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B1G head of officials Bill Carollo on Fiesta Bowl call: ‘I haven’t talked to anyone who thought it was an incomplete pass’
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Ohio State’s loss to Clemson in the Fiesta Bowl on Saturday isn’t getting any easier to swallow, especially with continuing talk that one of the key plays of the game was erased due to a missed call.
In the third quarter of the College Football Playoff semifinal game, Clemson wide receiver Justyn Ross hauled in a pass that was later knocked loose by Ohio State defensive back Jeff Okudah. Jordan Fuller scooped it up and scored a touchdown, giving Ohio State a 22-21 lead in the third quarter.
But the play went to review and an SEC officiating crew overturned the call, wiping the touchdown off the board.
That call has been one of several disputed calls that ended up being huge in the game. And in a 29-23 loss to Clemson, every play was critical for Ohio State.
On Monday, CBS college football reporter Dennis Dodd spoke with Bill Carrollo, the supervisor of B1G officiating about the call. And Carrollo said, not only that it was the wrong call, but that he hasn’t heard from anyone else that the crew working the game made the correct call.
“I haven’t talked to anybody who thought it was an incomplete pass,” Carrollo told Dodd. “To reverse it, it has to be really obvious.”
That’s a pretty scathing comment on the officiating crew working the game. And it’s even more frustrating for head coach Ryan Day, the players and fans who watched that game and understood the wrong call was made.
It’s of little consolation at this point, as the Buckeyes’ season is now over. But at least Ohio State knows that it isn’t the only one saying that the overturned call was the wrong one to make on Saturday night.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB