No. 8 BYU beat No. 2 Notre Dame 28-24 in Provo on Saturday night. On the last play, Notre Dame quarterback CJ Carr threw incomplete to wide receiver Jaden Greathouse in the end zone from the BYU 8-yard line. Officials ended the game. Replays showed one second left on the clock when the ball hit the turf. Late Saturday night, the Big 12 said "time remained on the clock when the ball hit the ground and the play was incorrectly cleared by the replay officiating crew." By rule, Notre Dame should have gotten one more play. The conference says it will review its end-of-game process before next week's games. The score stands. On Sunday, AP voters moved BYU to No. 2, its highest ranking since 1984. They dropped Notre Dame to No. 4.

Replay Took a Last Chance Away From Notre Dame

Officiating analysts say this was a clock miss, not a judgment call. They say replay should have caught it.

Replay missed a second the clock showed. Fox rules analyst Mike Pereira called it "embarrassing for all officiating, quite frankly." He said it was "such a ridiculous miss that has nothing to do with judgment." He said he talked to the Big 12's replay center, which told him "replay did clear it." "That had to be reviewed immediately," Pereira told The Athletic.

Replay should have checked the stadium clock. Former NFL referee and NBC rules analyst Terry McAulay wrote that "there was indeed :01 on the bug clock when the pass hit the ground." He wrote that if the stadium clock showed :01, "ND would have had one more play." NCAA national coordinator of officials Ron Snodgrass wrote a memo after a clock dispute in Michigan's Week 1 win over Western Michigan. It said "the official time for all college football games is the time displayed on the in-stadium game clock." That game was six weeks earlier. "This, especially after what happened six weeks ago, it's embarrassing," Pereira said.

The last play may have deserved a flag, too. ABC rules analyst Matt Austin said on the broadcast that BYU cornerback Evan Johnson's contact on Greathouse "warranted a flag." "I would have supported a DPI," Austin said.

But Notre Dame Lost This Game Long Before the Final Second

Notre Dame's own coach and some of its closest watchers blame the team, not the clock.

The coach won't blame the officials. "I know people are going to look for me to put blame on somebody else," Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman said after the game. "But that's not what we do around here. We own it." He said Notre Dame "had them on the ropes" and "couldn't find a way to finish." ESPN reported that reporters didn't ask Freeman about the clock.

The Irish wasted their own chances. Just before halftime, Carr lost the ball trying to spike it at the BYU 5. BYU recovered. Officials ejected defensive end Boubacar Traore for targeting on BYU's first possession. FOX 32 Chicago's Chris Kwiecinski called those "moments that hurt Notre Dame." "The program can't blame the Big 12 Conference for that," he wrote. John Vannie of the fan site NDNation wrote that Notre Dame was "outplayed and outcoached at every turn." "The Irish could have won on that final play but they did not deserve a victory," he wrote.

Notre Dame's coordinators made costly calls. Kwiecinski also faulted offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock for giving running back Jonaz Walton "just five carries." He also faulted defensive coordinator Chris Ash for a blitz that left BYU tight end Walker Lyons wide open on the winning touchdown.

And BYU's Win Should Count in Full

BYU's backers and national writers say one missed second doesn't erase what BYU did.

BYU's quarterback still played a great game. BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier ran for two touchdowns, threw for one and caught one. USA TODAY columnist Blake Toppmeyer agrees the officials botched the finish: "A final play that should have happened never happened." But he wrote that "no amount of officiating blunders alters Bachmeier's brilliance." Toppmeyer also wrote that Notre Dame still might not have won with the extra play.

Poll voters and playoff forecasters already reward BYU. AP voters jumped BYU six spots to No. 2 on Sunday. ESPN's Heather Dinich wrote that "the Cougars earned a statement win against Notre Dame." In her playoff projection, she wrote that the loss helps Notre Dame by "being considered a good loss in the room." "It was a close loss on the road against a ranked opponent," she wrote.

BYU's coach shrugged off the clock. BYU head coach Kalani Sitake said after the game that the extra second didn't matter because it was fourth down, according to Deseret News reporter Jay Drew. Drew noted Sitake was wrong: the final play came on first down. BYU running back Preston Rex said, "If you come to our house, we're going to defend it."

Where This Lands

The Big 12 admits its replay crew should have given Notre Dame one more play. BYU still keeps the 28-24 win. Pereira and McAulay say replay should have caught the missing second. Pereira calls the miss embarrassing. Freeman, Vannie and Kwiecinski say Notre Dame's own mistakes put the game in that spot. Dinich says BYU earned a statement win. Toppmeyer says the officiating doesn't change Bachmeier's brilliance. AP voters moved BYU to No. 2. The Big 12 says it will fully review its end-of-game officiating process before next week's games.

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