Report: ACC official suspended after phantom offsides call on Cal against Notre Dame
Last week’s contest between California and Notre Dame featured one of the worst calls we’ll see from college football officials all season.
The Golden Bears had a 7-0 lead in the second quarter, with Notre Dame driving to try and tie. Cal picked up a key third-down stop on its own side of the field to stall out the drive and Notre Dame settled for a field goal attempt — a kick that hit the upright and fell no good.
Cal was called offsides. Notre Dame was granted a first down. Two plays later, Notre Dame scored a touchdown. The Bears ultimately lost by seven.
According to ESPN’s play-by-play broadcaster Roxy Bernstein, the side judge who made the offsides call has been suspended by the ACC. The league also privately apologized to Cal for what it said was an incorrect call, according to Bernstein. However, they don’t plan to publicly acknowledge the error.
According to sources, ACC has suspended side judge from last Saturday Cal at Notre Dame who called Cal for being offside on this play. ACC apologized to Cal for error and admitted was bad call. As of now, they don’t plan on making public acknowledgment of error and punishment. pic.twitter.com/DYd8C0AFCD
— Roxy Bernstein (@roxybernstein) September 24, 2022
The seven-point loss was Cal’s first of the season.
“The penalty on the field goal block was on Lu Hearns,” Cal coach Justin Wilcox told reporters this week. “(The official) told me after the play that Lu Hearns had jumped offsides. That’s the response that I got.”
Wilcox didn’t see it, and he’s certainly not alone.
“I don’t have a response,” he said. “I don’t even know how to respond to that one.
