Benny Snell’s unnecessary ejection is cause for review
By Drew Koch
During the second quarter of the Music City Bowl, UK’s star running back Benny Snell was ejected for ‘contact with an official’. The loss of Snell crippled UK’s chances of winning their first bowl game of the Mark Stoops’ era.
The Music City Bowl was marred by controversy. Benny Snell‘s ejection was only one of a handful of horrible calls made by Chris Coyte and his crew. After ‘contact with an official’, Kentucky’s best player was ejected from the Music City Bowl. Review of the incident clearly showed no intent on the part of Snell to purposefully ‘go after’ or harm the official. In fact, the referee reached out and put his hands on Snell first.
Neither the official nor Snell meant any harm by their gestures. That being said, Snell’s rejection of the official’s assistance led to an unnecessary ejection. This was a case of the official getting his ‘feelings hurt’ because Snell refused his help. The referee’s childish reaction of ejecting Snell is cause for the NCAA to discipline the official.
Let me be clear, Snell could have handled the incident a little more gracefully. However, after being gang-tackled by several Northwestern players on a play that could’ve been flagged for unnecessary roughness, the last thing Snell wants is the official, who didn’t throw a flag on the late hit, to help him up.
https://twitter.com/benny_snell/status/946919836529102848
Let’s go beyond just the ejection. Benny Snell is Kentucky’s best offensive player. The Wildcat’s game plan all season has been a steady dose of Benny Snell. Snell had gone over 100 yards seven times this season and accounted for an SEC-leading 18 rushing touchdowns. No offense to Sihiem King, but he’s not going to replicate Snell’s presence on the field.
Stewart Mandel of The Athletic gave a record of Coyte’s reason for ejecting Snell:
The ref who tossed Benny Snell from the Music City Bowl gives his "explanation." pic.twitter.com/r2KzfPX3F2
— Stewart Mandel (@slmandel) December 30, 2017
Now, all of Big Blue Nation knows that’s a lie. Frankly, so does anyone who’s seen the replay. I think any sports fan knows that the human error is part of the game. However, missing a call on the field is one thing, allowing your ego affect the outcome of a game is something completely different. The NCAA needs to hold the officials accountable, just as the officials hold the players responsible.