Teams win by any amount they want today. The articles they constantly bring up are written by fringe groups that get attention by having their stories read. It is literally nonsense.
Actually the best reason to not run up the score I've heard is not so much to show respect for the other team, but to protect your own players.
Take this game - Alabama-Florida, 2005. Bama was up 31-3 with 9 min to play, in a 4th and 5 situation on the Florida 40. Florida hadn't really done anything offensively all game - a sensible coach would've pulled the first-stringers and gone into clock management mode for the rest of the game. Instead the coach (Shula Jr.) called a 40-yard endzone pass play to their top receiver, which resulted in a gruesome, career-ending injury. This guy would've gone to the NFL and done well.
That is anecdotal, but in sports injuries can happen on any play. Just the ones in perceived garbage time to star players are kept as lore. Forget a 3rd string lineman blowing out his knee down 20 because that doesn't matter.
4 comments
1 Moklok 2013-10-04
Slovakia crushed Bulgaria 82-0 in the 2010 olympic qualifiers for women hockey.
0 Danielson799 2013-10-04
Teams win by any amount they want today. The articles they constantly bring up are written by fringe groups that get attention by having their stories read. It is literally nonsense.
2 PacinoWig 2013-10-04
Actually the best reason to not run up the score I've heard is not so much to show respect for the other team, but to protect your own players.
Take this game - Alabama-Florida, 2005. Bama was up 31-3 with 9 min to play, in a 4th and 5 situation on the Florida 40. Florida hadn't really done anything offensively all game - a sensible coach would've pulled the first-stringers and gone into clock management mode for the rest of the game. Instead the coach (Shula Jr.) called a 40-yard endzone pass play to their top receiver, which resulted in a gruesome, career-ending injury. This guy would've gone to the NFL and done well.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Xj46ypk67k (warning: very gruesome)
It's not worth risking incremental harm and injury to a player for a touchdown you don't need.
1 Danielson799 2013-10-04
That is anecdotal, but in sports injuries can happen on any play. Just the ones in perceived garbage time to star players are kept as lore. Forget a 3rd string lineman blowing out his knee down 20 because that doesn't matter.