College football fans expressed plenty of displeasure this week, along with media personality Josh Pate, who issued a scathing remark on the SEC’s officiating transparency during his widely listened-to college football show.
The remark was made after Auburn suffered a 24-17 defeat against Oklahoma, where a late-game touchdown, later admitted by the SEC as incorrectly scored, assisted in sealing the fate of the Tigers.
“College football officiating is a disaster. It’s been broken for a while. I know more about Air Force One than I do (about) the crew that officiated crew Tulane-Ole Miss yesterday”, Pate stated (0:00).
“There is no transparency in this whatsoever. It is the most unnecessarily guarded aspect of sports that I can think of. Like a player’s medical history, you need to guard that closely”, Pate remarked on his college football show (0:11).
The media personality’s frustrations represent a growing sentiment among fans on YouTube, as fans blasted the SEC officiating in the comments section.
“Make refs have postgame press conferences”, stated a fan.
“FSU fan here. Auburn was screwed. Nothing against OU. Everything against Officiating. This kind of officiating makes people believe games are scripted due to gambing”, said a fan.
“SEC has the worst officials”, commented a fan.
“It’s all tied to sports betting.”, remarked a fan.
“Refs blew dead a TD in the Miami UF game where it was clear the RB was still up and moving. Officiating has been abysmal”, stated another fan.
“Between NIL and officiating like we saw in the Auburn/OU game, my interest in college athletics is declining quickly. Why even devote time to watching these games when there is no accountability?” commented another frustrated fan.
“The inconsistency is maddening, but absolutely blows my mind is how an official can spend time looking at video replays and STIILL blow the call”, remarked another fan.
The game itself was a defensive battle that showed both teams’ struggles early in the season. Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer threw for 271 yards and added a key 9-yard rushing touchdown in the late fourth quarter. Auburn quarterback Jackson Arnold, who returned to his former home as a high school football star in Norman, threw for 220 yards.
Josh Pate Further Criticizes Secrecy in Officiating Accountability
Pate’s criticism extends far beyond this single game controversy. He specifically targeted what he sees as an absurd level of secrecy surrounding officiating accountability in college sports.
“How enforcement happens to an officiating crew when they mess up a call in an SEC football game should not be hidden behind like a vault, lock and key thrown in the ocean. It should never be like that”, Pate further elaborated (0:26).
The timing of these comments couldn’t be more relevant for Auburn. The Tigers will next face tenth-ranked Texas A&M, where every possession will be meaningful to stay relevant in the brutal SEC. Oklahoma gets a bye week before hosting Kent State.
Read More:
- CFP Expansion: Josh Pate Explains Why Automatic Qualifiers Could Be the Best Format
- ‘There Is No Power Four’ – Josh Pate Savagely Takes On SEC, Big Ten Draft Numbers That Show Deep Valley With Others
- “What In The World Has Penn State Done?”: Josh Pate Calls For Carson Beck’s Miami to Take Over No. 2 Spot In AP Poll Top 25 Following Massive USF Win
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