Texas A&M pulled off a thrilling upset win over Notre Dame on Saturday night, and the Aggies got some help from the officiating crew on their most important play of the game.
Texas A&M beat the Fighting Irish 41-40 in a back-and-forth game at Notre Dame Stadium in Indiana. The Aggies were trailing 40-34 with 13 seconds remaining when quarterback Marcel Reed threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Nate Boerkircher on 4th-and-goal. Texas A&M kicked the extra point to take the lead and then held on to win.
Reed appeared to have extra time to throw on the fourth-down play because Texas A&M offensive lineman Chase Bisontis got away with a hold. Bistonis was beat by Notre Dame defensive tackle Donovan Hinish, so he grabbed Hinish by the leg and dragged him to the ground.
Texas A&M got VERY lucky this hold wasn’t called on their 4th & Goal TD
— LandonTengwall (@LandonTengwall) September 14, 2025
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Had the penalty been called, Texas A&M would have had 4th-and-goal from the 21-yard line. That obviously would have been a far more difficult situation, so the no-call had a major impact.
One play does not decide an entire game, and you can never rely on a penalty call in a situation like that. Still, Notre Dame has a reason to be frustrated. It is possible that Hinish would have gotten enough pressure on Reed to either sack him or force an incompletion had the hold not been committed.
