Did SEC refs mistakenly cost Alabama a down? Gene Steratore explains
By Keith Farner
Published:
Alabama fans quickly wondered if the Crimson Tide kicked a field goal on 3rd down in the 2nd half against Ole Miss. But the “SEC on CBS” crew then turned to rules analyst Gene Steratore to explain.
“When it was 2nd down and 16, the 5-yard gain from Alabama, at the 11-yard line was really a first down,” he said. “The down-box indicators moving near that stakes showing 3rd, it was actually 1st. And that is what upset Coach (Nick) Saban naturally, because he thought he had 3rd and inches when he ran the quarterback sneak, and it was really a 1st down and 10 from the 11 when they ran the sneak. So they missed that down there as far as the communication as to what down that was.”
Alabama fans and media, naturally, reacted in a big way:
That is one of the biggest ref errors I’ve ever seen in a College Football game
Refs took away a down from Alabama and made them kick a Field Goal on what should have been 3rd Down
— Tyler Vesely (@TylerVesely) September 23, 2023
Alabama just kicked a field goal on 3rd down… this game is actually going to kill me
— Nick Perkins (@NPerkins96) September 23, 2023
I don’t have the audio on the game, but did… did Alabama just kick a field goal on 3rd Down???
— Jeff D. Lowe (@JeffDLowe) September 23, 2023
Alabama just lost a down near the goal line and no one pointed it out to the refs??? They kicked a field goal on what should have been 3rd down. Never seen that before
— Riley (@RileyL_5) September 23, 2023
Whoa, the refs didn’t count the downs correctly and Alabama kicked a FG on a 4th down that was actually a 3rd down. Huge mistake that the SEC office will have to handle this week.
— Michael Casagrande (@ByCasagrande) September 23, 2023
A former newspaper veteran, Keith Farner is a news manager for Saturday Down South.
