Was Miami-Virginia Tech’s call right? Here’s what you need to know:

College football experienced another wild and controversial ending Friday night as seventh-seeded Miami escaped with a 38-34 victory over rival Virginia Tech.

It ended with the officials reversing a touchdown catch on a Hail Mary in the back of the end zone on the field. The Atlantic Coast Conference later released a statement to reporters nearly two hours after the game to clarify the decision-making process.

From the ACC on Miami-Virginia Tech’s final play: “During the review process of the final play…it was determined that the loose ball was touched by a Miami player while out of bounds, making it an incomplete pass and immediately.” “ ends the piece.

— Manny Navarro (@Manny_Navarro) September 28, 2024

But what were the referees looking at? Why was the call reversed after six minutes of deliberation? Was there indisputable evidence to reverse this call? Did Miami — the ACC’s top-ranked team in the Associated Press poll — receive a favorable decision as the home team, which Virginia Tech quarterback Kyron Drones suggested after the game?

Let’s dive in.

What happened in the play?

Hail Mary, not good 😳

No. 7 Miami outlasted Virginia Tech after the Hokies’ final game was declared incomplete. pic.twitter.com/Xrpl2UFod9

– ESPN (@espn) September 28, 2024

With three seconds left on the clock – and Miami leading 38-34 – and the ball at Miami’s 30-yard line, the Drones threw a pass about 50 yards down the field to a group of three Virginia receivers Tech and four Miami defensive backs the back of the end zone.

Virginia Tech’s Jaylin Lane and Da’Quan Felton hit the ball at the highest point while Miami’s Isaiah Horton, Mishael Powell and Jadais Richard battled for the ball. Felton appeared to come in with at least one hand on the ball, but his body was physically on Lane and Horton, both of whom were clearly out of bounds.

After a brief scrum, Horton emerged from the crowd with the football players and the Miami players began to celebrate. Seconds later, after the field judge and back judge met to discuss what they saw, the play was ruled a touchdown on the field. However, the replay officials immediately called onto the field and referee Jerry Magallanes announced that the game would be discussed upstairs.

What did the referees see?

The decision to overturn a call is made jointly between the game’s instant replay referee and the ACC’s gameday operations center in Charlotte, North Carolina (other Power 4 conferences have a similar setup). According to the ACC league office, it was determined that Felton never gained clear possession of the ball on his descent and the pass was incomplete by rule the moment Holton touched the ball, which was partially out of bounds.

Of course it would have helped if Magallanes had announced this on the pitch. But no one received any clarification beyond a finding of an incomplete passport.

Virginia Tech coach Brent Pry said he never received an explanation and the league office did not release a statement on the call until 1:15 a.m. ET.

According to the NCAA’s Instant Replay Rulebook, “There must be incontrovertible video evidence that an officiating call can be changed on the field by the Instant Replay official, working from a private booth in the press box.” Additionally, the game must have a direct competitive effect (possession, first down or questionable score) on the game to justify stopping the game for review. The replay officer has the authority to review a play, stop play, and make a decision on any replay. Local officials do not have the authority to request a review.

“The instant replay process is based on the basic assumption that the on-field decision is correct. The replay officer may overturn a decision only if the video evidence (Rule 12-6-1-c) establishes beyond a reasonable doubt that the on-field decision was incorrect. Without such indisputable video evidence, the rehearing officer must uphold the verdict.”

The replays shown on television and on the giant screens in the stadium were not clear enough to help viewers differentiate. ESPN color analyst Andre Ware and rules analyst Matt Austin both argued on the broadcast that they didn’t know whether there was enough evidence to overturn the decision.

“I just don’t know where you’ll see it on the replay reversing the call on the field,” Ware said. “And if it had been described as incomplete, then look at it that way. I just thought that the decision – whatever was called on the field – should stand. This is hard.”

Was the right call made?

Even though the rules are clearly written to require incontrovertible evidence to reverse a call, there has been a tendency in recent years among officers to prioritize correctly handling the call over all else.

So was it the right decision in this case? There was no irrefutable evidence that Virginia Tech didn’t catch the ball, but to the vast majority of neutral observers it’s also pretty clear that Virginia Tech probably didn’t complete the catch. Should that have been enough to kill the call? Not according to the rules, but in the end the right decision seems to have been made.

Why did it take six minutes to make a decision?

Like other power conferences, the ACC has community instant replay outside of its gameday operations center. So three stadium officials (instant replay official, communicator and technician) and game day operations staff in Charlotte worked together to look at the game from different angles before arriving at what they believed to be conclusive evidence for the decision.

These officers can often see video angles that are not necessarily available on the broadcast.

In 2023, the average break in replay was 1 minute and 54 seconds.

Rough night for the officials

There were several controversial calls in Friday’s game, including a holding penalty on Virginia Tech offensive lineman Kaden Moore that negated a 61-yard touchdown run by PJ Prioleau late in the third quarter.

wiped out a 61-yard Virginia Tech TD with this holding penalty.

Check out the follow-through on the referee’s flag pic.twitter.com/GLIBsebN1q

— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) September 28, 2024

The Hokies also had two players with the same number (17) on a long field goal made late in the first half – a clear violation. Had a flag been thrown, it would have wiped the field goal off the backboard. Virginia Tech was penalized for this violation in the season-opening overtime loss at Vanderbilt when the Hokies had two players with the same jersey number on a punt return. After the 5-yard penalty was assessed, Vanderbilt kicked a 53-yard field goal.

(Photo: Megan Briggs/Getty Images)