Last week, the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) announced that they would begin using a replay command center during the 2016 football season. The system, which is under experimental rule for the 2016 season, allows all games played at ACC venues, and Notre Dame, to conference with instant replay headquarters in Greensboro, North Carolina throughout the game. Although the ACC already implemented instant replay ten years ago, the league wants to create a crew that monitors the games from a centralized location, much like what the NFL uses today. The review center announcement comes after a season of controversial calls, such as the game between Miami and Duke last October that involved several questionable calls that would have dramatically changed the score, and was heavily contested by Duke coach, David Cutcliffe, with no avail.
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The plan for the new system was outlined by Michael Strickland, the senior associate commissioner of football operations for the ACC, during the league’s annual spring meetings. ACC home games, and home games at Notre Dame, will have ten officials in attendance and up to three replay officials watching the game at the replay headquarters in Greensboro. Ted Jackson will be the new assistant coordinator for football replay, and will be in charge of coordination between instant replay officials in Greensboro and ACC venue’s officials through real- time headsets. The idea behind the replay center is supposed to be collaborative, meaning both the venue’s officials and the headquarters officials will make the final call together. The officials on the field will still be handling the on- field officiating, so the headquarters can’t make calls on their own or stop play, only venue officials can.
These are the preliminary details and more information about the replay center is expected to be released at the the annual ACC football preview in July. The system was tested during a Clemson spring game and officials are happy with how it worked. Although there were many doubts, Strickland said, “we were impressed by the quality of the image… and we were blown away by how the technology performed in that instance.” The cost of the system is said to be high, but further information has yet to be released.
#ACCFootball Will Feature Collaborative Instant Replay in 2016: https://t.co/seWZVfG3my pic.twitter.com/88n6MTfIBU
— ACC Football (@theACCfootball) May 12, 2016
The experience between watching the game at home or in the stadium won’t be changed, except the possibility of improved officiating that should come with the new replay system, which would improve the viewer experience. In this time of teams battling for more game attendance, the quality of fan experience is very important.
Although the decision for a replay command center was favored among ACC coaches, the topic of more gameday technology was highly contested. Specifically, the use of iPads and tablets on the sidelines to review plays and help players understand what may have gone wrong. With the implementation of new technology for instant replay monitoring in the ACC, the use of technology on the sidelines could improve in the next few years. With the age of constant contact and new technology popping up everywhere, it is surprising to many in the sports realm that there is no sideline technology in college football. It’s even a bit surprising why this is the first season that this replay system is being implemented. The SEC is the next conference looking at implementing the same replay technology in the coming seasons, and other conferences will likely follow .