As expected, Texas leadership -- board chairman Kevin Eltife, president Jay Hartzell and AD Chris Del Conte -- released a statement on Sunday condemning the tsunami of water bottles and other bottled liquid that rained down from the student section and into the northeast corner of the end zone of Campbell-Williams Field during No. 5 Georgia's win over No. 1 Texas on Saturday night.
The statement:
While we deeply appreciate the passion and loyalty of our fan base at The University of Texas at Austin, we do not condone the unsportsmanlike conduct that was exhibited by some individuals throwing objects onto the field during last night’s game and sincerely apologize to the University of Georgia players, coaches, and fans, as well as the Southeastern Conference and officiating crew. This type of behavior will not be tolerated.
Respect, sportsmanship, and fairness are the values that drive our program, and we expect all of our fans to uphold these standards. We are committed to fostering a positive environment for all participants, teams, officials, and fans, and we will take steps to ensure that this type of behavior does not happen again.
We appreciate the support of Longhorn Nation and are confident that, moving forward, we will continue to represent our university with pride and respect.
Thank you for your understanding and continued support.
The display came after Texas cornerback Jahdae Barron intercepted Georgia quarterback Carson Beck and returned the ball to the Bulldog 9-yard line, only to see the play momentarily overturned by a pass interference call.
The debris only stopped descending upon the field when Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian walked toward the student section and implored the UT students to stop.
After the delay, SEC officials overturned the penalty and awarded Texas the ball at the 9. The Longhorns scored two plays later.
With 3:12 to play in the third quarter of the Georgia at Texas game, Texas intercepted a pass at the Texas 46-yard line and returned it to the Texas 9 yard line. Texas was flagged for committing defensive pass interference on the play which resulted in Georgia maintaining the ball with a first down.
The game officials gathered to discuss the play, which is permitted to ensure the proper penalty is enforced, at which time the calling official reported that he erred, and a foul should not have been called for defensive pass interference. Consequently, Texas was awarded the ball at the Texas 9 yard line.
While the original evaluation and assessment of the penalty was not properly executed, it is unacceptable to have debris thrown on the field at any time.
The disruption of the game due to debris being thrown onto the field will be reviewed by the Conference office related to SEC sportsmanship policies and procedures.
The SEC's statement admits by omission -- "the game officials gathered to discuss the play" -- that the overturn of the penalty only happened because of the water bottled-induced delay. The penalty had been marked off and the ball was set ready for play at the Georgia 46-yard line until the delay allowed the officiating crew the opportunity change possession from Georgia to Texas.
The SEC officiating crew ultimately reached the correct call through a disastrous and potentially dangerous process.
"We've set a precedent that if you throw a bunch of stuff on the field and endanger athletes that you've got a chance to get your call reversed," Kirby Smart said after the game.
As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.