On fourth and 1 from the Rutgers 41 yard line in the second quarter, Michigan State running back Nate Carter received the hand off in the second quarter. Rutgers linebacker Tyreem Powell burst into the backfield and delivered a big hit to drop Carter for a 2 yard loss. RU was set to get the ball back near midfield after the turnover on downs with 4:19 to play in the first half. Instead, the officials issued a review of the play even though no flag being thrown.
Despite the officials on the field not seeing an issue with the hit, the replay booth saw something different.
After the game, head official Larry Smith told NJ Advance Media that the replay booth “came in and confirmed aspects of targeting. That’s what was ruled.” Brian Fonseca also spoke with Nick Baniel, the Big Ten replay official for the game, who confirmed it was a clear cut call and stated, “On this play, we saw the defender come in, lower his head, make forceful contact right to the helmet of the runner. It satisfied all the elements of targeting.”
One aspect not addressed was the fact that Powell is listed as 6’5″ and Carter is 5’10”. For Powell to make a fundamentally sound tackle, he had no choice but to lower his head. While helmet to helmet contact was made, it didn’t look intentional as it wasn’t a direct hit, but rather that nature of a bang bang play such as it was.
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It was a tough break for Powell, who was immediately ejected. Powell was shown on the BTN broadcast as saying “how” in disbelief. He had an entire fan base and his head coach agreeing with him.
“Yeah, that’s a huge loss. I mean, Tyreem is one of our elite players. You know I can’t comment on the call; I’m confused but what are you going to do. I’ll do the process. I always do it every week. Send the plays in. It’s hard. Officiating is not easy. But when it goes to review that’s where it gets a little bit — then it’s not so hard, so I’m a little confused. But that’s life.
Powell had three tackles in the first half against Michigan State before leaving following the targeting call. Even though he missed the second half, he still leads the team with 50 tackles this season along with 2 sacks, 2 quarterback hits, a pass break up and a forced fumble through seven games.
While Rutgers did recover a fumble to stop the drive a few plays later, Michigan State scored 10 points before the half to lead 17-6. It certainly felt like ejection of Powell was a factor in how Rutgers closed out the first half.
Schiano reiterated that it was just another obstacle the the team had to fight through. And ultimately they did, executing a stunning 18 point fourth quarter comeback to defeat Michigan State and improve tom 5-2 on the season.
“Again those are all the things that our players had to keep fighting through,” Schiano said. “When you’re trying to do something and you feel that maybe something was unjust, that can play in your mind. And you can’t let it. You just have to scope chopping and see if the worm will turn. I know one thing, if you don’t, if you lay that X down, you don’t have any chance. Doesn’t guarantee you if you keep going that you’re going to successfully end the day but gives you a chance.”
The only positive of the targeting call against Powell is that it occurred in the first half. If it happened in the second half, Powell would also have to miss the first half of the Indiana game this Saturday. Schiano said during Monday’s game week presser that he emphasized that point to Powell.
“Yeah, I felt bad for him. The only thing I told him was, hey, at least in the first half, dude, so you’re able to start right away at Indiana,” Schiano said. “But I did, I felt bad for him. It’s tough. I mean, those are the rules and you’ve just got to play within the rules. So it’s a good lesson, I guess, for everybody. We talk about it. We show it, and just got to make sure that you leave it beyond a shadow of a doubt, and that’s what we try to do. Some things are unavoidable I think. Sometimes you get into a situation, it’s just an unfortunate situation. But Tyreem will be back and he’ll be ready to roll.”
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