Two influential figures in the college football officiating world have weighed in on the 2019 Fiesta Bowl controversy and it seems that they are on the side of the Ohio State Buckeyes. The referees involved in the match are being severely criticized by fans and pundits of the game. According to CBS Sports, national coordinator of college football officials Rogers Redding believed that the go-ahead touchdown done by Ohio State safety Jordan Fuller should have remained in the scoreboards. While he has not said more, it is a huge blow to the uncharacteristically silent Fiesta Bowl officials.
Big Ten officiating coordinator Bill Carollo agreed with Redding’s assessment. He claimed that every official and expert that he has talked to also think that Ohio State should have kept the touchdown. Carollo also said that he has already talked to Ohio State head coach Ryan Day. According to him, it was obvious that Day was still upset. However, he is trying his best to be as professional as possible.
One person who has not weighed in yet on the controversy is SEC officiating coordinator Steve Shaw. Shaw is set to succeed Redding as the national officiating supervisor soon.
Ohio State Buckeyes vs Clemson Tigers controversy
Two controversial calls fueled the anger of Buckeye Nation on Saturday evening.
The first one is a targeting violation committed by Buckeye player Shaun Wade. The defensive back allegedly hit Clemson Tigers quarterback Trevor Lawrence with his helmet. Because of this, Wade got ejected from the field for the rest of the game.
The more controversial one is when referees overturned Fuller’s touchdown. It is said that the replay official reviewed footage of the play and ruled that there was an incomplete pass.
Before Fuller took it to the house, Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence tried to pass it to Clemson wide receiver Justyn Ross. It seemed that Ross successfully caught the pass (the replay official said it was incomplete), which got knocked off his hand by Ohio State cornerback Jeff Okudah. This was when Fuller stepped in. A lot of Buckeye fans blame the divisive call as a big factor in Ohio State’s loss.
They believe that it stunted the team’s momentum in the game.
Major ratings for 2019 Fiesta Bowl
Despite the issues, the 2019 Fiesta Bowl has proven to be a big hit in the ratings game. A report from the ESPN has stated that the Fiesta Bowl between the Ohio State Buckeyes and Clemson Tigers became the most-watched non-New Year’s Day semifinal game for the College Football Playoffs. This was after the game registered 21.2 million viewers in the entire nation. This represents a nine percent increase from the viewership of last year’s semifinal game.
