SEC’s decision to not suspend Dial sends wrong message
Aaron Murray crumbles after helmet-to-helmet hit by Alabama's Quinton Dial. (Curtis Compton/AJC)
If Alabama goes on to defeat Notre Dame in the BCS championship game, there’s a pretty good chance that Quinton Dial will play only a minor role. So the problem with what happened Friday is not that the SEC just gave Alabama some unfair advantage by avoiding suspending one of its players — the problem is that it is sending mixed messages about how much it really cares about head injuries in football.
Or are hits to the head only important when it’s convenient?
After reviewing three plays from the SEC championship game between Georgia and Alabama, most notably Dial’s helmet-to-helmet hit on Bulldogs quarterback Aaron Murray, the conference declined to issue any suspensions, releasing a statement that said, “After review, all subsequent action will be handled internally by the two institutions and the conference office is satisfied with their actions.”
To translate: The SEC will allow Alabama coach Nick Saban to decide whether to suspend one of his defensive ends for the national championship game. Insert laugh track.
Now, before we jump into the obvious conspiracy theories — 1) Is SEC commissioner Mike Slive just doing whatever he can to ensure the conference wins its seventh straight BCS title; and 2) Will he be mowing Nick Saban’s lawn after the game? — let’s give equal time to the game’s infractions. Steve Shaw, the SEC’s director of officials, also reviewed a roughing-the-passer penalty on Georgia’s Alec Ogletree and deemed it not worthy of a suspension. He also looked at Sheldon Dawson’s attempted eye-gouge of Alabama’s Dee Millner following a kickoff return. Again, no suspension.
Shaw said Dial's hit should've been a penalty but didn't rise to level of suspension. (AP photo)
But Dial’s second-quarter helmet-to-helmet hit on Murray — see video below –easily was the most flagrant foul in the game, made worse by the fact that no flag was thrown. Murray had just had a pass intercepted by Alabama’s Ha’Sean Clinton-Dix at the Tide’s 18. During the return, Murray became a defensive player and Dial had the right to block him. But he came from out of view and collided with Murray helmet-to-helmet. CBS analyst Gary Danielson said, “Aaron Murray, you have to keep your head on a swivel, but that is just unnecessary roughness and a hit to the head …”
Shaw said Dial should’ve been called for a personal foul. “We should’ve flagged it,” he said, adding that an official who seemed to be looking at the play actually was focused on something else. (Note: Even if Dial was penalized, it would’ve affected field position but Alabama would’ve retained possession
Slive's SEC can win seventh straight BCS title. Conspiracy theorists: That was a factor. (AP photo)
because the hit came after the interception.)
The bigger issue here is why Dial is not being suspended. The SEC has suspended three other players for hits to the head, one last season for an Arkansas player’s hit on a punt returner; two this season for hits by Mississippi and South Carolina defensive backs against wide receivers. I spoke to Shaw for 30 minutes and he never would, or could, give specifics as to what prevented Dial’s hit from being considered worthy of a suspension.
He talked about the players in the other three situations being “defenseless.” He talked about the fact that Murray was technically a “defender.” He went on about how “our commissioner and really the SEC has been at the forefront of player safety.”
But when asked for specifics about what Dial would have had to do get suspended, Shaw spoke in grays.
“Do I condone hit? No. It’s something that should’ve been [penalized],” Shaw said. “But as for the acid test of the other one-game suspensions, overall it doesn’t rise to the same level.”
Here’s the problem: A conference either sets the bar on helmet hits and head injuries or it doesn’t. This looks fishy, especially given the proximity to BCS championship game.
When asked if this same decision would’ve been made in September, Shaw said, “My commissioner would say, ‘I don’t really go into hypotheticals.”
When told that left the door open to theories that Alabama and Dial were being given preferential treatment because of the title game, he again gave a vague response.
Finally when asked a third time if the impending BCS title game influenced the SEC’s decision to not suspend Dial, Shaw said, “No.”
But I’m less concerned about Quinton Dial than I am the seriousness of head injuries in football. With the blur of concussion-related litigation in the NFL and the suicides of several former players being tied to depression, dementia and other forms of brain damage resulting from head injuries, this is no time for inconsistent rulings from conference officials. There is too much at stake.
Yes, even more than a BCS title.
By Jeff Schultz
•
Here’s one YouTube view of Dial’s hit on Murray
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446 comments Add your comment
Grantham for Attorney General
December 14th, 2012
5:06 pm
“The eye gouging thing is sumpin’ we work on every day in practice. But we still have a lot of room for improvement though, Millner only missed two plays. We have to do better”.
Iluvnutella
December 14th, 2012
5:08 pm
Kid should sit…..nuff said.
Hillbilly D
December 14th, 2012
5:09 pm
There sure are some bad asses on these anonymous blogs.
Ringleader
December 14th, 2012
5:11 pm
The Pac 12 is furninshing the refs for the Championship game, who do you think will get the breaks from the refs, Ala or the Irish…………?
DollarDawg43
December 14th, 2012
5:11 pm
Uh Techster?
“Something else for dog fans to cry about. It looks like a late hit to me, but not a helmet penalty. Certainly not a suspension. But the dog fans will keep crying about it and using it as an excuse. Boo hoo hoo.”
How retarded are you? A late hit?! How could it be a LATE HIT when the play was still alive? You techies don’t know much about football do you?
dumazzdwag....
December 14th, 2012
5:11 pm
And then how about the head first body slam tackles the dumazzdwags put on GT ?? Punk azz football deserves punk azz football…The dumazzdwags seem to dish it out but can’t take it…What a bunch of dumazz pussies dem dwags are……..
Alphare
December 14th, 2012
5:12 pm
Didn’t Grantham bump Franklin’s head without a helmet last year? What did SEC do about that incident?
kme
December 14th, 2012
5:23 pm
To the following morons: TOGA, GATOR MIKE, ARCHIE. You dudes are the slime and armpits of the earth. There was no “leaning of Aaron Murray’s head” to Dial. Dial committed the ultimate foul…head-butting…and they should have flagged the play…and also, suspended Dial. No question…and the consistencies of penalties and punishment has been absolutely atrocious.
I sincerely hope that ND routs the hell out of Alabama…by at least 14-21 points…or even more
I can only hope that Georgia beats the crap out of Nebraska…take their “loss” to Alabama…and the score reads 48-10 or even more.
Alabama can drop out of the top 10 for all I care.
And I hope Georgia rises to the top 5 by 01/13.
GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO, DAWGS!
DOGGIE Reporters
December 14th, 2012
5:27 pm
How long will this go on– one day MB and then the next day JS. They just keep loading the sports page with their UGA “Whine Line” crap. Come on guys– get over. UGA will be back– it might be 30 years but they will be back. You guys are terrible. Moore and Bishop have you beat hands down.
@kme
December 14th, 2012
5:28 pm
Top 5? HA! Glad I hate the dawgs – stumping for those losers has to be a drag. RTR!!
PMC
December 14th, 2012
5:31 pm
Maybe they should just let Aaron Murray drop a concrete block off a building on him sometime out of nowhere, that would be fair.
Arm Tackles Galore
December 14th, 2012
5:33 pm
Eddie Lacy just broke another tackle
wayxbulldawg
December 14th, 2012
5:34 pm
bama tards are so ignorant it is hillarious. Must be all that inbreeding.
Paul in NH
December 14th, 2012
5:34 pm
DP
December 14th, 2012
3:52 pm
I put up a post with links to 2 of the hits that drew one game suspensions from the SEC in the last 2 years so people could compare them with Dial’s hit on Murray but for some reason my “comment is awaiting moderation”. I thought that only happened with Mark Bradley.
——-
I have had this happen to me. The issue is the AJC software – if you have more than 1 link in a post you get the dreaded “comment is awaiting moderation”. Try 2 separate posts with 1 link in each.
Right Call - Hit 'em again, harder, harder
December 14th, 2012
5:37 pm
Right call here! Maybe Mr. Murray will remember that we at Alabama play Big Boy Football – ROLL TIDE ROLL! Then again, maybe he won’t remember much at all after that lick.
Arm Tackles Galore
December 14th, 2012
5:39 pm
wayxbulldawg
December 14th, 2012
5:34 pm
“bama tards are so ignorant it is hillarious”
THIS HAS TO BE THE POST OF THE DAY!
GBurdell
December 14th, 2012
5:40 pm
he should have cut blocked him instead……
Arm Tackles Galore
December 14th, 2012
5:41 pm
Almost as funny as “your a looser”.
Man I love this blog!
Crybabies
December 14th, 2012
5:41 pm
Waaahhhhhhhh! This is football. Big time football. Don’t be such a wus Schultz and quite pandering to the whiny dwags.
Wet Willie...keep on smiling
December 14th, 2012
5:43 pm
Just spoke to a source close to the eye poker dawg player and he will have to miss a turn jumping in the pool in Orlando. Mark Richie is one tuff cookie when it comes to discipline no doubt. Just don’t ask him why he gets his azz handed to him everytime he plays someone other than Ole Miss.
5150 UOAD
December 14th, 2012
5:44 pm
Jeff you got IT……………Post a Blog about UGa getting Biotch slapped and you will get hits……UGa players NEVER…….NEVER…..NEVER…………talk Smack and make DIRTY hits………….LMMFAO…………………Fat PIG BEN JONES………….UGa fans talk SMACK about Fat PIG BEN JONES………….Fat PIG BEN JONES………….Fat PIG BEN JONES………….Fat PIG BEN JONES………….Fat PIG BEN JONES………….Get a GRIP you MUTTS your dWags SUCK and are DIRTY too………..Do you MUTT fans wipe you butt first then blow your nose with the same TP or do you blow your nose then wipe your butt? CRY you NAD LICKER BUTT SNIFFERS.
1969 Graduate
December 14th, 2012
5:45 pm
I saw what seemed to me to be a fairly bad “no call,” but I don’t see how it could justify a suspension.
I hope Alabama beats the stuffing out of Notre Dame, and I hope we beat the stuffing out of Alabama when we next play them.
In the meantime, let’s get geared up for Nebraska.
Go, Dawgs!
shakazulugator
December 14th, 2012
5:45 pm
That’s crap Jeff…..the hit was entirely legal. It was also unnecessary and dirty, but legal.
Mark richt is a hypocrite
December 14th, 2012
5:47 pm
Listen carefully and you can hear the sound of bulldogs whining
Roger Goddell
December 14th, 2012
5:51 pm
Jeff is spot on. This isn’t about wins or losses or whether football is a tough sport. It’s about player safety. You don’t lay down the punishment, you will pay the piper in damage to the sport and serious head injuries down the road. I’ve already fined this guy 50k if he makes to the league. I’ve got stones. Slive and the SEC boys obviously don’t.
Roger Goddell
December 14th, 2012
5:51 pm
Jeff is spot on. This isn’t about wins or losses or whether football is a tough sport. It’s about player safety. You don’t lay down the punishment, you will pay the piper in damage to the sport and serious head injuries down the road. I’ve already fined this guy 50k if he makes to the league. I’ve got stones. Slive and the SEC boys obviously don’t.
Roger Goddell
December 14th, 2012
5:56 pm
Dang, how does this Submit Comment button work?
JSS
December 14th, 2012
6:06 pm
Every time I start to worry about horrible current state of AJC blogging, Ted Strikers, Hillbilly D, Paul in NH, or Sonny Clusters posts something and the world is right again!
Columbus
December 14th, 2012
6:19 pm
@toga. It was a clean hit get over it? Then why does everybody on the planet except Bama fans say A) it was DEFINITELY a penalty and B) it WAS a helmet-to-helmet hit? How bout you get blindsided across the head with a baseball bat and you just get over it? No hard feelings OK? No jail time for the perp OK? We will just all get over it and move on and its all good when you are 40 years old and a bigger crazier unstable douchebag than you are now OK? OK then.
Columbus
December 14th, 2012
6:24 pm
BTW no dogs are whining. Nothing to whine about. Its about safety and sending a messge of protecting FUTURE players only. That hit and pay is over and dont matter. However I did hear you got your eyes and heart set on Honey Boo Boo when shes of marrying age….good for you and good luck with that @5:47.
You will be whining and moaning after she marries your daddy instead
Cam Newton + Nick Fairley
December 14th, 2012
6:45 pm
Phew!!!! Does this mean that Dwag fans will stop talking about and blaming us?!
justice in the SEC
December 14th, 2012
6:50 pm
After watching this hit, I think that it is the most blatant of all the SEC hits. DJ Sweringer hit, to me, was not as bad because he is a DB and he has a right to the ball. If the WR jumps and he defenceless, and the DB jumps for the ball, that action is not a LAUNCH.
There is no consistancy in the SEC nor is there any justice. Justice Cunningham had a helmet to helmet and the Vandy player was not suspended. Fishy, I don’t know, but unjust, yes.
78Dawg
December 14th, 2012
6:55 pm
Money talks…..
Mark richt is a hypocrite
December 14th, 2012
7:09 pm
Hey Columbus, does your wife still gave her tooth?
Dewnsav
December 14th, 2012
7:12 pm
5150 uoad…you need a valium pal…what a hater…go dogs
gt69er
December 14th, 2012
7:17 pm
Legal block all the way. The only helmet to helmet contact was incidental when Murray’s head snapped forward after Dial’s shoulder & forearm blow to Murray’s chest. Some people will not be happy until they start playing flag football. Murray was lucky he did not have momentum of his own or he would have been hurt badly.
Jeff h
December 14th, 2012
7:21 pm
It certainly looks like selective enforcement by SEC on this play. I saw Swearinger hit from South Carolina and no worse than this hit and he was suspended a game. Looks like SEC taking care of the old guard and not hurting Bama in NC game.
Wet Willie...keep on smiling
December 14th, 2012
7:31 pm
The AD for UGA was out of line for taking this to the media and you can bet his azz got a earful from Mike (we are the King) Slive. The next Greg (king of the arrest) Mcgarity goes public with his batching will get him back in jail with DaSlive.
5150 UOAD
December 14th, 2012
7:37 pm
Looks like PMS MURRAY got his ToTo dirty.
01HAWK
December 14th, 2012
7:38 pm
WAH, WAH, WAH……………………………….No wonder you never get to a BCS Championship. You are to busy crying over spilled milk.
1. Ogletree hit…………………………..No suspension
2. Dawson poke in the eye………..No suspension
3. Dial jit…………………………………No suspension
What are you crying about…………………………………..2 flagrant fouls and neither one of your players will be suspended……………………………Why should SABAN suspend DIAL.
Go and put on a PAMPER PLEASE !!!!!!!!!
01HAWK
December 14th, 2012
7:46 pm
Aaron Murray………………………………When you get intercepted, please keep your head on a swivel. It is a known fact that Defensive players hate QB’s.
Wait til you get to the NFL. The hits will be harder.
You guys complain about everything………………………You had the schedule all lined up for you and you blew it……………………………You just did not plan on meeting BAMA.
BAMA lost 9 starters on defense and most of the DAWG fans stated that BAMA would be down and LSWHO was going to win the WEST. You were so wrong……………….again.
Get on with your life.
BleedCrimson
December 14th, 2012
7:46 pm
Murray was running towards a live Int Return. The hit was legal and was lead by his right shoulder. The helmet contact was incidental to the hit. Dial’s side of his helmet hit Murray’s helmet after the initial hit with his shoulder. Georgia is soft under Richt. Stop Crying Schutz….
C'mon Man
December 14th, 2012
7:50 pm
Y’all folks need to stop crying. IT’S FOOTBALL. If you don’t want your QB to get hit after he made a mistake, then tell him to LAY DOWN or QUIT PLAYING!
aladawg
December 14th, 2012
7:54 pm
This message is for Yep, Toga, Gator Mike, Burt hurt, Plunge, cotton, Ga Tech, DB, Wet Willie and Bo Duke. You guys and all others just like you in Alabama are all Schattipated, and totally irrelevant to this planet. You all are breathing air that some intelligent person could be breathing.
aladawg
December 14th, 2012
7:55 pm
That’s Butt Hurt
Laughingatthedawgs
December 14th, 2012
8:46 pm
Here we go again…………
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Contractor
December 14th, 2012
8:47 pm
Schultz and every other negative commentor,
You’re telling me Mr. Personal Foul Alec Ogletree has never hit anyone (mainly quarterback) like this, or Bacarri Rambo, or Shawn Williams? If I recall, Alec Ogletree had a blatant helmet to helmet in the game that got called, so you can’t answer no to the question above.
Aaron Murray was well within five yards of the return man, and he turned from a defenseless quarterback into a defensive player once the ball was turned over. It was not a dirty hit, just a heads up hit on a quarterback. Aaron Murray knows he has to have his head on a swivel. I didn’t notice a green non-contact jersey on him. Be sour about the loss all you want, but this kind of hit did not require a suspension, Alabama would have still retained the ball, and it’s over, so get over it. Y’all sound like little cry babies still bickering and moaning over this two weeks later, and still trying to make it an issue.
Truth
December 14th, 2012
8:55 pm
Fear the “Eye Poke”!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Truth
December 14th, 2012
8:59 pm
We’re hearing complaints from the most penalized team in the SEC. Yeah right!
from
December 14th, 2012
9:07 pm
junk yard dogs, GATA, to pussies, gotta love them ga fans