Only the refs saw this play in the national championship, a breakdown
What Happened
In the January 2022 College Football Playoff title game, Georgia trailed Alabama by a point on a third-and-eight in the fourth quarter. What looked like a routine incompletion was actually a fumble, and the line judge ruled the ballcarrier kept one foot in bounds with control before the ball came loose, giving Alabama a recovery and a first down at the Georgia 16. None of the ESPN broadcast angles, the SkyCam, coaches cam, or the main feed, caught either the foot or the fumble in real time. Alabama scored to take the lead, but Georgia answered and pulled away, sealing it with a pick-six to win 33-18.
Why This Matters
This was a bang-bang call that hinged on two things the cameras missed: did the runner have control, and was a foot in bounds before the ball came loose. By rule, if he's down or out of bounds it's a dead ball, no fumble. The officials decided he was a live runner who fumbled in the field of play, and replay couldn't find a clear angle to overturn it. For about a quarter that ruling looked enormous, since Alabama cashed it for the lead. Then it didn't matter at all. Stetson Bennett, the former walk-on who'd bounced to junior college and back, ran the offense the rest of the way and Georgia's defense closed it out. The Dawgs won their first national title since 1980, and a blown-looking spot became a footnote.
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Key Moments
Who / What Is Involved
Players: Nick Saban, Ben.
Full Transcript
Click timestamps to jump to that momentthe national championship game happened
and it was a doozy of a fourth quarter
we start at one point lead for Georgia
third and eight fourth quarter and that
just looks like a benign play just looks
like an incomplete pass we'll move on
it's Fourth Down Will punt yada yada but
no something was different about this
and it's brought to you by Noom and Noom
is going to help you stick to your New
Year's resolution in 2022 and be a
healthier you let's see what the refs
say this well the ref comes up to Line's
judge and he says I have him running out
of bounds and he says no
fumble recovery Alabama's boss is you
have them recovering you haven't
recovering and he says I have him
recovering it's Bama's ball rolling on
the field is a fumble recovered by the
defense first down from Alabama now I
listen to every ESPN broadcast they had
basically the sky cam the coaches cam
the main feed and no one no one saw
either of those happen in lifetime
everyone is confused like this fellow
right here and then look this is the
fumble so is it an incomplete pass is it
a forward pass is it a fumble really
iffy on the ruling there but you know
there's an open hand rule his hand is
kind of open as it comes forward from
here to there so maybe they got it right
be really hard to overturn that anyway
this one is the crazier one because he
has control and one foot in and I don't
think he did it on purpose
and look how close his left cleats are
to hitting the ground there
and maybe he doesn't have full control
she kind of does I don't think it would
have mattered but I don't think he was
purposely keeping that right foot in it
was just his natural step happened to be
perfectly one blade of grass in bounds
what a call by the lines judge I mean
the Lion's judge and the ref called
something that no one else see happen
and this Bama fan he's like it's close
that's close oh you guys see that that's
pretty close early on the field stands
Alabama football at the 16-yard line
no one can believe it it's a huge change
Saban's dad is going crazy he's excited
that guy looks a lot like Nick Saban an
older version maybe it's a plant Bama
takes advantage of the turnover they
scored touchdown they take the lead
Georgia does not care a little later in
the game the QB Stetson Bennett the
fourth is just gonna go way deep because
you can see he did a hard count right
here and he does the clap bam and the
Bama guys jump so now there's a flag a
free play he can just take a shot
downfield at his leisure and he does
bombs it grabbed touchdown what a play
Georgia and he's like yeah told you that
fumble didn't mean I don't care
about it then they're gonna go up again
another touchdown for Georgia so now
Bama it's an eight
I was gonna say Run game because I'm a
baseball guy but eight point game and
interception not only is it intercepted
but they take it back to the house for a
touchdown and number 47 on Georgia on
his way he just puts his body on the
line and gets absolutely rag dolled in
the name of a national championship I
don't think that mattered I don't I
don't think that block really meant
anything we'll watch it again I think
five was in no matter what maybe not who
knows let's give 47 credit good job good
job good job good job you're a champion
you're wearing a ring oh my God the Bama
fans cannot believe it it's real they
are losing the Georgia fans are going
crazy and this guy was given the wrong
hat in the celebration that's a national
champs bama hat you are Georgia player
wrong hat take that hat off it's rude
you gotta hear about Stetson Bennett the
fourth Journey though he grew up in
Georgia all he wanted to do was be the
quarterback at Georgia he went as a walk
on his freshman year he was deep on the
depth chart he got no playing time so he
transferred to a junior college to get
some snaps he wins the bowl with them
and then goes back to Georgia he's still
buried on the depth chart like third or
fourth ends up winning the spot
wins the national championship on his
dream team fulfills his journey Stetson
when you were three years old you told
your dad you'd be the starting
quarterback at Georgia how does your
resilience and your fight keep you in
this moment ready to win right now
yeah I mean I just knew there was going
to be no way we're gonna let it turnover
like that stop us from from winning the
national championship there's no way I
wasn't going to let that happen
um I was not I wasn't going to be the
reason we lost tonight after that
turnover you went three for three on the
next Drive how did you get your mind
turned quickly to that uh I had to I had
to otherwise we're gonna lose because
they were up
um you know they capitalized on that and
I was like well we I gotta I gotta fix
this that's an amazing Story the kid set
a goal and then achieved it and if
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