Ed Hochuli is very frowny after the disaster in Denver

[Wolf]

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/blog/shu...urn=nfl,108018

According to NFL supervisor of officials Mike Pereira, Ed Hochuli is "devastated" at what went down in Denver on Sunday. If you missed it, Hochuli made an inexplicable mental gaffe--I won't call it a "blown call" or "missed call" because I think it goes a little beyond that--that almost directly cost the Chargers a loss against the Broncos.

From Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union Tribune:

No one, it appears, is taking the mistake and its ramifications harder than Hochuli.

"He's devastated," said Mike Pereira, the NFL's supervisor of officials. "... I was talking to Ed within 10 minutes after the game was over, and he was sick. He's still sick (yesterday).

"Everybody works so hard and wants to be perfect in a game you're not likely to ever be perfect. I've talked to him three times. He's really struggling with the fact he made such a bad call."

Hochuli's also manning up and taking his e-mail lumps. His e-mail address isn't hard to find with a simple Yahoo! search, and he's been bombarded with hate mail. And still, he's replying to everyone. Someone relayed the following reply from Hochuli to a message board at the San Diego Union Tribute.

Football is my love. I freakin live, eat, sleep football.



That said...People need to lighten up...It's just a damn game...

He's been one of the best Refs for a long time now...I love how he calls games...He's human, he made an error...I don't think the man should feel sick about it....

[GP]

I don't feel sorry for him, nor for the refs or the ref union or the league officials one bit.

They cost teams. They cost teams because they fail to reverse calls, even when the video evidence convicts them (example: The sideline judge giving a first down spot to Schaub, and then walking it back. and then seeing the video and seeing PLAINLY that Schaub had surged forward past the marker. Easily. Uh, hello?). People rag on Kubiak for throwing the challenge flag, but he was right to do it. He was right, guys.

We got screwed on a play clock mistake, in the past. It had ran down to zero and stayed there a tick or two, but the opponent was allowed to snap the ball and we lost because of it. I mean, this is the EASIEST call in the world to make: Did the ball snap as it hit ZERO on the big clock thingey at the end of the field, or did it not?

And when they are told that they screwed up, they seem to always act like they know better than us--That they are above it all. Pereira is the biggest homer goon of all: He is a human shield for the refs' mistakes. Consistently.

They only admit this one because there is absolutely nowhere to hide, and it was a star-studded matchup of two well-known teams. There'd be no aplogizing or "feeling sick" if it had been done to our team, I can guarantee you that.

Awww, poor Eddie feels sick? That's a shame. He never screws up, but I guess he's allowed one mess-up out of the billions of calls he's made. There should be a superior to the head ump, posted in the press box, and the superior should be able to stop the game (for HOWEVER long, it doesn't matter) to sort out these sorts of issues as they happen on the field.

Ya'll might think that it would create a lot of havoc, but right now the refs on the field are allowed to interpret the rules as they see fit. There needs to be a guy removed from the chaos of the field, a guy who can view the refs' calls and stop the game and say "Uh, no. That's a B.S. call right there. Ed, can you hear me? Reverse it. Now." I think it'd make the refs a little bit more careful when they go to turn on their wireless mic to announce what spectacular penalty interpretation they have on a certain bogus call that turns the tide of a game.

I think these refs get a little caught up in their role, IMO.

[Double Barrel]

They need to make these refs full time employees of the NFL. Not that this has anything to do with this story, but just thought I'd mention it since the thread is about NFL refs.

[El Tejano]

Originally Posted by GP

There'd be no aplogizing or "feeling sick" if it had been done to our team, I can guarantee you that.

Dude you so read my mind and posted it before me.

What else makes me tick is when you see Peyton Manning getting nailed and all dizzied by the Minnesota defense and then a ref comes to help him up and then puts his arm around him as he walks Petyon to the bench and then slaps him on the butt before he goes back to the game.

P.S. I still haven't forgotten the ref that called Mike Renfro out of bounds in the 78 AFC Championship vs. Pittsburgh. I was 3!

[DiehardChris]

If it had happened to our team, I'd be pissed - but I'd also be saying "we had two chances to stop them from winning the game, on 4th down, and on the 2pt conversion."

[disaacks3]

Personally, I'm glad to hear that Ed is "sick about it". It might mean he actually cares about the ramifications of his work.

He's "manned up" and taken the abuse far more diligently than many of his peers and that IS to be commended.

As has previously been mentioned (and I HATE to say it), but...I too think that if it had been the Texans on the short end of the stick, nobody would care except us "whiny folks in H-Town". Regarding Kubes' throwing the challenge flag against Pittsburgh - I watched the replays of that entire series and on two of the final three plays, we were HOSED on the spot of the football. Hometown penalties are one thing, but bad spotting starts making me wonder if a guy in stripes has $$$ on the outcome.

[kastofsna]

better than the baseball umps that say "pfft i made the call and that's the way it is, period." Hochs owns

[kastofsna]

Originally Posted by DiehardChris

If it had happened to our team, I'd be pissed - but I'd also be saying "we had two chances to stop them from winning the game, on 4th down, and on the 2pt conversion."

pretty much. there were a bunch of plays after the bad call. like there were plenty of chances for the Raiders to stop the Patriots after the tuck rule call

[toronto]

Originally Posted by El Tejano

Dude you so read my mind and posted it before me.

What else makes me tick is when you see Peyton Manning getting nailed and all dizzied by the Minnesota defense and then a ref comes to help him up and then puts his arm around him as he walks Petyon to the bench and then slaps him on the butt before he goes back to the game.

P.S. I still haven't forgotten the ref that called Mike Renfro out of bounds in the 78 AFC Championship vs. Pittsburgh. I was 3!

Who was that sidejudge in the game? I was 6

[hollywood_texan]

Originally Posted by Double Barrel

They need to make these refs full time employees of the NFL. Not that this has anything to do with this story, but just thought I'd mention it since the thread is about NFL refs.

How many businesses have employees that only work about 20 days out of the year consistently for 10 to 20 years consecutively?

People like this work as consultants or contractors for stuff like this in business world.

From the big picture and grand scheme of things, it probably just doesn't make good business sense to make these refs full-time employees.

[dtran04]

Ed Hochuli just better hope that the Chargers don't miss out on the playoffs by 1 game...

[Showtime100]

The guy made a mistake and owns up to it. For those of you on his back, get off it. If you can't see your way clear to do that I wish you luck in your perfection.

[GP]

Originally Posted by Showtime100

The guy made a mistake and owns up to it. For those of you on his back, get off it. If you can't see your way clear to do that I wish you luck in your perfection.

For me, this is more about the overall arrogance of NFL referees...as well as the referee "association" that props them up when they make a bad call.

Seeing a ref owning up to it, for a change, is nice.

This is less about the issue of perfection, and more about the issue of the ref being humble and acting like it's POSSIBLE he got it wrong and needed the video to review and correct the bad call. It's almost as if the refs are tired of replay, and the challenge it poses to their authority, and they're slowly saying "Screw replay. My call stands. So, like it..."

It's getting to the point that you know dang well that the ref isn't going to review the video on a coach's challenge and thereby overturn a wrong call that a ref made.

I am not bragging here, but I KNEW deep within my soul that the ref wasn't going to overturn the bad spot on the 4th down play vs. Steelers. I laughed when the ref trotted over to the camera...because I knew he'd trot right back out and prop up the bad call. In spite of the c-l-e-a-r evidence that showed the line judge giving the correct spot and then frantically shuffling backwards to make the ball come up juuuuuuust short.

Some fans might have been cheering when the challenge flag was thrown. Even the TV commentators were watching the replays, during the challenge, and were in full agreement that Schaub surged well past the marker. But I wasn't shocked when the call stood.

They are like the mafia: Crafty and protective of their own little gang.

You won't catch me giving an ounce of sympathy to those guys. A lot of times, they intentionally (for whatever reason: monetary or just psychological) turn games single-handedly at juuuust the right moment and influence the game to take a neat little twist.

How many times is there a holding call, on the offense, when the ball carrier gained 2 or 3 yards? But the RB runs for a big gainer, or even a TD, and POP! there goes the flag. It's even worse when the holding call was 30-yards away from the play...big deal! There's a human desire to influence matters that are important to others, and I think the average NFL ref learns real quickly that he can play God for a few hours on Sunday.

Our anger is not unfounded nor unwarranted. There's a reason they make little referee dolls with the arms and legs that are velcro'd on so you can vent during a game. And while I wouldn't wish "real" violence upon a ref...all I ask for is an accountability system that truly works and does its job, not one that shields its refs from scrutiny.

[Wolf]

Originally Posted by toronto

Who was that sidejudge in the game? I was 6

I don't know, jim tunney is all I remember and he might have been the head ref.. I just remember as an 9 year old that i couldn't believe it

and hated the guy (whether he was the messenger or not, i don't remember) because of it

[Wolf]

I hate HATE the "whistle was blown" call that refs use.. how many replays do we see (for example) of a fumble . and on instant replay the knee is not down and the ball comes out.. however the refs say "whistle was blown" BS .. on that quick call is what i say, only superman with his vision and hearing could tell if the knee hit the ground and when the ball came out.. I despise that call every time. because NO ONE is that quick and if they are , they aren't letting the play finish

[GP]

While we're at it...

Why does the ref have to trot over to a BOOTH to see the replay?

In this day of technology, shouldn't he have an iPod or a small gadget that he carries, like a Blackberry'ish video player on his hip (in a holster), so that he can snag it and see the replay right where he's at?

Just a quirky thing, to me.

We got satellites beaming music and video to a teenager on his iPod, in a flash, but an NFL ref has to run over to a booth and look at a replay while wearing the big-ass padded headphones.

[GP]

Originally Posted by Wolf

I hate HATE the "whistle was blown" call that refs use.. how many replays do we see (for example) of a fumble . and on instant replay the knee is not down and the ball comes out.. however the refs say "whistle was blown" BS .. on that quick call is what i say, only superman with his vision and hearing could tell if the knee hit the ground and when the ball came out.. I despise that call every time. because NO ONE is that quick and if they are , they aren't letting the play finish

Which brings up a point: Why doesn't the NFL REVERSE this issue?

All they gotta' do is rescind the "blown whistle" rule, and say that it CAN be reviewed and overturned.

I mean, what's so sacred about this? Action stops for a whole host of reasons, and so why is the "Yeah, but the whistle blew" this big of a deal when it comes to making the right call?

The whistle blows at the end of a running play when the ref had thrown a flag for holding DURING the play...but it doesn't negate the holding penalty.

It's almost as if this rule is meant to be an "Ah HAH! Gotcha! You can't overturn it because you blew the whistle."

Freaking amazing, if you ask me.

[kastofsna]

Originally Posted by GP

For me, this is more about the overall arrogance of NFL referees...as well as the referee "association" that props them up when they make a bad call.

Seeing a ref owning up to it, for a change, is nice.

This is less about the issue of perfection, and more about the issue of the ref being humble and acting like it's POSSIBLE he got it wrong and needed the video to review and correct the bad call. It's almost as if the refs are tired of replay, and the challenge it poses to their authority, and they're slowly saying "Screw replay. My call stands. So, like it..."

It's getting to the point that you know dang well that the ref isn't going to review the video on a coach's challenge and thereby overturn a wrong call that a ref made.

I am not bragging here, but I KNEW deep within my soul that the ref wasn't going to overturn the bad spot on the 4th down play vs. Steelers. I laughed when the ref trotted over to the camera...because I knew he'd trot right back out and prop up the bad call. In spite of the c-l-e-a-r evidence that showed the line judge giving the correct spot and then frantically shuffling backwards to make the ball come up juuuuuuust short.

Some fans might have been cheering when the challenge flag was thrown. Even the TV commentators were watching the replays, during the challenge, and were in full agreement that Schaub surged well past the marker. But I wasn't shocked when the call stood.

They are like the mafia: Crafty and protective of their own little gang.

You won't catch me giving an ounce of sympathy to those guys. A lot of times, they intentionally (for whatever reason: monetary or just psychological) turn games single-handedly at juuuust the right moment and influence the game to take a neat little twist.

How many times is there a holding call, on the offense, when the ball carrier gained 2 or 3 yards? But the RB runs for a big gainer, or even a TD, and POP! there goes the flag. It's even worse when the holding call was 30-yards away from the play...big deal! There's a human desire to influence matters that are important to others, and I think the average NFL ref learns real quickly that he can play God for a few hours on Sunday.

Our anger is not unfounded nor unwarranted. There's a reason they make little referee dolls with the arms and legs that are velcro'd on so you can vent during a game. And while I wouldn't wish "real" violence upon a ref...all I ask for is an accountability system that truly works and does its job, not one that shields its refs from scrutiny.

wow, so much illogical unfounded nonsense packed into one post

[GP]

Originally Posted by kastofsna

wow, so much illogical unfounded nonsense packed into one post

That's your opinion.

Mine is that we can stop with the phoney sympathy for the "poor refs who need our prayers and support right now," and the "Hey, everybody makes mistakes" reasoning.

I've seen genuine "mistakes," which don't bother me. And I have seen blatant neglect of sound judgment. The latter occurs more than the former.