SEC fines Texas A&M $50,000 for likely fake injury in fourth quarter of Aggies’ win over Arkansas

Sports

add

The SEC has fined Texas A&M $50,000 and reprimanded coach Mike Elko over a violation of the conference’s injury policy.

Per a statement from the league, the National Coordinator for Football Officiating found that it was more likely than not that Aggies cornerback Tyreek Chappell wasn’t injured when he went down in the fourth quarter.

“Video of the questionable action, submitted to the National Coordinator by the Southeastern Conference office, occurred with 12:55 remaining in the game after Arkansas completed a pass for a first down just outside the Texas A&M 10-yard line,” the SEC said. “After the ball is spotted by officials, No. 7 for Texas A&M goes to the ground, creating the appearance of an injury. Just prior to the player going down, a Texas A&M staff member can be seen in the video standing in the team area near the 25-yard line signaling demonstratively to the player, pointing to the ground. It was noted that the Texas A&M player had no contact during the play and returned to the game on the second play of the ensuing defensive possession.”

Arkansas scored a touchdown to cut A&M’s lead to 38-35 three plays after Chappell went down. The No. 3 Aggies won the game 45-42.

“We respect the SEC’s decision and understand the importance of upholding the integrity of the game,” Elko said in a statement. “While we accept the ruling, we do not agree with the decision and want to be clear that we never coach or instruct or players to feign injury. Texas A&M football remains firmly committed to the highest standards of sportsmanship, competitiveness, and integrity. We’ll use this as an opportunity to review our processes and ensure we continue to represent our great university and the SEC with class and accountability.”

Advertisement

Texas A&M was charged a timeout after Chappell went to the ground as part of the new rules in college football designed to prevent players on teams from faking injuries. A team is now charged a timeout if a player goes down with an injury — whether it’s real or not — after the ball is spotted and deemed ready for play.

Coaches across college football have talked about players faking injuries to stop play for years. The practice most commonly occurs among defenses, as an offense running the hurry-up without substituting can prevent a defense from substituting its players.

A year ago, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey told his conference’s teams that the league would start submitting video to the national officiating office if they believed an injury was being faked. A coach is fined $50,000 for the first offense of a fake injury, $100,000 for the second offense and a third offense can result in a one-game suspension for the head coach.

This news was originally published on this post .

Share on

email

Previous

trending_flat

Místo zápasu roku horor. Basket Brno schytal v Evropě výprask od Španělů, trenér se omlouval fanouškům

Sports

Next

trending_flat

Pakistan eliminated after heavy defeat to South Africa in rain-hit clash

News Story