UPDATED at 5 p.m. with Rashad suspension:
CHAPEL HILL -- North Carolina freshman linebacker Shakeel Rashad has been suspended for one game by the ACC for his collision Saturday night with Duke receiver Conner Vernon during the second quarter of the Blue Devils' 33-30 victory.
With Duke leading 13-6 with about 10 minutes to play in the quarter, Rashad ran onto the field while the Duke offense lined up. Rashad collided with Vernon, the ACC’s all-time leader in receptions, and knocked him to the ground. Vernon left the game for one play.
The play has sparked controversy, though it didn’t have an effect on the outcome of the game. After watching the play on film, Duke coach David Cutcliffe said he was “speechless” about it. Cutcliffe, according to our Duke beat reporter Laura Keeley, had this to say about Rashad’s collision with Vernon:
“It was full speed, and there was no intent to avoid. We were going to turn it in [to the league office] but we understand now that the conference office is looking at it, and I'll be interested to see what they say … People have seen it, you've seen it on television, I've just never seen anything quite like it. I was amazed when I saw that this morning. I don't know, I'm kind of speechless about it.
“I've never had that happen in my entire career. Very unusual.”
It was an unusual play, indeed. The question is whether Rashad went out of his way to run into Vernon.
North Carolina coach Larry Fedora on Monday dismissed that suggestion.
“First of all, you’ve got to know Rashad,” Fedora said. “He’s one of the nicest kids that we have on our football team and I can assure you there was no intention of harming the other player. Or actually, there was no intention on his part to actually even run into the player.”
Fedora said Rashad should have been on the field already, and was in “panic mode” trying to get onto the field in time. Fedora said, joking, that if Rashad had been more athletic he likely could have avoided Vernon.
“I promise [you], there was none of, ‘Hey, let me run into this guy and that will stop the play before it gets started,’” Fedora said. “There was no malice at all.”
Monday, October 22, 2012
UNC linebacker Shakeel Rashad suspended by ACC for hit on Duke's Vernon (with video of play)
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33 comments:
Nicest kids my butt, he should be banned from NCAA Football and stripped of any scholarship money.
And what about the kid that took out Tim Jackson's knee? How is the dirty play that didn't lead to an injury getting more coverage in the media than the one that did?
If hes such a nice kid, how come he didnt realize what he had done and tried to help the Duke player up, or show some concern for him.
For showing him the bidness, he should be suspended, for encroachment, touching a player before the snap, Duke should have gotten 5 yards.
He must be attending one of those fake African American Studies courses UNC is offering.
Oh please you sanctimonious fools!! Sure - it was a cheap shot but if the kid really wanted to hurt the other kid, don't you think he certainly could have???
But, just two plays later a Duke player hits a UNC lineman low and blind for NO other reason than to injure him (which he actually did he didn't return - not just a showy whiney roll-around that Vernon did that would have made Coach K pleased). And yet, nobody's saying anything about that one... No, because UNC is the great EVIL cheaters (and never actually won anything from it by the way) and Duke is the white-washed holy grail of student athletics...
Please... Trust me - if you people knew what goes on behind the scenes of EVERY major football program, you wouldn't even know where to start with your holier than though comments...
Yep, he knew just when and where the receiver was going to step back and timed his "assault" perfectly.
Not a cheap shot, not intentional, and not the hardest hit that kid received during the game. Another knee jerk reaction.
Speaking of knee jerk reactions, this my friends is dirty (and a penalty, which of course was not called):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GVZPxDTzrg&feature=player_embedded
Duke will be playing in a bowl game while UNC is sitting in their dorm rooms studying for their final exams in underwater basket weaving 101.
Classless. I hope NC State knocks the PUNK out of them.
Shakeel is in my history recitation and is just as Coach Fedora describes him to be. He's soft-spoken and contributes intellectual thoughts to the discussion. This is not some easy athlete class either. Being around him each week, I highly doubt this was intentional. He's honestly not that kind of guy.
And the sky is still Carolna blue!!
Nice. Can't even spell.
Carolina Way...
skakeel just bein' a thug. another obama voter.
If you look at the video closely you can see the Duke player standing with his feet beside each other and then when he begins taking his stance, he drops his left leg back into the path of the Carolina player ( who was cutting his angle pretty close to the Duke guy) and the two get tangled up. Give the guy a break, doesn't look intentional to me at all.
That's ridiculous that he would be suspended or disciplined in anyway for that "hit". He just brushed into the guy who proceeded to do a Laettner flop.
Unavoidable contact trying to get on the field? Watch his forearm. A little too much forearm to be casual contact!
Have to agree with Doc on that one, he was cutting it close to get on the field and the legs got tangled up. Who is the idiot running his mouth on the broadcast? Clearly did not look closely at the replay....
Can we get an article on the Duke offensive tackle trying to blow out Tim Jackson's knee???? Of course not. Vernon did what Duke athletes do best, sense contact coming and FLOP. If Rashad wanted to hurt the guy he would have just speared him.
Dear Observer,
Looked clean to me, just like K-Rat taught us.
Sincerely,
Gerald Henderson
UNCheat football has become a digraceful and dirty program.I just hope the basketball program stays clean.Funny thing is......UNCheat football has ALWAYS sucked,even with the cheating,scandals,bogus classes and passing grades,illegal recruiting,etc.
Love the TarHole fans. They're gonna defend their cheating ways and defend their players when they deliver a cheap shot. Watch the video again, he lowers his shoulder into Vernon's back as he approaches him. How does he not see him there. I mean seriously. Is he that obtuse that he doesn't realize that the wideout may be spread out wide?? Definitely a proud student of AFAM studies at UNC-CHEAT!!
Anonymous @ 8:20.....you still mad bro? You are living in the past.Maybe you should go back further and check out king rice's activities!
8:45 - uncch bball is already dirty and has been for years. It's already been shown they're all tangled up in the same academic fraud and have been since 92. If it were legit, then why did all players recently and suddenly abandon AAS?
Yeah, our basketball program is next. Rumors swirling around campus indicate wins and maybe even championships may be vacated because of all the academic issues/problems. If Carolina basketball goes down it will affect the entire ACC (money, prestige, etc.). Duke fans nor State fans want that.
You cannot defend that play. That was dirty football no matter who did it.
Never trust a coach named for a hat.
Man that limp went away pretty fast... typical Duke flop and the ACC fell for it. Rashad was rushing to get on the field and across the line of scrimmage..probably could have went to the left but tried to go right then up across the line of scrimmage..
and he just happens to hit the BEST WR Duke has....It was intentional, point blank. He is a LB, they are suppossed to have the best vision on the field and he runs slap intot he guy. UNC classless, oh thats right they dont attend real classes.
Actually if the Heel fans maaking the flop comments knew anything about sports, they'd recall Dean Smith patented the "drop to the floor on contact" move. Most of them probably didn't graduate high school though.
How can anybody watch that and not admit it was intentional. Seriously? SMH
Has a UNCheat player, coach, or administrator ever owned up to anything they've ever done wrong? OWN UP. You're just like Obama, always someone else's fault.
What a joke of a university.
well after watching that video I understand why he was suspended by the ACC and I really think that he deserved that suspension
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