Peach Bowl targeting no-call listed as worst officiating decision of 2024
Sun Devil fans are STILL mad about this, and rightfully so
Arizona State enjoyed arguably its best season of football in program history, winning the Big 12 championship in their first year in the new conference and reaching the first ever 12-team College Football Playoff. Despite losing to Texas in their playoff debut, the Sun Devils held their heads high after taking the Longhorns to double overtime.
Of course, the game likely never would’ve gone to double overtime if not for a controversial decision by the officials to not call targeting on Texas safety Michael Taaffe late in the fourth quarter after drilling Melquan Stovall directly in the head. Now, the controversial no-call has been rated as the worst officiating decision of the entire season by On3.
This was not called targeting on Texas. Despite the head to head contact made. pic.twitter.com/WOoKcMVYY3
— Rate the Refs (@Rate_the_Refs) January 1, 2025
The dirty hit occurred in the fourth quarter of a tie game with just over a minute left, and a targeting penalty would’ve given the Sun Devils a first down inside the Longhorns 40, making a game-winning field goal a real possibility. No flag was thrown on the play, and the refs opted not to call a targeting penalty even after a lengthy review.
Virtually everyone outside of Texas fans believed the play was a textbook targeting call, and there was palpable shock everywhere when the decision was announced. Longtime referee and officiating expert Gene Steratore echoed as much the day after the game.
My phone has been burning up all morning.
Yes, this should have been a flag for targeting in #TEXvsASU. It meets all of the criteria of targeting (Rule 9-1-4). pic.twitter.com/tv5HPIQgd0
— Gene Steratore (@GeneSteratore) January 2, 2025
While Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham remained adamant after the game that his team still had oportunities to win outside of this play, the fact remains that a correct call here likely helps the Sun Devils advance to the semifinals of the College Football Playoff.
Those sky high stakes are what made the error so egregious in the moment, and why it’s absolutely deserving of being memorialized as the worst officiating call of the year. The flub has already become a critical piece of lore in Sun Devil history, as baseball head coach Willie Bloomquist jokingly referenced it on opening night last week.
Willie Bloomquist on his reaction to the end-of-game review:
“We were thinking they we’re gonna confirm the targeting call.” 😂@williebloom @KennyDillingham https://t.co/uU6x33eg47 pic.twitter.com/8RI4Emvh16
— Blake Niemann (@Blakes_Take2) February 15, 2025
