Arizona State Sun Devils’ Dennis Erikson reprimanded
The Pac-10 has reprimanded Arizona State Sun Devils head coach Dennis Erikson for openly criticizing conference officials.
Erikson spoke to the Arizona Republic after the club’s game against the Stanford Cardinals on 13 November and criticized the officials for making a face-mask call late in the contest, which led to a 15-yard penalty and the Cardinals winning play.
The penalty was called on linebacker Vontaze Burfict, who was judged to have committed a face-mask on Cardinals’ receiver Doug Baldwin, when in fact he had grabbed the top of Baldwin’s jersey. After the call was made, Burfict apparently directed profanity
at the official and the penalty was bumped to 15-yards, putting Stanford in a good position to win the game with only six minutes left.
“The guy in the secondary made the call,” Erikson told the Arizona Republic after the game. “The action was in front of him. They’re supposed to get together.”
The Pac-10 was displeased with Erikson’s decision to go to the media with the complaint and stands by their official, despite the fact that they agree the face-mask call was incorrect.
“Regardless of the circumstances, the Pac-10 has clear and specific rules that prohibit our coaches from making public comments about officiating,” Pac-10 commissioner Larry Scott said in a statement. “There are protocols in place that provide our coaches
with the opportunity to grade officials each week and to privately voice their concern to the conference office. We expect each Pac-10 coach to adhere to the conference protocol and policies.”
The loss to Stanford was a particularly difficult one for the Sun Devils to swallow as it took them out of bowl eligibility. The squad currently sits at 4-6 with a 2-5 record against conference opponents with only two games left in the season.
The Sun Devils will be back in action on 26 November when they take on the UCLA Bruins.
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