Sports rules you hate?

[ohiosmith]

Football: Quarterback spiking the ball or taking a knee.

[MrCoffee]

1. the DH

[ohiosmith]

2. you and me

[KG]

3. the DH is blasphemy, and i'm not even a baseball fan,

[Phillycat]

62. Looove the DH.

For obvious reasons. :D

[MrCoffee]

64. ahhh, the posterboy for the Never Going to Cooperstown club

[LSdemocrat]

92. I agree 100%

[madinmaryland]

4. The holding penalty in football.

x(

How many good drives are killed by that penalty! :grr:

[Burma Jones]

45. As a former Offensive Lineman, I thank you

If we got rid of holding, teams would score at least 100 points a game.....all you have to do is tackle your assigned guy, and that's pretty easy, especially when they're trying to find the ball carrier to tackle him.....

[meegbear]

Not being allowed to use guns or flamethrowers during the 7th inning stretch

[madinmaryland]

8. Just ban the 7th inning stretch altogether. I hate listening to some

moran who can't sing, try and sing a stupid song.

[Fox Mulder]

5. Pass Interference.

[maggies_boy]

82. For Sure!

Let em play! No blood, no foul!

[AllegroRondo]

6. taking a knee I can understand

you *have* to run a play, but just need to run out the clock and not move the ball.

but spiking? I thought the intentional grounding rule was supposed to get rid of that!

[Dr. Strange]

27. I think the idea is that

throwing the ball specifically to avoid a sack is intentional grounding. Spiking it to stop the clock is okay.

At least that's the theory.

[Deep13]

7. The rule that allows them to pre-empt other TV shows. n/t

[Tommy_Carcetti]

9. Infield fly rule!

That and what does and does not constitute a balk.

[MrCoffee]

12. balks piss me off...either call them consistently or do away with them entirely

since no umpires actually seem to know what the hell a balk is (or is not), i say do away with it.

[Oeditpus Rex]

51. They know what it is

You don't graduate from umpiring school without knowing the rules.

Thing is, there are pitchers known for sneaky pick-off moves, and there are umps who let them get away with it and others who don't. Then you'd get a guy like Luis Tiant, who seemed to balk on every pitch. Some umps would be like, "I don't know what the hell he's doing out there" and let it go, while others figured, "There's gotta be a balk in that move" and call it on general principle.

A whole lot of what goes on between umpires and players/managers is personal. Maybe it shouldn't be, but it is, and always has been.

If baseball got rid of the balk, it'd be like rush hour on Teflon anytime a runner was on first.

[HERVEPA]

16. Infield fly rule is required to prevent double plays by

fielder dropping the ball on purpose. It would be a farce without it.
It's only in effect when that can happen.

[MissMillie]

26. yep

it's a good rule.

[KitchenWitch]

77. I love the Infield Fly Rule.

I hate the rule that states that the batter is out if they lay down a bunt and on their way to first accidentally step on home plate.

[flvegan]

10. Not being able to run with the bat.

The second baseman would never turn the double play without losing a bodypart in the process.

[unpossibles]

11. broadcasting them during primetime cartoon slots.

come on. There are how many sports channels?

[Deep13]

13. Got that right! n/t

[Parche]

14. Quarterback taking a We Knee

:shrug: :hi:

[MrCoffee]

15. 12 round boxing matches

go back to 15...make them work for their money.

[HERVEPA]

17. Has it changed? Aren't championship matches still 15? (nt)

[IndianaJones]

19. no, it is unsafe for the fighters. nt.

[HERVEPA]

34. Still remember watching the fight 45 years ago where Emile Griffith

killed Benny "Kid" Paret.

Norman Mailer's account of it below.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_1-5-2004_pg3_6

[ohiosmith]

41. Did you see the ESPN special. It discussed all that led up to the fight including

Paret calling Emile a maricon.

[HERVEPA]

88. No, but read about it.

[MrCoffee]

20. it's been 12 since Ray Mancini killed that guy

[ohiosmith]

21. 25 years ago today.

[MrCoffee]

23. was it really? that's friggin' eerie, man.

[ohiosmith]

Yep. Big article in the Review Journal about it. Here:

http://www.lvrj.com/sports/11232441.html

[BOSSHOG]

35. The fight

was featured Sunday Morning on ESPN's Outside the Lines. Godawful fight (and I mean that in a good way.) Those two guys beat the hell out of one another but Boom Boom was just too strong in those latter rounds.

[ohiosmith]

37. I missed the ESPN broadcast. I watched the fight live on TV.

[MrCoffee]

39. i have a vague memory of seeing it on tv

[ohiosmith]

40. It was brutal man. Mancini never really recovered. It was like he always held back just a little.

[sasquatch]

55. Same thing happen to Emile Griffin

[ohiosmith]

95. You must've been in diapers. Youngster.

[pokerfan]

96. Yet after 75+ years of MMA....

only one documented death.
1000+ deaths due to boxing since 1900.

[Godhumor]

102. A lot of MMA fighters say its due to the different gloves

MMA gloves are pretty much designed to only prevent fingers from breaking while boxing gloves provide more in the way of padding. Rather ocunterintuitively, MMA fighters say that not having the extra padding means they get knocked a lot quicker and after much fewer punches than boxers, who can absorb a tremendous amount of blows to the head due to the thicker gloves.

I'm pretty meh on this Saturday's UFC show, but the 12/29 card looks incredibly stacked. Should be a fun night.

[pokerfan]

116. Exactly

The heavily padded gloves in boxing are designed to prolong the fight. And sadly, it increases the brain trauma. The paying public wants to be entertained for at least an hour.

Your typical MMA is either finished very quickly or it devolves into a couple a jiu jitsu technicians trying to find a submission hold, which is where I find the most interesting aspect of the sport.

I think that jiu jitsu borders on art.

I remember a 180 pound Royce Gracie fighting a 260 pound Dan Severin for 16 minutes while lying on his back before eventually choking Severin with his legs!

Pure artistry!

I have a couple of belts in karate (i.e. not a black belt) but I would suggest that anyone interested in self defense study jiu jitsu. Karate was great in teaching me to parry strikes while not getting freaked out but all fights end on the ground.

That said. If you are really interested in self defense (sans firearm), study the moves banned by the UFC and other MMA.

Self defense or the defense of your loved ones is obviously not a game or a competition.

So all of the below is fair game:
head-butting
eye gouging
biting
fish hooking
attacks to the groin
small joint manipulation

[LNM]

68. That was awful!

I saw that fight on TV. Never watched boxing again.

[edbermac]

18. Playing hockey on ice.

:7

[evlbstrd]

22. NFL overtime.

Absolutely wtetched. Use the college rules.

[AllegroRondo]

33. Just go to a field goal shootout

for one point per shot.
teams take turns kicking field goals, moving the ball 5 yards back every round. First team to miss loses.

[evlbstrd]

46. That's an interesting twist.

Since field goals usually decide OT anyway.

[javadu]

100. Add My Vote n/m

[LanternWaste]

24. Free agency and the salary cap in the NFL

Free agency and the salary cap in the NFL. Although probably good for the players, marketers and owners, the games and the rivalries of today simply don't have the excitement of the past (to me, at least..).

Blech.

[Rabrrrrrr]

25. That a half-educated jackass millionaire ball-handler gets more media attention

in one week than all the Pulitzer, Nobel, and Macarthur Genius Grant winners will get in a lifetime.

And that the average American could pull hundreds of irrelevant sports-based factoids out of their heads in a few minutes but can't find other countries on a map, say who their government representatives are, or list 10 classical composers, even if given an hour and web access.

And that the average school will cut music and arts education if its required to save the precious, worshipful sports programs, especially football. If it's a choice between fixing the anti-fire sprinkler system and inspecting the fire extinguishers, or getting new shoulder pads for the football team, the football team gets new shoulder pads and the drama guild and orchestra will be asked to do the fundraising for the capital improvement, because the football players are community heroes and the cheerleaders are busy blowing the football players and working their cocaine connections.

[flvegan]

31. I've never seen a pro-fire sprinkler system

Damn, you must've gone to a tough school.

[PVnRT]

54. Wagner, Stravinsky (sp?), Beethoven, Mozart, Ravel,

Chopin, Sousa (so he wrote marches, so what?), Dvorak, uhhhhhh.....that's all I can get off the top of my head. Jerry Goldsmith and John Wiliams?

Brad Ellsworth, Richard Lugar, Evan Bayh

GO PACKERS!!!!!

[Maestro]

28. Bunting foul the third strike is an out.

C'mon, give the pitchers a chance to put it in play! :)

[Dr. Strange]

29. The two-line pass rule from hockey.

I am SO glad they got rid of that asinine rule! Although the new prohibition on goalies behind the net is kinda stupid.

[HERVEPA]

32. What is that prohibition? Thanks

[Dr. Strange]

44. From the wiki:

During the 2004-05 AHL season, an experimental rule was implemented for the first seven weeks of the season. This additional area behind the goal line is officially referred to as the Goaltender Trap Zone, but is more frequently called the trapezoid in reference to its shape. The area consists of a centered, symmetrical trapezoid. The bases of the trapezoid are formed by the goal line and the end boards. The base on the goal line measures 18 feet and the base on the end boards measures 28 feet. It is prohibited for the goaltender to handle the puck anywhere behind the goal line that is not within the trapezoidal area. If he does so he is assessed a minor penalty for delay of game. The motivation for the introduction of the trapezoid was to promote game flow and prolonged offensive attacks by making it more difficult for the goaltender to possess and clear the puck.

The seven-week experiment proved so successful that the AHL moved to enforce the rule for the rest of the season, and then was approved by the NHL when play resumed for the 2005-06 season following the previous lockout. The ECHL, the only other developmental league in the Professional Hockey Players Association (along with the AHL) also approved the rule for 2005-06.

So the goalie can't go behind the goal line to play the puck, except in that trapezoid immediately behind the net.
Silly rule if you ask me.

[HERVEPA]

53. Thanks!

[Perry Logan]

30. No guns on the field.

[BOSSHOG]

36. The all star winning league gets home field in the World Series

Millionaires need incentive to play a game? It should be every other year, a system which worked wonderfully for years and years and years.

And the DH SUCKS !!!!!!! When you are old and on steroids and can't run anymore go home instead of to the American League.

[abq e streeter]

73. Agree with you on both

All Star game BS is yet another Fox created contribution towards cheapening American culture. Is there ANYTHING they touch that they don't ruin? (Except the Simpsons)

[Wapsie B]

38. Officials not throwing out a coach in football.

I've seen football coaches go on tirades on the sidelines that would get a baseball or basketball coach sent to the showers.

[HERVEPA]

42. Along that line, coaches crossing the line onto the playing area

in any sport (except baseball).
I hate it that they allow basketball coaches to get away with this. Even if they're just shouting instructions to the players.
AND Why the heck do basketball coaches wear ties. They didn't used to. Looks really stupid.

Gee, I sound grumpy. I must be getting old.

[sasquatch]

57. Basketball coaches have always worn ties

Football coasches used to but they stopped because apperal retailers wanted them to pimp their overpriced threads.

[NoGOPZone]

43. The fumble rule which says the ball can't be advanced

by the offense in the last two minutes unless recoved by the fumbling player, instituted after the Raiders cheated to win a game. If the officials in that game called that play for what it was, an incomplete pass, we wouldn't need this rule.

[Oeditpus Rex]

52. The Holy Roller

Still one of the great NFL highlight films of all time.

I despise the Raiders, but I really doubt they "cheated." There's an overwhelming natural urge to hold on to the football, since it bounces funny. You try to advance it by fumbling, you're apt to lose it.

(That said, one of the many skills in Australian Rules Football that amazes me is players' ability to dribble the ball on a dead run.)

[NoGOPZone]

60. All three players involved admitted intentionally moving

the ball in the direction of the end zone. I think the cheating was pretty blatant. I'm fairly indifferent to the Raiders, but this play caused a rule to be enacted that could have been avoided.

[Oeditpus Rex]

61. Wow, I wasn't aware of that

But now that I'm seeing the play more clearly in my mind, there was one of 'em who seemed to be sort of scooping it along.

Not that the Raiders of those days were adverse to cheating within the rules... Freddie Biletnikoff, Lester Hayes et al. :)



No, really — Stabler masturbated on my jersey.

[AngryAmish]

47. Boxing: No kicking when the other guy goes down

And they should be allowed to put barbed wire on the outside of the gloves. This isn't some tea-sipping contest. It is the manly art of self-defense.

[KamaAina]

48. The three-pointer in college hoops

the line's too close in. An ordinary jumper now counts for three. Four or five of these in a row, and hardly any lead is safe. The international distance is about right.

[underpants]

49. I agree it is a ridiculously easy shot

for anyone who plays much (like I used to) 70% is reasonable to expect.

They need to move it out to the international line at least.

[Wapsie B]

63. I would say the same thing with the dunk shot at any level.

At least a 3-point shot at whatever distance shows shooting ability.

[underpants]

50. Football needs to adopt a "advantage gained" standard to pass interference

it is subjective anyway but they need to determine if anyone actually gained an advantage when there is touching and bumping.

[Oeditpus Rex]

56. In the NBA

the rules that prohibit shots other than dunks or three-pointers and the playing of defense and permit traveling when driving to the basket.

(Strange, isn't it? Thirty years ago, when there was no three-point shot, few dunks and actual defense in the NBA, scores were higher.)

[Awsi Dooger]

105. You think there used to be defense in the NBA?

I flagrantly disagree. I have many of those games on VCR tape and the lack of defense is hysterical when viewed 20 or 25 years later. The famed Lakers/Celtics games were fraudulent as hell. Want an uncontested 10 foot jumper? Be my guest, and make it 8 feet if you want.

I've had friends come over and watch those tapes and literally be speechless at what they were witnessing, compared to their recollections and conventional wisdom. The league was a defenseless farce in the '80s. The guys on the all-league defensive team would have to step up their game considerably to even be considered an average defender today.

There's a reason the average NBA total dropped from more than 218 in the late '80s to in the mid 190s today. It's sustained defensive intensity. Credit Chuck Daly, who snuffed out Showtime and dramatically improved the caliber of the sport. IMO he's never given enough accolades.

Otherwise, the 3 point shot is a joke in college basketball, as KamaAina already pointed out. I still have no idea why a longer shot is worth more points. It should be the reverse, a dunk or inside play rewarded with 3 points and a wimpy give up bomb maybe a point, or less. We used to laugh like hell in playground ball at kids who couldn't play a lick, no threat of passing or defense or fundamentals, and all they did was stand outside and launch long shots. Now those wimps are rewarded. Unbelievable.

[Oeditpus Rex]

112. '80s?

I'm talkin' '60s and '70s.

I lost my taste for basketball in the '80s — I think the '85 championships were the last games I watched.

[charlie and algernon]

58. OFFENSIVE pass interference

what a moronic rule. technically, anytime a reciever catches the ball, he's committing offensive pass interference.

[Oeditpus Rex]

72. Offensive and defensive players are equally entitled to the ball

Therefore, both are also entitled to equal opportunity for unencumbered access to said ball.

[Godhumor]

59. Football--no loss of down for a delay of game

I've never understood this--you have 25 seconds to make a play. If you can not make a play in 25 seconds, shouldn't you lose that down? There should never be an advantage in a game for purposely gaining a penalty to run down the clock.

[Tafiti]

75. Ooh, good one. Never thought of that, but you're right, makes more sense.

One I think is overly harsh is when the offense fumbles into the endzone and goes out of bounds, it's a touchback for the other team. What substantive difference is there between fumbling at the 1/2 yard line out of bounds on the sideline and getting the ball at that spot, or fumbling it out of bounds in the endzone? To me, not much. It should be a penalty of some sort, but loss of possession? That's way too harsh, IMO.

[Dr. Strange]

86. On Godhumor's point,

maybe give the defense a choice between the down or the yards.

On Tafiti's point, that's true, it's a rather large difference between losing it at the 1 yard line and in the end zone. Maybe change the rule to say that if the ball goes out of bounds, then it's down at the last point of possession. If it's fumbled at the five and goes out of bounds at the three, then the last team with possession gets it at the five.

Shall we vote on it?

[ThomCat]

65. As someone who has never been a sports fan

it's interesting reading this thread. Some of the posts are obviously meant to be humorous, but many of the serious posts might as well be in a foreign language. I can read the words, but they make absolutely no sense to me. :P

[Dr. Strange]

67. That's how I feel about the 9/11 Forum!

I know what the words mean...but DAYUM!

[DrDan]

66. those are "rules"????

[VOX]

69. Allowing a baserunner to tag up and advance on a caught foul ball...

It was foul, wasn't it???? So why should the runner get to advance? Doesn't make any sense!

:shrug:

[Oeditpus Rex]

70. If it's caught on the fly, it's in play

Doesn't matter if it's fair or foul.

[mikeargo]

71. The shootout in the NHL

Either play until someone wins, or accept a tie game. Getting a point for a loss (overtime or shootout) makes no sense - a team could lose every game and still make the playoffs.

[cloudbase]

74. The ground can't cause a fumbe.

The hell it cant!

And another one: holding the football over the goal line to score. Move your whole body over the line, buddy.

[Bucky]

76. The rediculous "Cheerleaders can't celebrate TDs with firearms" rule. Jeeze, people!

Get with the 21st century already, wouldja? In a well armed society, all cheerleaders would be able to fire off a couple yahoo shots when their boys do good.

[recoveringdittohed]

97. Advocating celebratory gunfire for teams whose mascot is a Bruin or Bear...

Would be supporting the right to arm bears.

[bixente]

78. Football/soccer

Players receiving bookings for "over celebrating" - for example, taking your shirt off is deemed a punishable offence. Come on, they're human, it's an emotional game.

[MrCoffee]

79. hear hear!

[Norwood]

80. The shootout in the NHL and the DH in MLB

I would rather see a tie than have a good hockey game end in a shootout. I wish they would have just increased the length of the overtime period.

The DH I just think is lame, just my opinion.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

81. Basketball - the fouling team could get possession

after a free throw.

Give the fouled team a free throw, and then possession. That'll stop the intentional fouling that makes the last five minutes go for half an hour. If fouls only have consequences and not advantages, the clock will run.

Or put the fouler in a penalty box, bring the power-play to BBall.

[pokerfan]

83. Football - pushing an airborn receiver OOB

should be allowed. This suggestion comes from Mike Golic. The way the rule is currently enforced is way too subjective. The official must determine if the receiver would have landed in bounds or not. Golic's solution is to simply get rid of the rule and just go by where the receiver's feet land, whether he's puched or not.

[Dr. Strange]

84. Does NCAA do it that way?

You're right, there's a lot of subjectivity in that kind of ruling.

[pokerfan]

87. I pretty sure that's the way the NCAA does it

Seems like a simple solution.

[recoveringdittohed]

115. Sooo, a guy catches a pass over the middle going airborne,

Two or three defenders grab him and make sure his feet don't hit the ground and try to carry him to the sideline to throw him out of bounds. Meanwhile his teammates try to tackle the defenders and receiver before they reach the sidelines. A recipe for hilarity (and multiple offsetting personal fouls).

[pokerfan]

117. It would be a good change

Under current rules what's to prevent a bunch of linemen from picking up a ball carrier and walking him into the endzone for two points.

Most officials would blow the play dead at that point. Forward progress etc.

I say most, because I have no idea what the Pac-10 officials are going to inflict upon us next.

Those of you who watched the Washington - Oregon State game know what I'm talking about.

[sniffa]

85. shootout in both NHL and soccer

both should have left well enough alone.

[tkmorris]

114. AMEN!!

The dumbest thing in soccer is supporting your team through qualifying, into the World Cup, then into the later rounds or even the final, just to see the game decided by which keeper guesses correctly left or right.

It's like having a tied basketball game be decided by alternating free throws. Absurd.

[Initech]

89. Fan interference in baseball

There should be a zero tolerance policy for this. You interfere with the game, you're out on your ass.

[Strawman]

90. "Running into the kicker" in football

What a weakass penalty. I can live with roughing the kicker but when a team gets a first down because their punter flops, I hate that.

[swag]

91. I hate the 20 foot rule in Women's Flat Track Roller Derby

[Perseid]

93. no kicking in the private places

and no having intimate relations while on the field during a game.

I hate those rules.

[Cabcere]

94. The apparent unwritten "rule"

that certain Ivy League women's crew teams don't get penalized for a) pushing past another (non-Ivy League) crew to start the race before their signal is given, thus getting an illegal head start and b) clashing their oars against the oars of said non-Ivy League crew, which is not only dangerous and illegal but poor sportsmanship as well. :mad: :grr: :mad: :grr: Wankers.

[Lance_Boyle]

98. Alternate Possession in NCAA basketball

It's called a "JUMP BALL" for a goddamned reason!

[hisownpetard]

99. Having to wear clothes.

[BulletproofLandshark]

101. Pass interference in the NFL being penalized as a spot foul.

How many games have you seen where a team gets a go-ahead score late in the game because of some ticky-tack incidental contact that puts the ball deep in the defense's territory? The penalty should be the same as high school and college:15 yards and an automatic 1st down.

[Perseid]

103. rule #48

Sports "heroes" shall be paid at minimum one hundred million times the minimum wage, plus other guaranteed benefits that shall not be revealed.

God, I hate that rule.

[alphafemale]

104. Onside kick - that's just wrong nt

[skyblue]

106. Soccer - that it's a good thing to hit a ball with your head nt

[skyblue]

107. Football - that running people down to the ground is considered a sport nt

[skyblue]

108. Boxing - That beating someone up is considered a sport nt

[Awsi Dooger]

109. Clock stopping after a sack

I've never understood that, since childhood. It essentially penalizes the defense for making a successful play. Often the trailing team is desperately trying to pass and is sacked, yet the damn clock bails them out by stopping briefly. I saw it several times last Sunday. The league changed the rules somewhat a few years ago and the clock does not stop for as long as it used to, but it shouldn't stop at all.

[Awsi Dooger]

110. Tuck rule

The entire intent of that rule is to prevent a ball from being ruled a fumble, if it slips out of the QBs hand when he changes his mind and tries to stop the forward motion.

But they've taken it to ludicrous extreme by insisting the ball has to be fully tucked, before it can be ruled a fumble. The Tom Brady play from '01 is the obvious example, pulled down and being touched with both hands yet somehow it's not a fumble. Hell, Brady knew it was a fumble. Check his reaction.

[Awsi Dooger]

111. I would eliminate pass interference

If you can tackle the receiver, do it. Congratulations. No harm, no ludicrous penalty.

Nothing changes a game like that call and somehow they assume the second half of the equation, the catch, is automatic.

It might seem like an extreme change that would harm the game if you allowed any contact, but offensive coordinators and receivers would find a way around it. It would be fascinating. You'd also get rid of penalties for pick plays, garbage like that. It would open up so many creative permutations, instead of give-up thoughtless plays like the fade pass.

Give the game back to the brutes. As a Dolphin fan in the early '70s I used to crack up when our cornerbacks chopped the opposing WRs, perfectly legal at that point. The QB dropped back and his prime target was already out of the equation, sprawled on the Poly Turf. Now that was football. The current version is pantyhose.

[Awsi Dooger]

113. I'd get rid of the drop areas in golf

Stupid rule that benefits amateurs but the pros don't need it. Like at Sawgrass every year on the 17th hole. Make the trembling pros tee it up repeatedly from the original location instead of the much shorter shot to the left.

Overall the water hazard rules in golf are far too lenient. You hit it in a lake and are allowed the full distance if it is a lateral hazard. Often the penalty is inconsequential, particularly on a par 5. They drop where the ball bounced into the water then it's a simple chip and putt to salvage par.

I would make it more like out of bounds, hitting from the original location. That might eliminate some risk taking but imagine the high hilarity, stuff like Tin Cup.

[skyblue]

118. That sports enthusiasts have to have that lower IQ, unsophisticated, neanderthal grace of Mac Truck

Why some of us prefer creative types.

[skyblue]

119. That "Coach" is usually somewhat of a bully. nt

[skyblue]

120. That some sports enthusiasts think beer bellies are more attractive or manly. nt

[skyblue]

121. The soft porn cheerleader thing is pretty much sexist nt