Fans of both Northwestern and Kentucky might be looking for pitchforks at halftime after this Pac-12 officiating crew enraged both sides in the Music City Bowl.
Northwestern leads 17-7, but the takeaways are a huge injury and two controversial ejections.
Northwestern quarterback Clayton Thorson got carted off after making a catch on a trick play. Thorson immediately grabbed his right knee and was replaced by fifth-year senior Matt Alviti.
NU’s best defensive player, linebacker Paddy Fisher, got ejected for targeting with 22 seconds left in the half.
Kentucky lost its best player to an even more questionable disqualification. Running back Benny Snell got tossed for making contact with an official. But it appeared that all Snell did was reject an official’s effort to help him to his feet.
Kentucky fans howled again after NU defensive end Joe Gaziano tackled quarterback Stephen Johnson well out of bounds. The Kentucky bench got an unsportsmanlike penalty, pushing its offense out of field-goal range. Johnson was seen hollering at the officials as he headed to the locker room before halftime.
Backup Drew Barker replaced him for UK’s final series and hit Sihiem King for a short completion. When King leapt, Fisher drilled him in the chest. NU’s All-Big Ten linebacker appeared to lead with his helmet, prompting the ejection.
NU coach Pat Fitzgerald didn’t see it that way, telling WGN-AM 720: “It might be the worst call I have ever seen in the history of college football.”
Fisher also was ejected for targeting against Penn State.
On top of that, NU lost top receiver Bennett Skowronek after he landed on his head on a tackle.
Justin Jackson scored his 40th and 41st career rushing touchdowns, and Alviti looked solid replacing Thorson. Alviti rushed for 17 yards and completed a 28-yard pass to Charlie Fessler.
Thorson got injured on a trick play, the type NU rarely tries. Jeremy Larkin took a handoff and fired across the field to Thorson, who made the 24-yard catch before getting tackled by linebacker Jordan Jones.
Twitter @TeddyGreenstein