Pitt beat Virginia Tech 35-33 in Blacksburg on Saturday because John Love’s 36-yard field goal as time expired was ruled no good. On the broadcast angle from behind the uprights, the ball looked like it went over the left post rather than outside it. The officials called it wide left, and that was the end of it.
It could not be reviewed. Under NCAA rules, a kick that passes above the top of the upright is not reviewable, and only attempts that cross three feet or lower below the upright height are eligible. So a game, and arguably a season, turned on an angle nobody is allowed to check.
The Finish Was Cruel And The Rule Made It Worse
Love is one of the most reliable kickers in the country, and 36 yards is a kick he makes with his eyes closed on a Tuesday. He hooked it. That part is on him. What is not on him is that the single most consequential play of Virginia Tech’s season got a human eyeball and nothing else, while a holding call in the second quarter can be examined from six camera positions.
Virginia Tech coach James Franklin refused to put it on his kicker. “I love him, he’s the best kicker in the country,” Franklin said, before pointing at the rest of the tape. “There were 20 other plays throughout that game that really wouldn’t have gotten to that point.”
He is right, and the four turnovers Virginia Tech committed are the actual story of this loss. Teams that give the ball away four times at home do not get to be mad about a 36-yard kick. They get to be mad about the first four hours.
Pitt Is 5-0 And Nobody Is Talking About It
Pat Narduzzi’s team is 5-0 overall and 2-0 in the ACC, and he knows exactly how little credit that has bought him. “Just finding a different way to win,” Narduzzi said. “We talk about respect. I hope the country will respect the Panthers now.”
He has a point. Pitt won this game after quarterback Mason Heintschel suffered a significant right knee injury and was replaced by backup Holden Geriner. Winning a road game in an ACC rivalry with your backup finishing it is the kind of thing that normally gets a team ranked.
The injury is also the thing that should worry Pitt more than the celebration suggests. An unbeaten October built on a quarterback who may not be available in November is a fragile thing, and Geriner now has to be treated as a starter rather than an emergency.
What It Means For Both Programs
Virginia Tech drops to 4-1 and 1-1 in the ACC. That is not fatal, and Franklin’s first year has already produced more than most people expected, but the margin is gone. The Hokies now need to be close to perfect to play for the conference in December, and they will spend the whole week being asked about a camera angle instead of their turnovers.
Pitt gets the opposite problem, which is the better one. The Panthers are undefeated, under-ranked and about to find out whether they have a quarterback. Narduzzi asked the country for respect. He will have to keep winning without Heintschel to get it.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.