Report: SEC official Ken Williamson permanently suspended after controversial calls in Auburn vs. Georgia game

According to Yellowhammer News, longtime SEC referee Ken Williamson has reportedly been “permanently suspended from officiating conference games” after a series of questionable calls of late, including in the controversial Auburn–Georgia game two weeks ago. The Yellowhammer News cited “sources” with this information, but acknowledged a request for comment from the SEC “went unreturned on Wednesday.”

On3 has yet to confirm Yellowhammer News‘ reporting, but well-known former NFL referee Terry McAulay appeared to confirm the report himself during a lengthy rant on social media.

Yellowhammer News reports the decision to move on from Williamson — one of the SEC’s longest-tenured officials — came after a thorough SEC review of eleven complaints made against Williams and his crew, many stemming from Georgia’s 20-10 win over Auburn on Oct. 11. According to Yellowhammer‘s sources, nine of those complaints were validated by the league offices. Williamson was the lead official in that game.

During that particular game, there were multiple calls that seemed to go against Auburn, prompting a strong backlash from Tigers coaches, administrators and fans. That included a goal-line fumble by Auburn quarterback Jackson Arnold in which the nose of the football appeared to cross the goal line but was punched out before a call was made, resulting in a lost fumble. The lost fumble allowed a struggling Georgia offense to drive the length of the field for a late second-quarter field goal, which prompted Auburn athletic director John Cohen to shout down Williamson as the teams left the field at halftime.

That second missed call came later when Georgia head coach Kirby Smart was gifted a free timeout early in the fourth quarter. ABC cameras caught Smart sprinting down the visiting sideline as his hands rapidly made a T-formation — the universal sign for a timeout. But after a sideline official blew his whistle and granted a timeout, Smart successfully argued he was actually clapping his hands while trying to point out Auburn safety AnQuon Fegans was illegally trying to simulate the offensive snap, which is a 5-yard penalty. No penalty was assessed, but the Bulldogs coach was not charged a timeout.

After the game, Freeze criticized the SEC officials for the multiple missed calls, including Jackson’s lost fumble late in the second quarter.

“I felt like we broke the plane,” Freeze said after the game. “The nose of the ball has to break the plane, but it didn’t go our way.”

This reported decision comes as the SEC offices have fielded repeated complaints from league coaches this season, including when the SEC took the unprecendented step of issuing a public apology for a missed call during Auburn’s 24-17 loss at Oklahoma late last month. Freeze even revealed SEC commissioner Greg Sankey personally called him to express disappointment in the mistake, which the league offices described as “unfair tactics” on a trick play touchdown by the Sooners.