Bad Time for the Clock to Stop

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Originally Posted by Coach Bill

I'm not arguing that you can't see the tenths. You can. But, even, your post states that the human eye can process 10 to 12 separate images per second. That's about 1/10 second. So, if you see 5.3, it was 5.4 at the time. And, I think that's the best you can do. I would argue that with all the stuff going on in the official's peripheral vision that he needs to pay attention to during that quick glance, it is more likely that the margin of error is greater than 1/10 second. Not to mention, he probably glanced at the scoreboard clock about 90 feet away, which might also be a factor.

I still do not understand the point you are trying to make. I've read the entire thread and believe you are arguing that there should be more time on the clock than .3.

The correct decision was made. However, if we were using a stopwatch to time the play, the game would probably be over. You are correct that the count is not 100%accurate, but if we timed it with a stopwatch we would actually have less time on the clock. Here is why:

1) Official looks at the clock and sees 0:05.3
2) Official begins 5 second count
3) Official reaches 5 second count and blows the whistle. 1.6 seconds is on the clock.

Additional time has elapsed between step 1 and step 2. We know at least 5 seconds have come off the clock so at most .3 seconds remain.