Running up the score opinion
 

How are you with running up the score? Are you....

A) Think it's bad sportsmanship and take up for your team that there is the unwritten respect rule.
B) Tell your team "You deserved it! The defense was terrible and you should've stopped them!"

I'm B. While it might be bad sportsmanship to run up a score, you should bear down and stop them from running up the score!

Well seeing that I am a Univ of Tennessee fan and Florida had about a 25 point lead middle of the 4th quarter a couple weeks age, I respect Mullen for keeping the ball on the ground to run out the clock instead of trying to score more points.
I think teams should continue to play hard though and do not mind if they run up the score some as long as they do not gloat about every score like a certain soccer team.

My feelings about it tend to vary, depending on circumstance.

In professional sports, I am very much in the B category.

In amateur sports, I think it depends on the situation. If you are Alabama and you have scheduled a powderpuff early in the season, I think you get to the point where enough is enough. If you are playing teams that should be on a roughly equal footing, then play it out.

Good point, Boomcoach. I should have clarified I meant pros. Not amateur, pee wee, etc.

If the losing team quits trying, then the winning team should quit trying. If the losing team is still trying, then all bets are off.

The answer is "B" for me. Last time I checked, "professional" athletes get paid to play these games. The defense gets paid to stop the offense. If they can't do it, too bad. "Running up the score" should not be a thing in professional sports, IMO. I can't take anybody serious if they complain about it either.

Score all you can while you can. Keeps the sleezebags on the other side from getting into their little heads that they might have a rally in them.

Back when I was in high school we had the ball on an opponent's two yard line with a minute left. We had our QB take a knee and run the clock out. 25 years later we were playing that same opponent. They had a future NFL RB on their roster and beat us 60-0. Didn't take their starters out until about two minutes remaining. After that game I wished I could travel back in time 25 years and punch our coach in the mouth for taking a knee.

B. Score at every opportunity and snuff out even the faintest hope of a comeback. Once it's not in doubt anymore (my definition being 7 mins or less to go with a 28+ point lead), you can pull the starters and see what you have in the backups/third string.

If you still score on the opponent, not your fault.

As for being on the receiving end of this, then it can be used as a learning opportunity. Use the chance to see what your team's doing wrong, and begin to apply some adjustments for next time.

I agree with keep playing hard but at the same time I don't see the need for trick plays when your up 42-0
In the 4th qrt.
You can leave the starters in but why not let them rest? Do you really want to see your starting qb injured in game that's already won. Sure he could get hurt anytime but in this case it's a little bit more preventable.
Sometimes you cant let up. In 1980 I seem to recall that the cowboys were up 35-10 on the eagles. If they had kept that lead they would have won the division. They had to beat the eagles by 25 points.

Why did it take you 25 years to finish high school?

Playing the Miami Dolphins

B: ok to run up the score since they don't even try. I wish teams would smack them down more.

A lot depends on your definition of "running up the score". My definition is keeping your starters in late when the outcome is already "decided" vs an already known to be outclassed opponent and attacking them just as you would @ the start of the game. Example: In college football, Alabama calling a fake punt in the 4th quarter vs Yale when already up by more than 30 points. dook running the full court press w/their starting 5 vs M.I.T. w/less than 5:00 to go and ahead by 30. In that case, I don't like it.

The problem for me comes when people call other situations "running up the score". Like in football, when the bench comes in and they still throw on 3rd down during a blowout. The reserves often practice harder than the starters do because that is the only time they get to actually play sometimes. You're going to work them hard all week and when they actually get a chance to get in the game, you're going to tell them to sit on the ball? That's not fair. Especially in college, when the starters who blowout the other team leave. The opponent now seeks revenge. But the former reserves have to answer for it. And their chance to get better on the field was lessened because they were told to give minimal effort when they did play.

It's also not fair and demeaning to the opponent. Taking your foot off the gas keeps them from getting better. It also is embarrassing to see your opponent "take pity" on you.

I really hate the notion of "running up the score" in baseball. In my mind, it's impossible. Because the game is not dependent on the clock. So you have a potentially unlimited amount of time to comeback. It's silly to think a team should stop playing when they have the lead, but the other team continues to play hard. And when someone does come back from a 7+ run lead, they want to tout their character and never giving up. Never acknowledging the other team may have taken their foot off the pedal to spare your feelings. If you want the other team to stop trying, then you need to do so also. Otherwise, shaddup.

Dumbass, I was watching the old high school play a game mainly because I wanted to check out the stud RB from the opposing school and see if he was all that. He was.

Joke
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Your head

Running up the score is better than tanking.

I'm one of those people on the B side but don't think I'd do it if given the chance. But I have no problem with those that choose to run up the score. See Oilers at Bengals 12/17/89. A great game.

I was on a H2H online football league back in the late 90s. I took a 24-0 lead late in the 3rd with a 2 point conversion. I got a IM on how much of a you know what I was. Berating me for running up the score. Something I never did. I won in the end, but not before he tied it up at 24. Needless to say, I gave him an earful I was so pissed off.

Some people take this crap way too far.

Reminds me of Sparky Anderson complaining that Showalter's team was still stealing bases with a big lead. Showalter said something to the affect of "I will tell my guys to stop stealing bases if he will tell his guys to stop hitting home runs!"

I was always told to play hard all the time, once you start playing at say 60% that's when you get injured.