Pitt pulled off one of the most surprising wins of this college football season on Saturday, beating Clemson on a last-second field goal, 43-42, in Death Valley.
Refs made bad calls in Pitt’s favor. But Clemson might’ve gotten some help, too.
Pitt got help in beating Clemson, for sure, but the story goes a bit deeper than that.
It was one of the year’s weirdest games and one of its most exciting, but it didn’t come without controversy.
Officials made a couple of definite mistakes on Saturday that led to changes in the final score. Clemson fans are going to be upset about this for a long time, and if Pitt had lost, there’s at least one thing their fans would be livid about, too. (Remember, it’s been a hell of a month for ACC refs calling Clemson games.)
Here’s a collection of the evening’s greatest hits.
1. Referees gave Clemson a touchdown Pitt had scored. Was it fair? I guess.
When Pitt had a touchdown lead in the first half, Clemson running back Wayne Gallman plunged into the end zone from a yard out. Or did he?
Officials on the field ruled that Gallman fumbled inside Pitt’s 1-yard line. Pitt’s Jordan Whitehead scooped the ball and ran 100 yards for an apparent touchdown, before a replay review decided Gallman scored before fumbling at all.
That ruling was probably correct. I’m almost certain it was. But am I certain that it was indisputably the wrong call on the field, and thus OK to overturn? Much less so.
It seems like Gallman put the tip of the ball across the goal line before he lost it. But good luck to anyone saying that with indisputable certainty, which is the standard for a call on the field to be overturned. Had Pitt lost and taken this 14-point swing in the process, it would’ve been a pretty annoying pill for Pat Narduzzi to swallow.
2. Pitt should’ve gotten another shot after a missed field goal.
Clemson got an unquestionable break right before halftime. With the Tigers leading, 28-27, Pitt kicker (and eventual hero) Chris Blewitt kicked a buzzer-beating field goal attempt that hit one of his blockers in the back and stopped well short.
But right before that, Clemson coach Dabo Swinney, who had two timeouts at his disposal, tried to use one of them. Swinney wanted to ice Blewitt before the kick.
The head linesman next to the coach didn’t respond. The kick was allowed to proceed, and Blewitt missed it. Blewitt might not have made his second try anyway, but he’s hit from 50-plus yards four times in his career.
Pitt wouldn’t have minded another shot, and if the Panthers would’ve lost by two instead of won by one? There might have been fireworks after the game.
3. Clemson gave up a TD after a soft late-hit call.
When Pitt trailed by eight in the third quarter, Clemson stacked up Pitt’s Dontez Ford on a third down-and-3. The Tigers stopped Ford’s forward progress, and a whistle blew, but it blew kind of quietly compared to the Death Valley roar that surrounded it.
When Ben Boulware threw Ford to the ground, a flag came in for a personal foul. It extended Pitt’s drive, and the Panthers scored a few plays later.
That’s my reaction when I find out I’ve got to rake leaves on a Sunday. It’s hard to say whether the call was absolutely wrong by the book, but it was surely soft.
4. A phantom defensive holding call led to a crucial Pitt TD later.
Pitt almost tied the game with five minutes left. James Conner scored on a 20-yard run, and a Clemson two-point stop preserved the Tigers’ lead.
That touchdown only happened because Clemson’s K’Von Wallace was flagged for defensive holding on a failed third-and-10. Replays showed nothing resembling holding, but Pitt stayed on the field and scored a touchdown that mattered a ton at the end.
It’s pretty clear that officials helped Pitt to 14 second-half points.
Then again, depending on your view of Pitt’s overturned return touchdown in the first half, Pitt might’ve unfairly suffered a 14-point swing of its own. That’s plus a lost chance at three points when Swinney’s timeout call before Blewitt’s missed field goal wasn’t noticed.
It’s not that Clemson wasn’t robbed on at least one occasion. It’s just that the officiating was iffy all day, not just when it hurt the Tigers.
Clemson, in defeat, will likely be furious. But Deshaun Watson threw three interceptions, including one in the shadow of Pitt’s goalposts when Clemson led by eight in the fourth quarter. At that point, any Clemson points would’ve sealed the game. Swinney also called for a fourth-down conversion try in the final minute that fell short near midfield, setting up Pitt’s last drive.
The Tigers have a right to be miffed at the refs. They should be even madder at themselves.
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