Syracuse lost a football game on November 7, and this week, the ACC told Fran Brown that the officials got the play wrong. Brown said the league sent him an email admitting Clemson’s only touchdowns in the 18-13 win should not have counted. The call stood after a review; it put Clemson up 18-6 in the third quarter, and Syracuse finished five points short. The Orange (4-5, 2-5 ACC) came into the JMA Wireless Dome off two straight ACC wins, including the upset of No. 19 SMU, with a bowl berth still in reach.
Tim Leonard reported on X that Brown said on his live radio show on TK99 and the Cuse app that the ACC emailed him to say it got the call wrong on Steve Angeli’s backward pass and the Clemson scoop-and-score. According to the post, the play should have been ruled an incomplete pass because a defender hit Angeli.
Clemson led 12-6 with about seven minutes left in the third quarter. If the play is an incomplete pass, Syracuse keeps the ball down six. Instead, Clemson got six points and a 12-point lead. The final margin was five as Clemson’s offense never reached the end zone all afternoon, so that return was the only touchdown the Tigers scored. The rest was four Nolan Hauser field goals…