proves how awesome our coaches are. Winning such a game requires a a lot of effort, and having cheating refs is not acceptable. And yes, it was cheating. In the 90s, when refs had to rely on their eyes to make close calls, such a decision would have been perfectly acceptable. But these days, the facts are laid before you. I said it from the start, Michigan should demand an investigation and legal action to be taken. This could have cost Michigan millions of dollars, and I want my pound of flesh.</p>
<p>I agree about the play calling though. On 4th down, Michigan should have tried something a little different.</p>
<p>When I look at the video that I posted and go to 3:14 it does not look like he has complete control before the ball touches the ground.</p>
<p>I disagree kobunik. I saw the footage many times. Hemmingway’s wrist is beneath the ball and the ball was firmly in his hands. It was a definite catch. The ball was not wobbling or moving and he was not juggling.</p>