Pac-12 refs will officiate the National Championship, ensuring chaos

Refereeing has been suspect in college football all year, and some of that suspect refereeing could be headed to the College Football Playoff Championship Game.

Yeah, the ACC refs messed up the ending of the Miami-Duke game, but overall, Pac-12 refs are the absolute worst. The #Pac12Refs meme was first brought to the world’s attention in 2013, when the refs in the Wisconsin-Arizona State game failed to properly spot the ball to allow Wisconsin a chance at a field goal at the end of the game.

Every conference has refereeing mistakes. But what makes Pac-12 refs special is the utter incompetence and hilarity they show in failing to enforce the rules. It’s not just that they mess up judgement calls — it’s that they sometime let chaos reign, particularly in its big moments. And the national title game seems likely to have big moments.

Pac-12 refs seem to embrace the chaos that Pac-12 football already specializes in, as explained by Spencer Hall.

The random and possibly scientifically valid correlation of Pac-12 games to a general atmosphere of chaos entirely independent of the execution of the game by the players and coaches.

This last part is an important distinction. It’s not that Pac-12 football itself is any more or less chaotic on average than any other conference-branded football. It’s that the following disorganized, random, and entertaining things seem to happen more often in the wide open spaces of the Pac-12 than in other conferences, perhaps because things are newer out there, less defined, and people simply don’t give two shits what you think about them, ever.

And this spirit affects everyone, good and bad. Take Arizona State, which came out on the right end of the craziness against Wisconsin. ASU has come out on the wrong end of Pac-12 refs decisions, too. Washington State got a fifth down (and a touchdown) against the Sun Devils this year, thanks to an inadvertent whistle.

ASU coach Todd Graham once had to teach Pac-12 refs the correct signal for a safety. Perhaps this was just karma for Washington State, which ended up on the wrong end of a call last year. The Cougars had a touchdown nullified because the refs didn’t know who had the ball.

Pac-12 refs don’t discriminate between good and bad teams. Oregon’s lone regular season loss last season came due to the refs penalizing a defender for bowing. That set up Arizona’s go-ahead touchdown drive.

Last year’s Cal-Stanford game was officiated so poorly that FOX replay expert Mike Pereira called the refs “bandits in the booth” after making some absolutely inexplicable replay calls.

And in retro Pac-12 refs, a replay official in 2006 said he knew that Oklahoma recovered an onside kick against Oregon but couldn’t correct the wrong call on the field.

The last few minutes of a close national title game sure will be something to watch.