Before the 2026 college football season began, many analysts would have said the ACC’s champion was a foregone conclusion. To most people, it’s the Miami Hurricanes and everyone else in the conference. Friday night, the Pittsburgh Panthers and Virginia Tech Hokies battled for a leg up in their chase for the top spot. And the ending left everyone up in arms.
The Hokies, who led 14-0 in the first quarter of the game, found themselves down 35-24 early in the fourth quarter. Despite coughing up their advantage, they executed late and set up kicker John Love with a 36-yard game-winning field goal try. But Love yanked the kick left to give the Panthers a remarkable victory.
But… did Love really miss? That’s the question college football fans are still asking Saturday morning. Many social media users couldn’t believe the kick was ruled a miss, believing it snuck inside the upright.
We usually see potential catches or penalties spark debate among football onlookers, not field goal makes/misses. However, this attempt was particularly divisive. While some folks believe the kick went through the uprights, only a handful supported the call on the field.
The NCAAF rulebook states the entire football must pass “between the inside” of the uprights. If it travels over the upright at all, it’s no good. This is different than the NFL’s rulebook, which states a kick directly over the upright — as long as it remains inside the outer edge — is good. Based on the angle below, it’s hard to argue the ball was inside the left upright at all.
Pittsburgh improved to 5-0 with the victory, dealing Virginia Tech its first defeat under James Franklin.
