(02-01-2022, 12:46 PM)RicoTx Wrote:

(02-01-2022, 12:37 PM)mikesez Wrote: The bolded above is wrong.  Common belief, but wrong. 
Even if you include the statistics from the regular season, when teams might play for a tie, coin flips starting overtime are never moot.  The advantage goes down, but it's still there.  It doesn't go all the way down to 50-50 like it should.
The team that goes second might have the same number of possessions, or one less, but never one more.  That's why there a durable statistical advantage for the team going first in OT that never goes away no matter how you cherry pick the data.  Even if you apply a "play til the end of the overtime period" rule, the advantage remains.

So, there are only three fair choices in light of this:
1) do college overtime rules, guaranteeing an equal number of possessions for each team regardless
2) set up a new "penalty kicks" type situation to determine the winner, again each team gets the same number of chances at whatever the thing is,
3) do a quick "penalty kick" or "skills competition" between the two teams just to replace the coin flip, then play 11 on 11 with sudden death.

(1) takes the longest with the most contact
(2) has no contact at all, could be quick, but doesn't feel like football
(3) has the same amount of contact as today's rules, still ends with 11 on 11 scoring plays, takes about the same amount of time, and eliminates the unfairness.

That's ridiculous, it's not wrong it's absolutely correct.  Once both teams have had the ball and a chance to score it is irrelevant.  The only time it is relevant is if the team that wins the toss goes righ down for a touchdown.  Pardon me, but your suggestions are asinine.

I've got three equally viable solutions.
1) Let the best speakers on the team have a debate.
2) Maybe a swimsuit competition between the most fit players
3) Arm-wrestling

You're absolutely wrong. You have decided in your own mind that becomes fair and stays fair as soon as the second team touches the ball. But that is incorrect. It might be fair while the second team has the ball, but it becomes unfair again once the first team gets the ball back. When one team has the ball more times than the other, that team has an advantage. If the advantage comes from luck, it is an unfair advantage. If the advantage comes from skill or strategy, it is a fair advantage.

As for your suggestions, the first two are non-athletic and subjective, so they don't belong in a sporting event, and even if they did, they would only create more controversy. The last one would actually work, even though contact is involved.  I'll do you one better. Each team brings out one lineman. The linemen face each other, one football length apart. The referee holds a football on a stick between them.  The ball is halfway between the 50 yard line and the 45 yard line and halfway between the hash marks.  The same football on a stick you see them using during d-line drills. The visiting team gets to decide if the referee stands with the stick to his right or to his left. Both linemen get in a two-point stance. When the ball moves, the linemen charge at each other.  If you go down, you lose. If you get called for holding, you lose.  If you step beyond the 5 yard line behind you, you lose. If you step beyond the hash marks, you lose. If you reach the other guy's 5 yard line, you win.  It's a gridiron version of sumo wrestling.
Ridiculous? Sure. Better than a coin flip? Absolutely. Want the ball first? Send our your strongest guy and get it.

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