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ESPN rules analyst ripped after disastrous ‘firm control’ comments

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A Tennessee player gets an interception

ESPN rules analyst Bill LeMonnier was ripped by fans on Saturday after providing some disastrous commentary during the Tennessee-Ohio State game at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.

Ohio State was leading 21-0 in the second quarter and had the ball at the Tennessee 20. Buckeyes quarterback Will Howard threw to Jeremiah Smith in the end zone, but the pass was tipped and grabbed by Volunteers DB Will Brooks. The ruling on the field was an interception, but there were questions about whether Brooks got his body down before going out of bounds.

ESPN announcers Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit agreed with the ruling on the field and said they thought that Brooks had made the interception.

But rules analyst LeMonnier came in and said he thought it should have been ruled an incomplete pass because he felt Brooks did not have “firm control” of the ball before going out of bounds.

“I don’t see firm control with that toe, so I’m going to say incomplete pass. The other thing is, I think there should have been a pass interference,” LeMonnier said.

The comments left Fowler and Herbstreit asking more questions.

“How do you define firm control?” Fowler asked.

“I don’t know what firm control is,” Herbstreit said.

LeMonnier is correct that firm control is a factor in whether something is ruled a catch, but the comments looked bad when you consider that the officials decided the ruling would stand as called.

Fans took aim at LeMonnier over the botched analysis.

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