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    • Clark Lea questions the illegal formation call
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    Clark Lea questions the illegal formation call

    Vaseline Posted on

    Vanderbilt football coach Clark Lea was not happy with an illegal formation call against the Commodores in the first quarter of Saturday’s 27-24 loss to Texas.

    The play took place on a fourth-and-1 at the Vanderbilt 34-yard line, with the score tied 7-7.

    Quarterback Diego Pavia looked to the sideline as if to receive a play call, while backup quarterback Nate Johnson went under center and took the snap. Johnson handed the ball to Junior Sherrill, who ran for a 9-yard gain. But the piece was recalled due to an illegal formation.

    The stated reason for the illegal formation call was that Quincy Skinner was standing at the line of scrimmage, but his shoulders were not square. That meant Vanderbilt didn’t have enough players on the line of scrimmage.

    The Commodores (5-3, 2-2 SEC) decided to punt after the 5-yard penalty.

    Lea disagreed with the call, saying Skinner’s shoulders had no influence on the play whatsoever.

    “I hate it when the referee gets in the way of the game,” Lea said. “…Those guys are doing exactly what they’re supposed to do. But I’d like to have a conversation about what the emphasis was there.”

    Texas (7-1, 3-1) scored a touchdown on the ensuing drive after the penalty.

    The official NCAA rule book states: “A team A player is legally on the line of scrimmage when he faces his opponent’s goal line with the line of his shoulders approximately parallel thereto and (a) he is the snapper, or (b) his head breaks the plane of the line drawn through the snapper’s waist.”

    Diego Pavia also criticized the call after the game.

    “I feel like the referees made a mistake on that,” Pavia said. ‘But we can’t do anything about it. We just have to move on.’

    OVERREACTIONS Vanderbilt football is legit despite the loss to Texas and other overreactions

    Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at [email protected] or on X, formerly Twitter, @aria_gerson.

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