He said he hadn’t seen the replay. But he can’t claim ignorance of the controversy anymore.
Bill Vinovich, the head official from the Rams-Saints NFC Championship that ended with pitchforks over a missed pass-interference call, could not hide himself in the college basketball stripes he donned for BYU’s 71-66 win over Saint Mary’s on Thursday in Provo, Utah.
The crowd at the Marriott Center was ready for Vinovich, who, in the aftermath of Nickell Robey-Coleman slamming into Tommylee Lewis long before the pass arrived, claimed he had not yet seen the replay of the potential game-decider (thus making himself just about the only person not to see it).
A few members of the crowd got Vinovich’s attention early in the game during a timeout and asked, “Was it pass interference?” Vinovich, who has officiated NFL games from 2001 to 2006 and 2012 through today, said, “I don’t wanna talk about that stuff,” and walked away.
He didn’t wanna see that stuff, either. Other fans at the game brought a sign reading, “Bill, Don’t Screw These Saints!”
The sign apparently didn’t last long, with a BYU radio host reporting Vinovich asked that the sign be removed.