The Dumbest Rule In Sports

I’m asking for your opinion today. What do you think is the absolute worst rule in all of sports? (Please avoid submitting anything related to Calvinball).

My vote goes to the NCAA rule that I dub “down without contact”. A player can slip and fall when he is twenty yards from the nearest opposing player, and by rule he is down at that spot. The the Texas-Nebraska Big XII championship game, this happened to a Texas kick returner at a very late stage in the game, and pinned Texas deep in their own territory.

Seriously. These guys are elite athletes. Let them jump back to their feet and continue to run until someone actually tackles them.

OK, your turn – what’s your least favorite rule?

2 Comments
Sports
Dumb Rules, Football

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Kosmo is the founder of The Soap Boxers and writes on a variety of topics. Many of his short stories have been collected into Kindle books.

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Martin Kelly
Dec 27, 2009 @ 21:55:11

My dumb rule comes from the NBA. Travelling. By itself it is not dumb, just the application. When a star can take up to four steps, including ducking under another player, and there is no call, then it is a dumb rule.

Evan @
Dec 28, 2009 @ 15:21:18

I’ll have to go with an NBA rule as well, although I’ll admit I don’t really follow the league. I got turned off several years ago watching the finals, involving the Lakers. I was befuddled that Shaq was allowed to turn his back to the net, and just use his backside to push everyone away as he slowly backed up to the net, boom boom boom (basically muscling everyone out of his path using his backside) and then laid the ball in the net. Wow. Excitement.
.-= Evan @´s last blog ..Top 5 Web Apps of 2009 =-.
Total Comments by Evan @: 104