Even though the pylon cam does not show great quality footage, it can be pieced together with a clearer camera shot to show that the ball was just short. This time, the evidence was there.
Fortunately for Michigan, after this reversal, they were able to punch it in for a score.
Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy is flagged for intentional grounding. Under pressure, McCarthy does not get outside the pocket to be able to legally ground the ball. Because he throw the ball way out of bounds to an area with clearly no eligible receiver, this is a foul for intentional grounding.
This is a "crew call" - side judge Sean Petty and head line judge Nicholas Theriot needed to inform referee Jason Autrey that there were no receivers in the area. Once Autrey gets this information, he could combine it with his knowledge that McCarthy was not out of the pocket and drop the flag for the spot foul and a loss of down.
Post by agpennypacker on Dec 31, 2022 19:50:09 GMT -5
Replay has overturned two of BJ Martin Hankins’ touchdown calls, but the first one should have stood (and the overturn arguably cost Michigan the game).
The announcers mentioned that the replay official has the final call, but that he has input from a neutral conference command center in Pittsburgh. Is that the ACC?
Last Edit: Dec 31, 2022 20:16:30 GMT -5 by agpennypacker
I've seen Pac-12 referee Chris Coyte work several bowl games and he always has a classy introduction at the coin toss.
The coin toss went ahead without a hitch. One reason was that when Georgia won and deferred their choice, Coyte simply told Ohio State, "You'll take the ball." This prevented a confused captain from choosing to defend a goal or kick, thus forcing Ohio State to kick off both halves. If OSU chose to defend a goal, the option to "kick or receive" would go back to Georgia, so they would have deferred and received the opening kickoff. Coyte made sure to avoid a captain mis-speak or confusing option. That is good preventative officiating.
Great job by head line judge Darryl Johnson to nail the mechanics on this forward fumble out of bounds. The ball is returned to the spot of the fumble. After the play, you see his hand on his hip, opening up the microphone to use the Official-to-Official (O2O) system to communicate the ruling to Coyte. He may also be asking for replay official Jerry Meyerhoff's assistance in determining the spot of the fumble.
Defensive pass interference was called by back judge Joe Johnston. There was clear restriction while the ball was in the air. The word "uncatchable" was thrown out by the broadcast, but this is too close to be considered uncatchable. Athletes make athletic plays, and had the receiver not been illegally restricted, he would have had a chance to make a play.
A tight but accurate call by head line judge Darryl Johnson. Georgia Quarterback Stetson Bennett had every part of his body beyond the line of scrimmage when he released this pass. This is a tough call to make in real time while the QB is moving forward, but Johnson nailed it.
Replay official Jerry Meyerhoff went with "stands" on this goal line play. It looks like a touchdown from all angles, but there wasn't enough indisputable video evidence to either confirm or overturn. Thus, the call on the field stood.
More action for head line judge Darryl Johnson. Ohio State back Mitch Rossi went in motion properly, parallel to the line of scrimmage. However, he looks to have mis-timed the snap count and began moving upfield before the ball was snapped. Because it wasn't abrupt or simulating the start of the play, it didn't result in a false start. However, this is a foul for illegal motion.
When the ball comes out of the quarterback's hand in a weird way, it is up to the referee only to decide whether it's an incomplete pass or a fumble. This requires whistle and signal control by the line of scrimmage officials and the umpire, who are closest to the ball. That's why, contrary to the announcers' guess, no whistle or signal is heard for a while - referee Chris Coyte has no idea if the ball hit the ground or not because he's cleaning up action on the QB, and head line judge Darryl Johnson doesn't dare guess if this is a fumble or forward pass. The crew gets together, and Coyte makes a clarifying announcement. An awkward moment in between, but there's not really a more efficient way to get this right without risking getting something very wrong.
The Georgia defensive back didn't look at the ball at all, but made early contact with the Ohio State receiver long before the ball arrived. Field judge Steve Currie and back judge Joe Johnston calmly threw their flags.
These are the kind of calls an official wants to make a career out of calling - whoever sees the call can't help but shrug and say "you gotta get that one."
After review, replay overturned the spot of being short of the line to gain to a first down. The video shows an amazing play by the runner to extend the ball beyond the line to gain while the ball is inbounds before it crosses the sideline.
Great job by umpire Greg Adams to see this ball tipped at the line of scrimmage, duck to avoid the pass, and subsequently communicate the information to the crew so that the flag for pass interference can be properly picked up.
Line judge Dale Keller flags Ohio State for being offside. This could have been the 10th player, or the 11th player - since the line judge isn't counting the defense on every play, he can't know this. What he does know is that the player is across the neutral zone at the snap, and correctly flags him.