Wow, indeed. You can celebrate a TD in college all you want--just do it on the sidelines. As I explained earlier, I agree that the rule is a little silly. However, it is not a secret. If the wailing and gnashing of teeth that followed last weekend's controversy results in a change in the rule, I won't be bothered one jot. As it stands now, it's best to put the ball down and join your team on the sideline and jump up and down. If Locker had done that, there would not have been a problem. His lack of self-control is not too different from the wide-open player who drops a pass because he heads upfield without securing the ball--the rush of scoring overcame his self-control.

In any case, the TD counted and a 26-yard field goal should still be pretty automatic if Washington's kicking team were up to the task. I'd be more upset if the refs blew a call like Colorado's extra down at the goal line in '90 (I'm a GA Tech fan so that memeory lingers). That was a travesty. This was not.

Still, it is just a game. I am truly sorry that this game upset you so, Tom.

Tom,

I cannot defend the celebration rule because I did not concoct it and I am not as troubled by celebrations as the rule makers. I also cannot defend those blocking penalties that seem to bring back every exciting kickoff return. While I cannot defend every rule in sports, I am smsrt enough to know not to break them unless I am willing to tolerate the penalty.

Every college player knows that if they celebrate after a score they risk a 15 yard penalty. Locker made the choice to ignore that risk and it cost his team dearly.

Forgive me if I came off as disingenuous--but it is just a game. You may lack the ability to put into perspective the ultimate meaninglessness of BYU's odd victory--deal with on your own. Do you gamble? Is that why you take this so seriously?

The NCAA--while a corrupt institution--can make the argument that the celebration rule is all a part of character-building and the student athlete. You may disagree. However, you cannot disagree that every team knows that celebrating something on the field could cost them a flag.

Why can't you guys just admit that you wanted to see the overtime and felt robbed when the ref (who doesn't write the rules) called the penalty. I understand. I was disappointed, too--but it should not come a surprise.

I would think if anyone really felt badly about how college football players are treated you would complain about how they all have to wear a nike swoosh on their jersey--a tacit endorsement without compensation. That is a true injustice, not what happened to Locker and te Huskies.

They and the NCAA's bureaucrats, who together rule the sport, occasionally get unhappy with the way the young kids are carrying on with their hip and their hop...

Sigmund,

Kaufman makes it pretty clear that, in his view, a racial component exists. Did you miss that? I feel sorry for the player, but, as I said in my previous post, the player is at fault. Am I a racist? Is that what you are saying?

As far as I know, only one poster used "jiveass" sincerely--is that all you got?

Locker made a mistake--you seem to want to push off his ultimate responsibility on the color of his skin. That line of reasonong is as destructively racist as the use of "jiveass."

What was really annoying about the BYU/UW game was that college football fans didn't get a chance to see an exciting overtime end to the game. However, the "no celebration rule" has been a rule for a while now. Everybody knows about it. It is a dumb rule, but that is no excuse to break it.

The fault is the player's. What did he do that required any sort celebratory reaction? Did he disarm a nuclear bomb? Save some orphans from a burning building? Cure a disease? Turn water into gasoline? Nope. He scored a TD on opening day that neither gave his team the lead or tied the score. That Locker decided not to simply toss the ball to the ref and celebrate with his teammates on the sideline is the dumb choice the he himself made.

I can't defend the rule. It is even more difficult to defend a player that breaks it. Locker was stupid and lacked self-control. Although it is going out of style, self-control could be a good lesson for Locker to learn. He is in college. His personal growth as a person and a student while in school certainly trumps scoring a touchdown so fatasses sitting at home can watch some overtime.

King, this smelly column reeks of the same poorly developed train of thought that informed your opinion of steroid use and the absurdly long time you took to arrive at said opinion--I say that as a fan of yours. It is easy to pick on refs. I think you are right about the dumb rule, wrong about Locker's responsibility (and his coaches) to abide a rule that existed before Locker played his first down of college ball.

I probably like hip-hop much more than you, King--it was a sucker punch beneath the dignity of your normally good writing to imply that because I disagree, I may have a problem with race. That remark was something I'd expect from the idiots at espn.com, not you.

You used to be so beautiful, King.