OKLAHOMA CITY -- Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops said Sunday he
was "incredibly disappointed" after reviewing videotapes of a
disputed onside kick and pass-interference penalty from the
Sooners' last-minute loss to Oregon.
After the Pac-10 suspended the officiating crew for one game because of their errors on those calls on Monday, Stoops wasn't much happier.
"At least they have reacted to it and tried. Truly there can be
no amends to it and it can't be corrected," Stoops said.
The loss was Oklahoma's first of the season and immediately
lessens the Sooners' chances of making it to a third BCS title game
in four years.
"I've made a million mistakes; I'll make a million more," Stoops added. "In each game and in that game included Â… there are things I could have done differently or changed. Unlike officials, players and coaches don't have that opportunity. They had an opportunity to get it right and they chose not to.
"So I find it still absolutely inexcusable and unacceptable. In particular [the] people who had an opportunity to review it all and look at it and get it right. They chose not to. You discern whether a one-game suspension is appropriate for those individuals. I'm not talking about people in the heat of the moment out there in the middle of the chaos. I'm talking about people who, like every viewer at home, had an opportunity to see it. It's not for me to decide what is appropriate, but I think it's fair to say that a one-game suspension compared to the way our season now is altered, I don't know if that fits the situation."
Stoops said on Sunday he believes an Oregon player interfered with
Oklahoma's chance to recover an onside kick by touching the ball
before it traveled 10 yards. The play gave Oregon possession and
set up the Ducks' winning drive.
He also said an Oklahoma defender tipped a pass by Oregon's
Dennis Dixon, and Sooners safety Darien Williams should not have
been flagged for pass interference on a play that set up the Ducks'
winning score.
"The instant replay was brought up to eliminate issues like
this. And here, there are a number of issues that are clearly --
looking at video -- wrong," Stoops said Sunday.
On the onside kick, Oregon's Brian Paysinger jumped in front of
Oklahoma's Malcolm Kelly and appeared to knock the ball forward to
a group of players from both teams. Officials ruled that an Oregon
player recovered the ball and was down before the ball squirted out
to Oklahoma's Allen Patrick, who picked it up.
"I see my guy stepping up inside of 10 yards to go up and gain
reception, gain possession of the football, I see their guy go in
front of him and hit the football before my guy is allowed to at 10
yards and I see him collide with my guy inside of 10 yards as
well," Stoops said.
"That's illegal touching and interfering with the reception.
And then I see my guy get up with the football that's laying on the
ground."
Two plays later, defensive end C.J. Ah You tipped Dixon's pass
to Paysinger that resulted in a pass-interference call against
Williams, Stoops said. Immediately after the penalty, Dixon found
Paysinger wide open in the end zone on a 23-yard pass to give
Oregon the lead with 46 seconds left.
As time expired, Oregon blocked Garrett Hartley's 44-yard field
goal try that would have given Oklahoma the win even after all the
controversy.
Stoops said he hopes the sequence does not lead to the downfall
of instant replay.
"I would hope not," Stoops said. "Even though they acted as
they did, at least the whole country and everybody sees what was
... and what really happened."
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.