Did the Officials Get the Call Right?
Controversial Replay Decision Headlines Outcome of Miami and Virginia Tech Game
What a game between the Miami Hurricanes and the Virginia Tech Hokies. While the game was entertaining, everyone only talked about the finish.
It was a chaotic finish. Even though Miami's Isaiah Horton came out of the massive pile of players between Miami and Virginia Tech in the back end zone and began to celebrate as the lights flashed in Hard Rock Stadium, the officials ruled that Virginia Tech receiver Da'Quan Felton had come down with the ball before it was wrestled away from him.
Result. Touchdown Virginia Tech. Game over. Hokies win. The players from Virginia Tech came onto the field to celebrate. They had just won the game on a 30-yard Hail Mary on a pass from quarterback Kyron Drones. Instead of jubilation on the Miami sideline, they were in shock. Meanwhile, Virginia Tech's sideline went from disbelief to celebration.
Or so we thought. There was some confusion as the referees took so long to make the call. Head referee Jerry Magallanes ordered them back to their respective sidelines. He announced the ruling on the field as a touchdown and that the play was under further review.
If you were watching the broadcast on ESPN, you heard their rules expert Matt Austin say not sure there was enough to overturn the call even though the ball was moving. There needed to be indisputable video evidence that the ball had moved to overturn it.
After a lengthy delay, Magallanes got on the mic and announced that the touchdown call on the field had been overturned, allowing the Hurricanes to celebrate a 38-34 victory.
In a statement issued two hours after the game ended, the ACC said, "During the review process of the last play of the Virginia Tech at Miami game, it was determined that a Miami player touched the loose ball while he was out of bounds, which makes it an incomplete pass and immediately ends the play."
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For those watching, this sparked debate about whether the call was correct. Again, when it goes to replay, there are so many moving parts fans are not privy to. Some people thought it was a touchdown, and how could you overturn it? Some believed they got the call right, overturning it.
However, the debate about whether something is a catch has taken center stage for a long time. It was so hard to overturn the call on the field, whether the ruling was incomplete or touchdown. Even with the statement from the ACC, there was so much confusion in the pile. The angles of the replay make it hard to tell if the ball is moving or secured.
After the game, Virginia Tech head coach Brent Pry said in his post-game press conference, "The way the game ended, I hope they got that call right. To take that, to overturn it and take it from our kids, our coaches, our fans, I hope they got it right."
In addition, Pry said that he went over to the officials and asked them how they ruled it.
"He said, 'Touchdown,'" Pry said. "Normally, when you look at something that long, it does not get overturned. I didn't think there was enough evidence to overturn it. So, like I said, I hope they got it right."
There were just so many moving parts in this play. But nobody is talking about the Hokies blowing a double-digit lead. No, the talk is about the final play overturned by replay.
Even College Gameday was talking about it, and they couldn't believe the call had been overturned. But this is why we love College Football so much—the debate. Usually, we ask for something clear-cut when playing on the field. The ruling on Friday night between Miami and Virginia Tech left more gray area than anything else.
Let us know if they got the call right.