Video review controversy looms over No. 5 SU’s 13-12 overtime loss to No. 4 Maryland
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Gary Gait knew how it’d end. He told the world a few days ago, indirectly prophesying the bleak fate in which Syracuse awaited Saturday.
The head coach said with glowing enthusiasm that he likes college lacrosse’s newly implemented video review system. He thinks it’s good for the game. Still, he knows its limitations. And he painted an eerie picture before his team’s bout with Maryland.
“You can only review a goal, but a lot of times the issue is — was the player pushed in the goal crease or not,” Gait said on Feb. 15. “For example, we scored a goal, we landed in the goal crease, but we were pushed and the refs called it a goal because that would be the right play, if there’s a push and it goes in, it counts, but you have to throw a flag and they didn’t.”
…So you’re left with a situation where you lose a goal because the referee didn’t call the right play at the time because they thought the goal was good. It’s an interesting situation.”
Michael Leo was at the forefront of that exact same scenario late in overtime versus the Terrapins. He sliced through the right side to get in front of the net, and ripped a shot past Maryland goalie Logan McNaney. As the Orange flipped to jubilation, the referees discussing and signaling no goal left them crashing down.
The play went to an official review. It was displayed that Leo committed a crease violation yet was pushed in the process, which at that point couldn’t be reversed. The call was upheld, and with 57 seconds left in overtime, George Stamos buried the Terrapins’ game winner.
An opportunity to deliver its first home victory over Maryland since 1983 and accomplish Gait’s goal of demonstrating that SU is capable of “competing in top 5 games” was harshly silenced by video review. No. 5 Syracuse (3-1, 0-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) fell to No. 4 Maryland (3-0, 0-0 Big Ten) 13-12 in overtime for its first defeat of 2024. The result was SU’s 10th-consecutive loss to an Inside Lacrosse top 5 opponent during the Gait era.
“There’s work to be done,” Gait said postgame of the replay rule. “There’s been several times already this year, in a young year, where the refs have come to me and said ‘The player was pushed in the back but we’re not allowed to make that call off review.’”
On a night where a staunch defense and a Leo-Luke Rhoa tandem carried the offense to go toe-to-toe with an elite Terrapins side, all of it was canceled out due to a disputed conclusion.
“There’s already lots of conversation about it,” Gait said of the limitations of video review. “I’m sure it will be addressed next summer when the rules committee gets back together again.”
Piling onto the circumstances, Maryland head coach John Tillman is a part of the rules committee. Gait stayed on the field for some extra time with Tillman to discuss the dramatic finish — which Gait said referees have missed the same type of call in “almost every” game SU’s played since the addition of video review.
Tillman said after the game that he wished it hadn’t been hindered by the ending. He recognized the deficiencies in the rule, saying how he hadn’t joined the rules committee when college lacrosse instilled the goal mouth — an area with a six-foot radius that circles around the cage.
Created ahead of the 2020 season, the goal mouth prohibits offensive players from entering it by diving, jumping or lunging into the area to take a shot. If the player enters by themselves and scores, then the goal is supposed to be called off. If there’s contact made by a defender that forces the offensive player inside the circle, then the goal can stand.
Then, the implementation of video review drew more ire to the goal mouth. Following Duke’s controversial game-winner to defeat Penn State in the Final Four last season, where Garrett Leadmon leaped inside the restricted area but referees still ruled the goal good, video review for scoring plays was instituted.
Saturday’s result was the first significant look into the flaws of video review. If rules permitted the officials to rule the play differently due to Leo being shoved into the goal mouth, SU could instead be basking in a monumental victory rather than dwelling on hypotheticals.
Tillman brought up the idea that coaches have discussed if even having a goal mouth is necessary, much less the potential issues with video review. He said as a member of the rules committee, they plan to send out surveys to gather thoughts regarding the new changes and how to tinker them going forward — so testy situations can be avoided.
“If guys are passionate about one thing or the other, we really need to strongly consider (a change),” Tillman said. “Just whatever’s best for the game.”
Syracuse still had chances to win, and an abundance of avenues it could have been better in. Mason Kohn posted a season-worst 44% faceoff win percentage (Gait said on Feb. 15 that he was hoping for 50%), SU couldn’t activate Joey Spallina to his typical rate and the back end committed four first-quarter penalties en route to trailing 5-2 through 15 minutes.
Though, the Orange found a way to battle back. And while he understands overturning Leo’s goal was a tough call, Gait believes they deserved to reap the proper rewards for their performance. He just hopes it doesn’t happen again.
“I think we’ve got some work to do as a coaches association to get this replay right when most of the time, those goals scored right around the crease involve contact,” Gait said.
