Derek Schultz: Rivalry rage

Saturday night at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, Indiana was understandably out for blood against Purdue.

Losing the last three contests against their most-hated rival and needing to take advantage of a final chance to impress the College Football Playoff selection committee, the Hoosiers knew they had to lay it on their neighbors from the north.

And, boy, did they.

Leading 38-0, the game already on ice late in the third quarter, IU called and converted a fake punt from midfield, extending the drive for the sixth of nine touchdowns the Hoosiers would score on the night in a 66-0 rout. It was the most lopsided Hoosier home win in the 133-year series, beating the previous high mark by 45 points.

While that fake punt might have been slightly petty, it was absolutely a fair play. In a rivalry that has lasted over a century, plenty of beatdowns have been doled out on the Purdue sideline—the Boilermakers own 51-14, 56-7, 52-7, 63-24 and 44-7 wins just in the last three decades. Curt Cignetti’s decision falls squarely into the, “If you don’t like it, then go ahead and stop it” category, and the Boilers couldn’t stop it.

However, throughout the rest of the country Saturday in college football’s rivalry football, many displays went beyond rivalry pettiness. In fact, if we’re adding them all up, IU’s fake punt doesn’t even register on the “out for blood” scale.

In Columbus, perhaps the nation’s most heated rivalry produced its most shocking result, as a run-of-the-mill Michigan team entered as heavy underdogs and emerged with a shocking upset of the No. 2 Buckeyes, Michigan’s fourth-straight win in the series. A postgame flag-planting attempt by Michigan—keep reading; this is a recurring theme—led to a full-on melee at midfield, resulting in pushing, punches and even pepper spray. Hours later, Ohio State University police announced that they’re doing a full investigation of the incident.

Flag-planting incidents also occurred in intrastate battles in North Carolina (North Carolina versus N.C. State) and Florida (Florida State versus Florida). In Chapel Hill, UNC’s J.J. Jones grabbed a red flag that Wolfpack players were taking to midfield and attempted to throw it into the stands. A shoving match ensued before being broken up by coaches. In Tallahassee, the Gators’ flag actually was successfully planted in the Seminole logo before it was quickly removed in a skirmish. Florida head coach Billy Napier called the incident embarrassing and “a distraction from a really well-played football game” while promising consequences for those players involved.

In College Station, Texas, head coach Steve Sarkisian had to rush to midfield to prevent Longhorn players from flag-planting and repeating the Michigan-Ohio State debacle in the renewal of the Texas-Texas A&M rivalry. Hey, at least that incident didn’t involve macing 20-somethings and releasing police statements.

In Tucson, it was Arizona State pitchfork-piercing Arizona’s midfield logo that led to controversy. A fork, for God’s sake!

What are we even doing here?

Crossing the line

Over the last few years, celebrations have widely been accepted and encouraged in college and professional sports, which is a good thing overall. Ultimately, sports are games and are meant to provide entertainment, not only to the audience but to the winning participants, too.

Damian Lillard pointing to his wrist for “Dame Time” after a buzzer-beating 3; Juan Soto launching a baseball into outer space and then admiring his work before starting his home run trot; hell, even Angel Reese pointing to her ring finger—all of these celebrations are harmless.

I was thrilled when the NFL decided to start allowing team celebrations again several seasons ago. Relaxing those rules allowed Quenton Nelson’s viral “keg stand” celebration with his Colts teammates during a win over the Texans in 2019. The “interception and have the entire defense immediately run to the opposite end zone to pose for the cameras” thing has been played out, but—whatever—it’s fun!

I don’t have a problem with celebrating itself, but if you’ll allow me to be the old guy in the room, there is still a line that can be crossed.

Let’s go back to Columbus, Tallahassee and Chapel Hill. If I’m an Ohio State senior who just went 0-fer against Michigan in my collegiate career, I’m already humiliated. I have the same feeling from sitting through a 2-10 season at a proud program like Florida State, one that was 12-0 and the ACC champion last December, and getting trounced by a pretty ordinary Florida squad. At North Carolina, my coach just got fired, and I’m coming to grips with this being my last game wearing Carolina blue, regardless of remaining eligibility.

You beat me. It’s over. Do you really need to poke the bear?

Celebrating, hugging and hollering on the field with your teammates, even within obvious earshot of the opposition, is totally fine. Talking smack and getting your digs in on social media is also fine. Part of winning a rivalry game in football is earning that right for the entirety of the following year.

That said, as seemingly silly as this whole flag-planting epidemic has become, no one has to sit back and allow the opposition to rub their face in it. The line between celebrating and taunting might be a thin one, but you can’t argue that spiking a rival team’s logo with your flag in their building isn’t a taunt.

Celebrate, don’t taunt

NFL officials relaxed their celebration policy after the 2017 season; they did not, however, take out the taunting penalty. It is also a personal foul in college football, where officials can flag anyone for unsportsmanlike conduct for “taunting, baiting or ridiculing an opponent.” Taunting can also get you a technical foul in the NBA and WNBA and in most other levels of professional and college sports.

In the case of flag-planting, it feels far more in the spirit of taunting than celebrating, even if the game has ended and the referees have hit the exits.

Maybe it was partly due to the fact that the home team won, but in Bloomington there were no shenanigans at the conclusion of the heated Indiana-Purdue rivalry. There is a photo of Indiana senior Mike Katic, who missed four straight cracks at the Boilermakers due to three losses and a COVID cancellation, joyfully lifting the Old Oaken Bucket and sticking out his tongue in what will undoubtedly become an iconic image to the Hoosier football faithful.

The game included a fake punt, up 38 points and a historic blowout where one team had almost as many points (66) as its opponent had yards (67), but none of that qualifies as a taunt. It is part of the game and the price you pay when your rival is several tiers above you on the field at that moment.

And on the field, celebrate away. Scream, dance, sing and stick out your tongue for the world to see.

Just leave the flagpoles behind.•

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From Peyton Manning’s peak with the Colts to the Pacers’ most recent roster makeover, Schultz has talked about it all as a sports personality in Indianapolis for more than 15 years. Besides his written work with IBJ, he’s active in podcasting and show hosting. You can follow him on X @Schultz975.