Omaha Omaha Hut… now that we all know
By Michael Vass | January 2, 2012
There are a lot of things that sports fans will put up with when it comes to sports color commentary. Sometimes you get to hear someone great, like John Madden, but most of the time just someone good. Occassionally you will have to endure horrendous color commentary, like how many U.S. commentators used basketball and even baseball terminology for color commentary on the World Cup in 2010. But no matter how good or bad the color commentary, fans should never have to endure what happened on Jan 1, 2012.
It was during the Giants vs Cowboys Sunday Night Football game. In the 3rd quarter, after the Giants had successfully gotten Dallas to jump offsides for the third time in the game, Cris Collinsworth – the color commentator for NBC – did the unthinkable. Collinsworth revealed, on national television while the game was underway, what the Giants were doing.
‘When the Giants use Omaha Omaha Hut it means that the playclock time is running down.’ – Cris Collinsworth during the NY Giants vs Dallas Cowboys game on 1/1/2012
It may sound simple, but that little comment is huge. Collinsworth revealed critical information about the strategy and tactics of the Giants. He gave inside information to a team, that very likely influenced the game. There is no question that someone connected to the Dallas Cowboys heard this information and passed it on to the team, as any Dallas fan would do. For the rest of the game, whether because of Cris Collinsworth’s reveal or not, Dallas never again was offsides.
In fact, it was during the 3rd quarter that the Dallas Cowboys made a massive surge and nearly evened out the game. Could the information that Cris Collinsworth revealed have been the key to breaking the code the NY Giants use for calling plays before the snap? Did this influence the game, giving an edge to the Cowboys that did not exist before? There is no way to know for sure.
What is known for sure is that Cris Collinsworth knew he should not say what he did. He prefaced his inside information with the fact that he is not supposed to say what he knew, especially during a live nationally televised game.
Did Collinsworth do this because he does not like the NY Giants? Was it because he is a fan of Tony Romo? Could it have been because he was paid, or had a bet placed somewhere? Did he want to try to increase the ratings for NBC with Dallas fans? Who knows. But whatever the reason, it is unexcusable.
If the color commentator can give away team secrets – because of their access to teams and players – on national television, what are they doing in private? Is this something that sports analysts will start doing? Sports journalists? Is it happening already? What if some other sports commentator wants to help their favorite team, should they do what Cris Collinsworth has done as well?
The NFL, and/or NBC Sports, should penalize Cris Collinsworth. An example needs to be made. Because what if next time it’s the Super Bowl or World Series or World Cup, and an announcer/commentator gives away some other vital piece of information? What if another sports commemtator decides, for whatever reason, to help out one team over another – especially if Cris Collinsworth is given a pass without even so much as the notice of the NFL. Is there a single fan that wants to have their game of choice altered or influenced by some guy in a booth? Is there a fan of any sport that wants the integrity of the game compromised?
There is a reason why teams have secrets about their strategies. There is a reason that sports commentators and journalists don’t tell the world every piece of inside information. Those reasons should be upheld, not broken. It’s no different than why inside trading in the stock market is illegal.
If by some chance Cris Collinsworth happens to read this, he should publicly apologize for his actions. He should admit what he did was wrong and request a punishment that he has earned (assuming that the NFL and/or NBC do not act beforehand). This is not something that should go away without the light of day hitting it.
But what do you think? Even if you are a fan of the Dallas Cowboys, do you think that the team should have been told what Omaha Omaha Hut means? And would any fan be upset if while watching their team in whatever sport play, the announcers/commentators gave away that teams secret plays and codes?
Do you think Cris Collinsworth should apologize? Should he be punished?
Topics: Sports | 3 Comments »
3 Responses to “Omaha Omaha Hut… now that we all know”
Leave a Reply
« Movie Review: Mission Impossible – Ghost Protocol | Home | Congratulations to our Buy & Win Contest winner! »
Loading ...
Casino European Roulette with High-quality Technological style 3D graphics skin - play for fun earn and achievements! Mouse, follow in-game instructions.
Classic Black Jack game where you have to get a 21 to make black jack. Classic Casino game Hit on a chip to place bet. Then play and choose hit or stand acording to your cards.
No apologies necessary. He was merely observing what anyone could have figured out, except Collingsworth is a very astute observer and figured out some of the Giants’ weak spots. I don’t think he gained this information through any inside secrets.
.
I would guess that the Giants will adjust and call for a quick snap count a different way next week . . . in the Playoffs!
If you think madden’s so great, cast you mind back to when he used to see an odd formation, then pretty much say exactly what he saw them use that for in specific situations. He’d tell you what tonnes of Payton Manning calls meant, cause that’s what great commentators do. Just chill he hasn’t murdered, he’s doing his job. The team chooses to let them into practice, they have the option not to.
Either way, Omaha Omaha is just “the play clocks running down” you think the cowboys didn’t realise that? Having said that, I always wondered when Al Michaels, Madden and now Collinsworth reveal these plays, which only seems to happen on Sunday night (and what used to be Monday night) football, doesnt that annoy the teams. Theres no need for you to complain till they do… But I don’t know, are they?
As I recall Madden would describe in detail AFTER the play. I do not recall him doing so prior, but that could just be my memory. But either way, I do not feel influencing the game and revealing any teams secrets is part of the job.
Does Omaha Omaha Hut refer to more than just the play clock and a hard count? Possibly. Did the Cowboys figure that out? Yep, though after several penalties it didn’t stick til Collingsworth opened his mouth. Which may be incidental, then again maybe not.
The point is more than just my being a Giants fan, and thus I pay more attention to these games and maybe missed this happening to other teams. This is not fair play, nor should it be allowed. The teams are in a big catch-22, in that the announcers represent television and the money it provides vs the misplaced trust that an announcer won’t give away details that are otherwise unknown. Collinsworth stated clearly that the teams do get upset, but unless fans say something announcers will just continue to blab away, since the league doesn’t have the balls to take on television.
You can’t say that knowing a call, while watching the game makes the difference on how much you enjoy the game. It’s not information that will turn a bad game into a good one, nor a bad announcer into a great one. Maybe it is petty to expect that announcrs live up to the trust they are given, and fans are not told more than what they need to know to enjoy the game. Maybe its too much to expect evenhandedness in the major industry that is sports. But I stand by what I have said.