Flag on the play: 3 worst calls from college football Week 4

2. Notre Dame’s ejection for targeting

The targeting rule in college football is terrible.

We’re all for protecting players, particularly when it comes to head injuries but there has got to be some nuance with these rulings. There are too many bang-bang plays in a murky in-between that end up being ruled targeting and resulting in an ejection. There are an equal number of clean plays that toss a player just because of nitpicky applications of the rule.

The ejection of JD Bertrand in Notre Dame’s win over North Carolina is a great example of a hit that shouldn’t result in an ejection and probably shouldn’t even count as a penalty. But the refs called it that way because there was incidental contact.

Nevermind that Bertrand tackled with his shoulder and put his shoulder into the player’s chest.

The bad call isn’t just limited to Saturday’s game either. Bertrand is suspended for the first half against BYU next week. So while the call didn’t impact this outcome, it could play a role in Notre Dame’s next outing.