Georgia benefits from controversial replay decision on potential fumble vs. Florida
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Georgia was already under the gun on Saturday against a scrappy Florida team that was fighting to help ruin the Bulldogs’ College Football Playoff hopes.
So, 5th-ranked Georgia needed a little help from somewhere in the rivalry game in Jacksonville, and the Dawgs might have just gotten it from an unlikely source — the officials. With Georgia driving at the Gators’ 21-yard line late in the 2nd quarter and trailing 10-7, quarterback Gunner Stockton was nailed by a Florida defensive player and appeared to fumble the ball, possibly before his arm was coming forward.
It was a close call in a close game, and in a game like this a replay decision could possibly turn the final outcome in 1 direction or another. Was it a fumble by Stockton and Florida’s ball, with that 3-point lead to take into halftime, or was it an incomplete forward pass, with Georgia retaining possession?
The opinion on that was probably as split as the crowd between Georgia and Florida fans in Jacksonville. Whatever they thought it was, the replay review concluded it was an incomplete pass, and Georgia turned that beneficial call into a game-tying field goal with 12 seconds left in the half. Suddenly, it was 10-10 and the Bulldogs got a complete reset in the halftime locker room.
Here is the controversial play and replay review:
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
