Michigan State vs Nebraska officiating crew officially doesn’t know what a catch is

“Disappointing” would be the one word that best describes Michigan State’s performance against Nebraska on Saturday evening. “Embarrassing” would perfectly describe the officiating crew.

While the Spartans weren’t going to win even if the refs were solid, the crew officiating Saturday’s game was one of the least competent in recent memory. They were calling dumb penalties, overturning clear catches, and showing zero consistency by upholding a touchdown that probably shouldn’t have been.

It’s a moot point to even complain about the officiating in an 18-point loss, but Pat Fitzgerald even alluded to the refs not making the right call on one play that proves that no one knows what a catch is — still.

The old “catch or no catch” debate has raged on since that Calvin Johnson “touchdown” against the Chicago Bears that was reversed because he didn’t complete the process after he put the ball on the ground and it’s still raging on because it’s pretty obvious no one knows what a catch is 16 years after that controversial Megatron overruling.

The Big Ten crew on Saturday added another embarrassing chapter to the “catch or no catch” saga.

In the first half, Nebraska appeared to have caught a clean touchdown pass with Michigan State’s defense getting burned deep by Kwazi Gilmer. The former four-star Michigan State target hauled in a diving catch in the end zone to make it 6-3, but the catch was reviewed because the ball looked to have touched the ground and moved ever-so-slightly. The touchdown was upheld.

It’s tough to tell on the replay but the ball does make contact with the ground and move slightly, yet it wasn’t enough to overturn the call on the field.

Fast forward to the third quarter with Michigan State trying to piece together a comeback down 24-13 and Jayden Savoury caught a pass inside the 10-yard-line over a Nebraska defender’s head. It was a highlight catch and the same exact situation happened with the ball touching the ground slightly but it was clear that Savoury had control throughout. The call on the field was a catch.

The catch was reviewed and overturned.

No consistency. No idea what a catch is. No respect for the rules.

The officiating crew and the review process were embarrassing and the Big Ten owes both teams an apology for how poorly they were on Saturday.

Michigan State shot itself in the foot

Would the game have turned out differently if Savoury’s catch was upheld and the Spartans turned that into a touchdown drive instead of a blocked field goal? Probably. A 24-20 game with 18 minutes left would have given Michigan State a real shot to win, but the refs can’t be blamed for not gaining any yards after this overturned catch and missing a field goal.

Michigan State shot itself in the foot all game long.

While the refs were bad, it was ultimately Michigan State’s fault that the final score was so lopsided. A defensive holding on a blocked punt in the first half, several turnovers including a Cam Fancher pick deep in Michigan State’s own territory, and stupid penalties led to the lopsided score.

It also didn’t help that Alessio Milivojevic wasn’t himself throughout the first half and made some questionable decisions throughout and injuries also piled up with the best player on each side of the ball leaving the game.

This loss could have been avoided but it wasn’t because of the refs. That was just the cherry on top.

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