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#pounditThursday, March 28, 2024

Refs missed something on key Ohio State fake punt play

Ryan Day before a game

Oct 8, 2022; East Lansing, Michigan, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day watches warm-ups at Spartan Stadium before their game against the Michigan State Spartans. Mandatory Credit: Dale Young-USA TODAY Sports

Kirby Smart made an unbelievable coaching decision on a special teams play during Georgia’s win over Ohio State in the College Football Playoff semifinals, but it turns out it may not have been needed.

Ohio State was leading 38-27 and had a 4th-and-1 at their 34 with just under nine minutes left to play. Buckeyes coach Ryan Day called for a fake punt that looked like it would have worked, but Smart used a timeout before the snap. Had Ohio State converted, the play could very well have been the difference in the game.

The officiating crew also missed a penalty on the play, so it likely would not have counted. Replays showed that Ohio State had 12 men in their punt formation.

You can see another angle below:

It is unclear why a flag was not thrown, but the officials basically cost Georgia a timeout. Play should have been stopped before the timeout was called because there were 12 Buckeyes on the field.

That’s not to take anything away from Smart. He still identified that Ohio State was going to run a fake punt and made sure it did not happen. Whether it was the greatest timeout call in college football history is now a bit more debatable, however.

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