Jan. 16, 2004
In the wake of last week's controversial ending in Texas' 79-77 overtime win at Providence, I feel that some changes need to be made with the red backboard lights that turn on when the buzzer sounds.

Texas diaper dandy P.J. Tucker made the game-winning shot on a buzzer-beater. The ESPN crew of Sean McDonough, Jay Bilas and Bill Raftery said on the telecast that they thought it was good, and then they reviewed replays that showed how close it was: The clock actually showed 0.00 with the ball still in Tucker's hand, but the red light on top of the backboard came on after the ball left his hand. Should the shot count?

Rectangular red buzzer lights around the backboard should be a must for all major conferences.

It was as close as a buzzer-beater can get. A Final Four-caliber crew of officials -- Tim Higgins, John Clougherty and Bob Donato -- analyzed and evaluated the situation and came up with the right call (officials are instructed to go by the red light over the clock).

The bottom line is, after doing some checking, the ACC and SEC require their schools to utilize a system that lights up a rectangle around the backboard -- not just a smaller light at the top of the backboard -- to make it easier to determine the validity of a game-ending shot. This is significant because the official has a much better view of the light to decide whether a shot went off in time.

In the Big East and in many other conferences, there's just that smaller red light.

To help in the future, other major conferences should do what the SEC and ACC are doing and implement a full rectangular lighting system around the glass. I learned that it isn't a big-time expense. A company called Daktronics manufactures this lighting device, and it costs about $3,500 per school.

Don't you think that in this day and age, with the megadollars and technology available, all the big-time conferences should take advantage of this? They're making big bucks, and it would be worth the investment. Why not make it easier for the guys blowing the whistle?

ACC assistant commissioner Fred Barakat seems to be ahead of the curve when it comes to technology and ways to make things better for the conference and its officials. The league also utilizes a precision time system: Every time an official blows his whistle, the clock immediately stops. That eliminates issues over the clock. Games can be influenced when time is not handled properly.

This system runs approximately $7,000-$8,000. But isn't it worth it to get calls right? With the money involved in intercollegiate athletics, it makes sense to me.

Other leagues should take a good look at what the ACC is doing with technology. Rectangular red buzzer lights around the backboard should be a must for all major conferences to avoid issues like we saw at the end of the Texas-Providence game.

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