This weekend, Fenwick High School, a Catholic school in the suburbs of Chicago, competed against Plainfield North High School in the semifinals for the Illinois state championship. The winner of the game would earn the right to play in the championship game against East Saint Louis High School.
Fenwick (in Black and White) ended up losing an opportunity to compete in the state
championship game because of an undisputed error by the referees.
With 4 seconds remaining in the game and leading 10 -7, Fenwick decided not to punt on fourth down. Instead, they instructed their quarterback to end the game by throwing the ball as high and as far out of bounds as possible. The quarterback successfully did this. The clock expired and the game was over.
Then the referees got involved. The crew called a penalty for intentional grounding. Even this should not have been a problem because the rulebook states that the game should have been over. However, the referees incorrectly awarded Plainfield North an untimed down. Plainfield kicked a field goal to tie the game. Then Plainfield North won in overtime.
The IHSA (who oversees high school sports) fully admits that the call was a mistake. The field goal should never have happened. Fenwick should have won the game. However, there is another rule that states that the referees’ decision cannot be overturned.
Because the school does not want to deprive its students of the "once in a lifetime opportunity" to compete in the championship game, they have filed an injunction to stop Plainfield North from participating in the championship game.
Many argue that Plainfield North should step aside and let Fenwick take their spot.
Others argue that athletes have been taught all their lives that “what the ref says goes”. Who knows how many other calls were missed that game?
A third group says that the IHSA should take the pressure off of both teams and rule that the game was absolutely over after that 4th down play. Nothing that happened after that play was “real”.
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