COLUMN: Without a second to space

The ref stopped the game one second too soon HANOVER, N.H. -- In the Ivy League, where there are often more students in the library on a fall Saturday afternoon studying for LSATs than there are at the football stadium, home-field advantage usually isn't really much of an advantage at all. Sure, the visitors might spend seven hours on a bus traveling through New England and might have to spend the night in a strange bed. But, let's face it, they're not flying to California. Normal travel obstacles like jet lag and time-zone changes never come into play. No, the 500 or so freshmen packed behind the Big Green bench in their brand spankin' new '00' jerseys weren't near loud enough to disrupt Steve Teodecki and the Penn offense. And the St. Bernard masquerading as the Dartmouth mascot couldn't do much to excite the alumni despite his sideline antics -- which included mostly slobbering and resting motionless on the grass with the occasional effort exuded to shift his weight to a more comfortable position. But everyone at Dartmouth's Memorial Stadium knew the outcome would have been different had the game been played at Penn's Franklin Field. Whether they were willing to admit it is another story. You see, the Quakers should have had the chance to attempt a game-winning field goal with one second remaining. But the referee decided that time had expired and sent everybody home. When Big Green quarterback Jon Aljancic found wide-out Eric Morton wide open in the end zone with 19 seconds remaining in the game, Dartmouth took two-point lead and apparently had the game won. But Penn coach Al Bagnoli had no plans to pack up the buses yet. After a squib kick to short receiver James Finn positioned the Quakers at their own 37-yard line, Teodecki took over. First, he bought a few seconds before finding receiver Mark Fabish 21 yards downfield, leaving six seconds on the clock. Teodecki spiked the ball to kill the clock, but the officials let three seconds run off before stopping the clock. After a spirited protest by Bagnoli, the referee added a whole second. The fact that it even took two seconds to spike a ball is ridiculous enough. But the inane was about to turn into the sublime. Teodecki called a timeout before the play clock expired and headed to the sidelines to discuss what to do with their four remaining seconds. The options were clear: (a) attempt a 57-yard field goal, (b) toss up a Hail Mary and hope for an interference call or a lucky catch or (c) run a quick passing play and get out of bounds to set up a shorter field goal. Despite his claim that he can consistently hit from 60 yards out, Penn placekicker Jeremiah Greathouse's career-best kick is a 50-yarder. Throw in a light headwind and the first option was justifiably passed on. The second choice, as can be ascertained from its name, requires a little help from the heavens. And Bagnoli has never been one to rely on luck alone. That left one course of action, and the Quakers executed it perfectly. Fabish, split wide right, sprinted six yards down the right sideline, spun around to make the catch and immediately stepped out of bounds. The 17,042 eyes in Memorial Stadium spun to the game clock, which hit 00:01 as Fabish's foot crossed the white line. The line judge waved his arms to stop the clock, but the Dartmouth benches emptied as the players charged the field. The referee then decreed that the game -- after 59 minutes, 59 seconds -- was over. Of course, the Quakers were by no means in sure-score territory. Greathouse still would have had a 52-yarder facing him. But I'm sure Bagnoli would have preferred to take his chances with the Ivy League's best kicker rather than head home wondering what could have been. "I don't think there's any question there was one second left," Bagnoli said. "If that was at Franklin Field, we'd have one second left." Greathouse has already proved himself capable of hitting a clutch game-winning field goal, having nailed a 41-yarder in the final minute against Bucknell last season. But Bagnoli was given no such choice. The notion that it could have taken Fabish more than four seconds to run that five-yard improvisational route is preposterous. Fabish can sprint 40 yards in just over four seconds. That's an average of about five yards per 1/2 second. Yet it took Fabish four full seconds to run what normally takes him just 1/2 second? Even when you figure in an extra 1/4 of a second because of the pads, 3/4 of a second due to the defender and a full second to wait for the pass and get out of bounds, Fabish still would have taken just three seconds to run the play -- tops. Maybe the Quakers didn't deserve to win the game. Maybe Greathouse would have missed the kick anyway. But that was not for the referee for decide.

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