Highway robbery? Arkansas fans are going wild over controversial no-fumble call by Auburn
It appeared that Arkansas might have a chance to steal a win on The Plains against Auburn as Auburn QB Bo Nix looked like he bobbled a snap late in the game, fumbled and then tried to clock the ball.
As Auburn drove to setup a late field goal, Nix on third down and 1 from the Arkansas 19 mishandled the snap but was bailed out by an officiating review that called it intentional grounding. The play then had 10 seconds run off the clock, and Auburn kicked a game-winning field goal with 18 seconds left in the game to knock off the Razorbacks 30-28.
Here is the play and a sampling of reaction to the call:
Shouldn’t this be considered a fumble? He muffs the snap and then tries to clock it but throws backwards. That should be a fumble #Auburn #ARKvsAUB pic.twitter.com/vagbCNHraM
— Clete Holmes (@Clete27) October 10, 2020
. @SECOfficiating_ yall are god awful still. Figure it out
— Dan Skipper (@DanSkipper70) October 10, 2020
I don’t understand how that’s not a fumble for Auburn.
Someone who is a referee pls define that rule for me.— Marty Smith (@MartySmithESPN) October 10, 2020
Wow. I mean, I’ve seen some bad officiating before. But that’s a total screw job.
— Bart Pohlman (@BartPohlman) October 10, 2020
If the SEC is going to screw a team over, they will always make sure it’s Arkansas.
— (@BuzzJohnNabors) October 10, 2020
Pretty bad call by the refs not ruling that an Auburn fumble
— Luke Slabaugh (@LukeSlabaugh) October 10, 2020
That was a fumble by Bo Nix. Again Auburn gets bailed out
— Trey Tucker (@Treytuck1125) October 10, 2020
@SEC refs get Arkansas again. Gave Auburn that football game.
— Zach Hettel (@CoachHettelPHHS) October 10, 2020
It was definitely backwards.. Not sure if there is some kind of different rule for clocking but on a regular pass that’s a fumble..
Refs said it was a backwards lateral but the dumb@ss refs blew the play dead so its not reviewable.
Not a dumbass. He knew EXACTLY what he was doing.
Yep
Lol!!! Oh yeah theres a BIG conspiracy against Ark football!
This one hurt…
Hold the refs accountable. Im tired of being a beating stick and we finally look like we are out from under it. I guess the SEC wants us right where we have been. Trash.
Vanderbilt says “Hey”
If I had a dollar for everytime I have seen Vandy get the short end of the stick by the refs in a close upset game over an SEC team, I would be swimming with the dolphins in Aruba.
Stuff like this makes me not even want to watch football anymore. There are no real consequences.
Just wanna say….Arkansas is gonna be a big deal
Thank you sir.
Thanks… Hope you are right..
Terrible. Arkansas earned the W.
lol. Did the refs screw up? Sure. Should it have been called a backwards pass? Yes. Arkansas had no impact on that play, Bo dropped the snap. It was his mistake. We also had to kick a field goal to win the game, and we had missed one before that. Arkansas didn’t earn anything. They were going to get lucky by a slippery ball, take a knee game over. But instead we got lucky by a bad call and kicked the winning field goal
Auburn is just mad they will always be little brother to Alabama.
That was a bad call. No way around that. Auburn got lucky, but sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good.
That’s BS. We didn’t have Boyd or Burks and we still shoulda won. I guess they didn’t want Arkansas to be ranked.
You think Arkansas would’ve been ranked had they won? Lol
Thats true a win over a team that got absolutely pummeled by georgia and bailed out again over UK wouldn’t of really proven much.
Exactly. We are terrible. So Arkansas is.. what?
We did win.
Yessir, we did.
They just too cowardly to admit it.
Didn’t realize Arkansas had this many fans.. I’m impressed but you still lost. Good luck moving forward.
Ride that shallow victory while you can. You’re gonna get exposed soon enough.
W is a W. I think UGA already exposed us..
Why not? Being 2-1 beating #13 and #16 on the road in back to back weeks. Only loss was to #4 GA.
The Mississippi State win doesn’t look as good now..
Saying this as an Auburn fan, that second last play was bs and Arkansas should’ve won
Ok, let’s break this down for the Suey Pigs. Let’s assume it was a fumble. Probably was. You can’t conclude a win from that missed call. Instead, the refs made the right call because the only way to reverse the call is if there was an immediate recovery by the defense, and failing that, you don’t even re-spot the ball. There was no immediate recovery. Go watch the replay. Didn’t happen. So, Auburn ball and worst case, the ball is moved back and Auburn is still kicking the potential game winning fg.
So, while we both still suck, right call, Arky lost.
Hey, common sense isn’t allowed here.
Move that ball back, or maybe call the holding call and that “game winning field goal,” misses with its trajectory, as it didn’t go in by much as it was.
It would have been a completely different kick. You can’t analyze it in a vacuum and assume the same trajectory. Still, it was the right outcome and Arky lost.
But if you want to talk about missed calls, what about the offensive PI on Arky on that long pass in the first half, or the missed face mask that would’ve given Auburn the ball inside the 5 before half, or the missed PI on Seth in the end zone. See how this works?
For all you Saturday lazy boy coach you know holding,pass interference can be called on nearly every play but this was sec officiating just Bad.
We recovered the ball. However, this was after one of the “Auburn” refs blew the whistle, thus rendering the play dead. Congrats.
Y’all did not recover the ball, go watch the replay again. You had one defender on the ground that put a hand on the ball but never had control and the refs blew the play dead right before 2 Auburn players would have dropped on it.
Home town refs…you bet.
except yall wouldn’t have been that close had it not been for the immediately prior penalty call for the pass interference against Arkansas. It was definitely not pass Interference. Arkansas was robbed and the frustration of that messed up Bo Nix spike is distracting everyone.
Did you forget that intentional grounding was called on this fumble? There was a 10 second run-off too. How do you have intentional grounding, and a fumble?
Should not have blown it dead. It was a backwards pass and as such was a live ball. Refs were very wrong and had no recourse after the awful decision to blow it dead. No chance to recover it since they were blowing the whistle everyone just stopped.
Wrong, wrong, wrong. The mistake that was made is blowing the whistle and stopping the clock on a fumble. The play should have continued. If an Arkansas player recovers, game over. But if an Auburn player recovers, then the ball is placed at the spot of the recovery and they still have to make the kick. Most importantly, THE CLOCK NEVER WOULD HAVE STOPPED. So the refs have to spot the ball, Auburn has to run the field goal team onto the field quickly and snap the ball for the kick while the clock’s running. And because Auburn substituted, Arkansas would have been given time to substitute. No leisurely trotting out the kicker and having him methodically go through his pre-kick routine, as he did, because the clock is running. Tick, tick, tick. The pressure of kicking quickly during a running clock is orders of magnitude greater than with a stopped clock, not to mention the pressure of getting the kicking team on the field while the clock is running.
Well it seemed we were the only ones trying to jump on the ball and did in fact recover it. Yes it was a win for Auburn and a gift from the HS refs but that W is nothing you can brag about being a 2 TD favorite at home.
I’m not here to comment on the bad call but omg Arkansas fans got so cocky after beating MSST last weekend. I mean you’d think they were going to the SEC championship with what SOME of the fans on this site are saying.
It’s the only reason I’m responding. They were hyped up after one win and saying they would win this weekend
We hadn’t won an SEC game since bielema was here. For us it really was just like winning the sec west
I understand that. You should be excited. But the cockiness and predictions is over the top..
You should cheer for your team but know your place, and never think delusional thoughts like you can actually win against a “real team”. Your place is in the bottom half of the West and you should accept that. Maybe one year you get a second or third place finish but it is a once in a decade thing. Know your place. That’s the arrogant attitude I see a lot on here from certain teams towards others. I don’t even like Arkansas, but they have been the biggest surprise to me. They have come a long way in 3 games and aren’t the easy out they used to be
There was a single Arkansas fan posting a lot of cocky predictions on nearly every related SDS article last week. He was posting responses nearly as much as wde0012. Monkey see, monkey do, I guess.
Every fan base has those. After Georgia’s game 1 win over Arkansas, there were plenty of Auburn and Tennessee fans replying to Georgia fans with the typical dismissive “It was ARKANSAS, for crying out loud” lazy comments. Georgia’s defense, “4th string” QB, and 2nd half adjustments looking pretty good right now. Oh, but wait, that was Auburn and Tennessee.
It was more than more than one and you know it.
It’s because we have something to look forward too. Unlike y’all.
I totally agree. We surely aren’t going anywhere. But apparently Auburn isn’t either. Welcome to the club! You beat a bottom feeder with the help of your refs. There are support groups out there once you recognize you have a problem…
There is no comment or recourse you can make over a bad call that is sanctioned by the SEC. Enjoy your win, see you next year.
Ok, so I agree that what Nix did was a fumble.
Now, with that being said, then what? I mean, the refs literally blew it on this one by blowing the play dead. I believe had they not blown the play dead, Auburn still would have recovered the ball but wouldn’t have had time to get a FG off with seconds left.
I’m glad we won but I’m disappointed in my Tigers tonight. Arkansas should have won tonight. I’m glad they have something to look forward to now because all that was WITHOUT Boyd.
Of course, I also have to point out that Britt, Bryant, and Simpson were out for us on Def along with Shivers and Stove (at least I think he was, didn’t see him at all) on offense. As a delusional Auburn fan, I’m gonna say that played a major factor in tonight’s game
I get it you Arky fans are upset, but STOP blaming Auburn. We didn’t screw you over, the Refs did. Blame them, but stop crying to Auburn fans. If the shoe was on the other foot, you know not one of you hog fans would have complained.
Fumble? Yes.
Backwards pass? Yes.
Live ball? Yes.
Except that the SEC Command Center, Home Of The Right Call(tm) made sure that Auburn got their FG attempt.
That is an abomination of a call that changed the outcome of the game. That ref crew should be fired and barred.
Sorry they had no choice,,once blown dead,,all action after is post play..doesn’t count except for any dead ball fouls. Quick Whistle, blown Call.
This was an Arkansas win if the refs hadn’t blown the play dead. It sure felt like a loss for us to me. The offense still was bad. The defense was even worse. I’m ready for Auburn Basketball.
Thank you. At least some Auburn fans saw it for what it was- Arkansas getting hosed by SEC officials. The SEC needs to suspend that crew for 1-2 weeks. The SEC suspended Marc Curles and his crew for hosing Arkansas the last time we played at Gainesville. There must be accountability.
It was a mistake for sure but there is no conspiracy. No ody had ever seen somebody clock the ball backwards. The official was obviously confused and blew it dead. Not much can be done about it now.
Yep! This is a new one! Something to add to make sure not to get a repeat of the same thing.
I still can’t comprehend why Nix felt he had to rush that snap with 25 seconds on the play clock and a few more on the game clock. As for Arkansas blaming that call or lack of for the loss is to ignore the last three possessions of that game. Arkansas let a freshman running back completely manhandle them and move the ball into scoring position. After Carlson’s first miss, you all held the ball for the absolute minimum amount of time required to get three plays off and then proceeded to let the anemic Auburn offense march again. When looking to place blame for the loss, blaming one call by the officials is too simplistic and doesn’t involve enough self reflection.
Totally agree with this. We shot ourselves in the foot with poor special teams play and bad clock management/conservative play calling in the last drive. The officiating certainly affected the outcome, but it should not have been left to the refs to screw up. We gifted Auburn points off a blocked punt and failed 2 point attempts. Congrats on being lucky and taking advantage, Auburn. And congrats on finding a running game.
The officials got the call wrong, no doubt about that. But after blowing the whistle they had to go with their mistake. It happens. It happens a lot in Auburn’s favor.
Something about that stadium. I’m not one to believe in jinxes but somehow in that stadium, EVERY controversial call goes in their favor.
The issue is player safety has overtaken game play as the basis for officials at this time. This isn’t a bad thing, but it fails to line up with the logical viewpoint of spectators.
AU benefitted from the Rules,,any whistle even an inadvertent one ends the play no matter what. AU and Bo are both overrated…unfortunately for us Bama is not….
Pretty sad to be crying over one call. Sure, it was a fumble and it was also blown dead. No way to remedy it. The larger concern is Bo Nix is developing slowly. Hasn’t changed much since day one. He throws into coverage a lot, and he should’ve known not to spike the ball backwards.
AU QB is worst starter in Division 1 Football. “Chucky-Duckie” won’t get the job done.
So now SEC refs allows a QB to fumble twice? I picked Auburn to win the West. Clearly, I was wrong. I trashed Arkansas based on previous seasons. The Hogs were robbed on this one. I hope they mentally recover.
You can fumble multiple times,,,the issue here is that at least one Official blew the whistle before the ball was recovered from the stupid idiotic not understanding basic football possession rules AU QB (he who should not be named)…once any whistle is blown the play is over no matter what action follows.
This is definitely not an isolated incident, although I didn’t see the game, so I can only comment in general.
Whenever there is a 50-50 type of call, the favored team, or the home team in a toss-up, is going to get the benefit of the doubt about 90% of the time. It’s a subconscious effect. The referees think in their minds that the better team will be the team least likely to make a mistake, or in the case of many missed calls, the spot of the ball will benefit the favored team.
It isn’t just football. For years in the John Wooden era, UCLA’s players could be in the pants of the opponent on their 2-2-1 press, and unless they drew blood or knocked the player into the cheerleaders, no foul was called. If a player breathed hard on Kareem or Walton, the whistle blew.
Kentucky basketball received so many beneficial call through the years that other coaches used to say that playing the Wildcats when either Don Rutledge or Paul Galvin was officiating was like playing 5 on 6.
I think one of the funniest totally biased calls Alabama against a typically sub-SEC standard Vanderbilt team around the turn of the century.
Vanderbilt crossed the goalline on three consecutive plays and never got a touchdown. They lost 12-9.
I do not know the exact rule concerning this bizarre play…but it sure seems like Arkansas got royally-hosed in this one. Kinda reminded me of the “put seconds back on clock” field goal play for Auburn…maybe some Jordan Hare voodoo magic on the refs ?
It’s a bummer but will make it so much sweeter watching Alabama hang 60 on Auburn wgile they cant muster 20. I’m looking forward to the Malzhan and Morris firing at the end of the season lol.
Just typical shenanigans that happen at Jordan-Hare. Welcome to our world.
In order for it to be intentional grounding you have to first admit that it was a pass. By their own admission, the refs said it was a pass. Cant be intentional grounding without being a pass. The fact that it is a pass is not in question.
So then you have to look if it was backwards pass. If the pass was backwards then it is the same as a toss or handoff.
There is no way that pass was not backwards. The SEC came out with some lame technical B.S. excuse that made no sense, to cover the refs. I get it, the SEC is in damage control over this. You dont want to admit a mistake because it makes the league look bad. Better to act like it was the right call. But I guarantee there will be some serious meetings in the near furture. Arkansas got robbed. What no one is talking about is how improved Arkansas is. They are a pretty decent team. Not the bottom feeders some predicted.
They painted themselves into a corner when the official blew it dead before anyone recovered it. The only call after that was going to be a bs call.
The game is 60 minutes. In those 60 minutes players and coaches make mistakes. Guess what? So do Ref’s. It was a fumble, but was blown dead. No way to remedy that. Should’ve taken care of business in the other 59 minutes, 50 some odd seconds. Auburn converted the FG and walked away with a win.
Get over it! They’re not going to reverse the call! Auburn has had more than their fair share of despicable calls go against them but Auburn fans were told to stop crying! Arkansas needs to move on and put it behind them or they will never improve
I thought I told you to quit making multiple profiles so you could troll Auburn’s win.
Terrible call…As a Bama fan, I obviously dislike AU…But in my opinion, Arkansas screwed up BIG TIME after the first Carlson FG miss…AU only had 2 TO’s left, and instead of playing to win, they played not to lose…Just one first down would’ve sealed the win…The tried playing it “safe” and that was most obviously a mistake
I agree. Poor play calling on the last drive.
Completely agree with this. The ref screw-up hurts, but that conservative play-calling set it up. I think the coaching staff will learn from this and hopefully trust the offense more in future similar situations.
Ref blew the whistle, knowing it would benefit Auburn. Ref was on other side Nix therefore unable to see the ball coming out of Nix’s hand. Ref assumes Nix spiked the ball. Ref saw that he threw the ball backwards. Arkansas’ player (#7) was on the ground with the ball at the 39 yard line when the ball stopped moving. If the ref doesn’t blow the whistle Arkansas ends up with the ball on the 39 yard line. When you play Auburn at home you’re up against the team and the refs. I’ve seen it happen there too many times to deny it.
That was a turnover with Arkansas recovering….Gus got a gift and a fake win. I wonder if they wasted a bunch of toilet paper over that one ? RTR
Technically…Auburn “won” the game, Arkansas “lost”…everyone who loves SEC football knows what happened at the end of the game….all I will say is, I want Auburn to ENJOY Chad Morris as I see he is doing for Auburn what he did for Arkansas!
The officials blew it. Period. To add insult to injury the penalty and 10 second run off couldn’t be declined. The run off rule should be changed. Auburn breaks the rules but Arkansas actually got penalized.
I have a different take on this. QB threw the ball straight into the ground. I don’t care if he was facing forward or backwards. The ball left his hand and went straight into the ground. Not forward not backward straight into the ground. It bounced backwards but that was after it struck the ground. If it was straight into the ground it’s NOT a lateral pass. Lateral pass must be backwards from the point of release. Just mytake.
This is incorrect. The ball must move forward from the point of release in order for it to be a forward pass. If the ball does not travel forward from the passer’s hand, it is a lateral, even if it is perfectly parallel to the line of scrimmage. It does not have to move backward in order to be considered a lateral or “backward pass”. Look it up.
Bo panics Again..doesn’t know basic football rules,,,backward or side pass is a free ball (fumble) and instead of protecting or getting back to the ball he turns his back to argue and plead with the Back Judge and Ref. so as Bugs Bunny would say “What a Ma-roon!” Hope Bo finds the transfer portal soon.
Bo’s not transferring…he’s a legacy at Auburn. Daddy would not allow that.
By all accounts Arkansas deserved to win that game. Thanks to the Ref’s they were robbed….Bigtime!
Winning a football game has nothing to do with who “deserves it” there are no virtual or “moral” victories. As a former coach I would tell our team that I would take a 1/2 point win if I had to,,but it was either win or loose,,nothing in-between…There is only one stat that matters the score…Quick Whistle cost Ark the game…but they did play well enough to win…
I would agree they played well enough to win, until their final drive. There would never have been an opportunity for that controversial play and subsequent call had Arkansas run the clock out successfully. They had their opportunity to put that game away and ultimately couldn’t capitalize on said opportunity.
I have said this is the most homer referee league I’ve ever seen. However there has been games when mizzou was on the road and the home team got bit by what would be a homer call. The referee must’ve forgot who the home team was.
Classic Clemson tiger death valley officiating.
Cobbowl…you’ve got that right.
But the real question here should be…”Why did the ref blow the play dead ?”
ARKANSA got snubbed the ref really fouled that on up. I’m a big time Auburn fan and I can honestly say we won on a technicality and not on true game play. Honestly the whole coaching staff should be replaced because that was an awful showing and display of a team that is supposed to contend. Down with Malzahn.