WATCH: Mack Brown goes off on officials, receives flag after pass interference call against UNC
North Carolina looked like it had stopped Notre Dame from scoring in the third quarter. But the referees made a controversial pass interference call against the Tar Heels — and Mack Brown let them hear about it.
Drew Pyne looked to complete a pass to Chris Tyree on 4th and goal, but it wound up incomplete. However, officials threw a flag and called Cedric Gray for pass interference in the end zone. Brown vehemently disagreed with the call, throwing his hat and drawing another flag for unsportsmanlike conduct against him as a result.
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Notre Dame ended up capitalizing as Audric Estime leaped over the pile to score a touchdown on the next play and extend the Fighting Irish’s lead to 38-14 in Chapel Hill.
During Notre Dame’s last game against Cal, the Fighting Irish also benefitted from a controversial call — and that one resulted in the suspension of an official.
ESPN report: ACC suspends referee for incorrect offsides call in Cal vs Notre Dame game
One of the key plays in Notre Dame’s win over Cal was an offside call in the second quarter. It occurred on a fourth-down field goal attempt, gave the Fighting Irish a first down and led to a game-tying touchdown.
But the ACC reportedly is taking action.
ESPN’s Roxy Bernstein reported the ACC suspended the side judge from the game and admitted it was a bad call. The league also apologized to Cal, but doesn’t currently plan on publicly acknowledging the mistake or the punishment.
Cal wound up answering with a field goal to take a 10-7 lead into halftime, but Notre Dame’s offense woke up in the second half to come away with the 24-17 victory — the first of the Marcus Freeman era. The Golden Bears had their chance to tie the game on a last-second Hail Mary, but after some crazy bounces, it fell in complete.