You would think the commissioner of the Pac-12 would know there is a printed copy of the conference’s instant replay procedure after being asked about it two weeks ago. It turns out, Larry Scott may have had no idea such a document existed.
On Saturday, Scott said he looked into the status of an official instant replay manual, only to say there was none in existence.
“I had a chance to look into it ... there’s an NCAA rule in writing, but there is no manual,” Scott said. “I’m not aware of any manual that exists in our conference or nationally.”
Unfortunately for him, The Oregonian has obtained a copy of the document titled “The Pac-12 Conference Instant Replay Manual” and shared it for all the world to see.
Oops.
As the Pac-12 continues to battle an image problem regarding the integrity of its officiating and replay system, Scott has tried to calm the nerves around the conference and suggest there is no issue with the integrity of how it manages football games form an officiating standpoint. However, a review of the conference’s unearthed instant replay manual may suggest otherwise.
Per The Oregonian;
This all comes after Scott and the Pac-12 attempted to explain why a targeting call in a USC-Washington State game was overturned, in which a replay official allegedly claimed to be overruled by a third party. An unwillingness for how the official ruling was made by members of the media has done nothing to suggest the Pac-12’s replay system or officiating is credible.
Now that we know there is an instant replay manual even if the commissioner didn’t, and how lacking the manual is in its details, it may be time for the Pac-12 to take a good hard look in the mirror and start clarifying some details a bit more moving forward.