clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Should the Big Ten implement a collaborative replay system?

The Big Ten pioneered the use of instant replay in college football. Now that the SEC has taken another step, should the Big Ten follow?

Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Instant replay has become a ubiquitous part of college football. Fans are well accustomed to the tool, it's benefits, and it's limitations. In fact, it's such a normal part of the game today that many have likely forgotten that it was the Big Ten who pioneered replay in college football as the first adopter of the technology in 2004. While it's not a perfect tool, I think most would agree that the game is improved by the presence of instant replay.

Since 2004 there have been a variety of revisions, updates, and minor changes to the way instant replay is used in college football. But at it's core there is a one core tenant to college football instant replay that is the same today as it was when the NCAA first approved it for use by all schools in 2005:

An official in the press box is the individual who reviews the replays, not the officials on the field.

That common standard will soon be changing within the SEC:

The Southeastern Conference will implement a collaborative process for instant replay in the sport of football beginning with the 2016 season, following a unanimous vote of the league's athletics directors and approval by the SEC Executive Committee.

In February, the NCAA Football Rules Committee approved a request submitted by the SEC to allow conferences to use a collaborative process for instant replay on an experimental basis. Under this experiment, personnel operating from SEC Headquarters will assist the in-stadium Instant Replay Officials when replay decisions are made.

This is a similar model to the one employed by the NFL since 2014 and leads me to ask a simple question to all of you...

Should the Big Ten implement a collaborative replay system?

I'm agnostic on this subject. If it would improve the quality of replays or speed up the process while maintaining accuracy then I'd be in favor of it. In the absence of such improvements then my reaction is more ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ but I'm wondering what stronger opponents or supporters of a move like this would say.