Matt Rhule reveals his feelings on targeting rule after controversial call in Penn State vs. Oregon

Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule had his YouTube TV quad box rolling on Saturday night when he saw a potential targeting play ruled on in the Oregon vs. Penn State game. It got him thinking about the evolution of the rule.

On the play in question, linebacker Amare Campbell for Penn State hit Oregon receiver Jayden Limar near the head. After review, officials determined it wasn’t targeting.

That’s the kind of ruling, to Rhule, that shows progress in the sport. He explained.

“I think they’re trying to call less,” Rhule said. “I think the penalty is so severe I think they’ve really changed. Obviously it’s the, I watched one game, I think it was an ACC game and they were screaming that he was defenseless but he wasn’t. So there’s still a place for big hits in football.

“You hit with the crown of your head then obviously you understand. Then they’ve changed what the crown is. It used to be (towards the facemask) was the crown, but now it’s not. So they’ve defined it. They’ve defined what defenseless is. You get your second step in the ground and make a football move, it’s that.”

For Rhule, targeting should be called with some discretion. He thinks that’s what refs are doing these days.

“I think they’re quick to now say like, ‘Hey, you touch him in the shoulder, you have to really hit him in the head,'” Rhule said. “I like where it’s headed. I can’t speak on an exact play, but just as I watch it, you remember before targeting was a foul there was guys just getting absolutely annihilated on the field. Guys would launch and it was to stop that. Then it became every time someone got hit hard everyone would be like, ‘Flag! Flag! Flag!’ It’s like, just we play football. Right? I think it’s gotten better and I like it. “

That said, there have been ongoing discussion in the space about whether targeting should be a two-tiered penalty. Is it possible for refs to rule targeting but eliminate the ejection component for some of the “softer” hits?

That’s something that officials in the sport will likely continue discussing going forward. In any case, Rhule made it clear he’s a fan of targeting as it’s currently being called.

“It’s kind of like, they talked at one point about a Flagrant 1, Flagrant 2,” Rhule said. “Because if a guy has to leave a game that’s quite a deal. In the NFL they go back and they watch it on the tape and if they think it was a malicious hit they fine you. You can’t really do that in college.

“But I like where targeting’s at. I can’t speak on those specific plays, I had four games going at once on the YouTube thing. I saw that play, but I don’t know the other one.”