The NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision Oversight Committee on Thursday formally approved a change to the targeting penalty that would no longer see players have to sit out the first half of the next game, with caveats.
First caveat: The change applies only to first-time offenders. A first-time offender will not have to miss any of the following game, but second-time offenders will have to miss the first half of the following game, and third-time offenders will have to sit the entire following game.
Both are significant changes. Previously, players who committed targeting fouls in the first half were free to play in the following game, but now second-time offenders could essentially serve a game-and-a-half suspension if that second foul occurs early enough in a contest. Third-time offenders could in effect miss two full games.
