Despite trailing by as many as 17 points on Friday night, Georgia mounted an incredible second-half comeback to defeat Georgia Tech in an overtime thriller. However, an argument can be made that this game should’ve never gone into overtime.
With just over two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter of the game, Georgia Tech quarterback Haynes King tried to pick up a first down with his legs when he lost control of the football. Upon further review though, Georgia defensive back Dan Jackson clearly launched himself at the quarterback while leading with the crown of his helmet. If you just go by the rulebook, that’s textbook targeting.
And yet, there was not a single review on the play. Georgia ultimately recovered the fumble from King, and the rest is history.
What made this play so incredibly frustrating is there was no mention of targeting by the referees or the broadcast team for ABC.
Here’s the play that’s in question:
College Football Officiating is so bad.
They just pick and choose when to call Targeting.
— College Football Report (@CFBRep) November 30, 2024
Most college football fans believe the referees missed a clear targeting call. If the call was made, Georgia Tech would’ve picked up a fresh set of downs, which then would’ve forced Georgia to use its remaining timeouts.
“That’s targeting if I’ve ever seen it,” one fan said.
Another fan replied, “Textbook targeting. UGA just gets away with this all the time.”
“It’s disgusting what the SEC does to college football,” a third fan wrote.
“That’s the most obvious targeting I have ever seen,” a fourth person commented.
Since Georgia survived an upset against Georgia Tech, that should put Kirby Smart’s team in great position to make the College Football Playoff. A loss would’ve made things quite interesting for the selection committee.
Georgia will be back in action next week to take on either Texas or Texas A&M in the SEC Championship Game.
Hopefully, the referees involved in last night’s game between Georgia and Georgia Tech stay away from the CFP.
Related: Kirby Smart Calls Out College Football Playoff Committee After Georgia Drops In Rankings