Controversial sequences were handled ‘properly’

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Controversial Iron Bowl sequences were handled ‘properly’

Updated Dec 04, 2019;Posted Dec 04, 2019

4-5 minutes

Alabama Football

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Alabama Football at Auburn, Nov. 30, 2019

After the crazy sequence that ended with Auburn being able to kick a field goal on the last play of the first half of the Iron Bowl, Dean Blandino went back multiple times and re-watched.

The Fox Sports rules analyst and former NFL vice president of officiating was then still watching later on when the controversial penalty call late in the fourth quarter gave the Tigers a game-sealing first down.

Blandino’s opinion is the same regarding both plays.

The referees handled both situations “properly,” he said.

While Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban called the fourth quarter penalty “pretty unfair,” Blandino thought the refs were correct in throwing the flag.

On the play, a fourth-and-4 with a little more than a minute remaining, confusion with Auburn’s formation led to Alabama having too many players on the field and being called for that decisive penalty.

Saban didn’t think the Tide had enough time to substitute.

Blandino doesn’t agree.

“Anytime when the offense subs, then the defense has an opportunity to match up,” Blandino said. “So typically you’ll see the umpire will get over the football and the referee will alert the umpire once the referee feels the defense has had a reasonable opportunity to match up. Then the referee will release the umpire and the ball will be made ready for play. I know Auburn changed personnel and then Alabama looked like they were confused. There were players running on and off and they ended up with 12 in the formation.

“So once the umpire got off the ball and the referee made the ball ready for play, now if you have 12 in the formation on the defense and the ball is ready to be snapped, then that’s a foul. I didn’t see anything procedurally or anything that the officials did incorrectly. I thought they held it up and they gave Alabama a reasonable opportunity to match up.”

Blandino was more sympathetic for Alabama regarding the other controversial sequence, even with him believing the referees handled the situation correctly.

A replay review put one second back on the clock for Auburn after time had initially run out in the half. Anders Carlson then made a field goal for the Tigers following the review, a kick that cut the Tide’s halftime lead to 31-27.

If there had been one second left on the clock and no replay review, Auburn wouldn’t have had time to get off a field goal.

Instead, that replay review created an opportunity for the Tigers to get off a kick that ended up being a big play in a game that was ultimately decided by three points.

“It’s so unique and such an interesting situation,” Blandino said. "Whether it was the clock operator, the crew on the field and replay, everybody did what they were supposed to do. But it just led to a situation that probably was unfair to Alabama. If the clock operator leaves a second on the clock (instead of time initially running out in the half) and they mark it a first down and then they’re going to make the ball ready for play, Auburn doesn’t have enough time to get their field goal team out. It’s impossible.

"But because time expired, because the rule says you can put a second back on the clock — which replay looked at it and saw the ball carrier was down with a second left — now the replay review creates a stoppage where you can bring the field goal team out and get lined up and snap the football. So I just think it was a combination of circumstances that led to that, and I think the NCAA is going to look at that rule and use this play as a potential (example) for a change to prevent something like that from happening again. The play was handled properly from a mechanics standpoint and a procedure standpoint, but it just led to what was really an unfair result for Alabama.”

Matt Zenitz is an Alabama and Auburn reporter for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @mzenitz.