You know, when you read an opinion that's firmly planted with a certain belief regarding a particular topic, sometimes it becomes nauseous. That's what Clark Judge did, when supporting the current NFL overtime system. Not only did he bluff you into thinking that the current system, which suggests accepting a little game by Harvey Dent, is good, but he simply blows away alternatives that could be suggested; even using college football's overtime to increase the validity of his point.
Judge writes that, "There have been 432 regular-season games that have gone to overtimes since the rule was adopted in 1974, with the team that received the kickoff winning 30 percent of the time after one series. That means 70 percent of the time each club had at least one possession."
Three out of every ten overtimes creates this monster. Change it to the college system, muses (and quickly deflects) Judge.
For one, the scores can be ridiculous, and the games can turn into marathons, with never-ending overtimes exhausting defenses that eventually run out of gas. Second, in going to the NCAA plan you eliminate special-teams performers like Johnnie Lee Higgins and Kassim Osgood and punters like Mike Scifres, Shane Lechler and Brian Moorman.
But isn't the point to win the game? Equal opportunity. Competition. That dreadful word that the NFL carries around when it best suits them: parity. Who cares how long it takes? Why are we so restricted on what's good for everyone else but the game that's being played. A playoff game no less.
Once Team A has possession (whether they score or not), Team B gets a shot. If the score is tied afterwards, then it's sudden death. It's not a hard concept to employ. And there's no argument that Judge could make that convinces us it wouldn't work; it would appease everyone. In fact, if such an argument would be made, then we fear the power of the coin is too great to persuade otherwise.
Moving on.
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