Ohio State lost a key defensive starter in the first half of Saturday’s College Football Playoff semifinal after Shaun Wade was ejected for targeting Tigers quarterback Trevor Lawrence. Wade made it to Lawrence untouched on a blitz and delivered a massive hit, but he made contact with Lawrence just as the quarterback started to drop his head and curl up to defend himself. No flag was thrown on the play, but officials ruled that Wade had targeted Lawrence after a review. Clemson took advantage of the penalty, and went on to score their first touchdown of the game later in the drive. Per the NCAA rulebook, the relevant definition of targeting on this play is a player leading with his helmet to make contact with the head or neck area of an opponent, or a player initiating contact with the crown of his helmet. Wade clearly lowers his helmet as…
Continue Reading: Ohio State's Shaun Wade ejected on controversial targeting call
