The Southeastern Conference has suspended longtime referee Ken Williamson for the remainder of the season following his team’s performance in Georgia’s 20-10 win at Auburn on Oct. 11, sources confirmed to ESPN on Thursday.
Williamson, who was the team leader in that game, told SEC officials before the opener that he was going to retire after this season, sources said.
The SEC declined to comment Thursday. “The SEC does not comment on personnel matters,” a league spokesperson said.
Williamson did not respond to a text message from ESPN.
There were two controversial calls during Georgia’s victory at Jordan-Hare Stadium. With the Tigers leading 10-0 late in the first half, Auburn quarterback Jackson Arnold attempted to score on a third-and-goal sneak from the Georgia 1.
As Arnold reached the end zone, Georgia linebacker Raylen Wilson removed the ball from Arnold’s arm. Bulldogs safety Kyron Jones recovered the ball at the 1, and officials ruled Arnold fumbled before reaching the goal line.
After a lengthy delay, replay officials upheld the call on the field, giving the Bulldogs possession.
Georgia kicked a 29-yard field goal with 13 seconds left to cut Auburn’s lead to 10-3 at halftime.
As Williamson walked to the locker room, he was confronted by Auburn athletic director John Cohen and football coach Hugh Freeze.
“I have no idea how that won’t break the plane, no idea,” Freeze told reporter Molly McGrath at halftime. “We’ll take a break, maybe, one of these damn times.”
Williamson also missed a targeting penalty on Auburn cornerback Kayin Lee with 1:07 left in the first half. A review was initiated by the replay team and Lee was ejected from the game for a helmet-to-helmet hit.
With the Bulldogs leading 13-10 in the fourth quarter, Georgia coach Kirby Smart ran toward the side judge and appeared to call a timeout with his hands. The official stopped the clock and Smart argued that he was only telling the official that Auburn players were clapping their hands to imitate Georgia’s signals, which should warrant a penalty.
After a brief discussion, Georgia was not charged a timeout and the game clock was reset to 25 seconds.
“Go read lips, because I scream, they cheer,” Smart said after the game. “They’re cheering. I didn’t need a timeout because we were going to do it before the shot clock. It was 2.1. We’re going to do it before the game clock was up, and I didn’t need a timeout. It was the fact that they were cheering. I wanted him to call it because it’s a penalty.”
Longtime NFL official Terry McAulay, a former coordinator of football officials for the Big East and then the American Athletic Conference, told ESPN on Thursday that he thought Williamson’s punishment was too harsh.
“I think it sets a very dangerous precedent,” said McAulay, who now works as a rules analyst for NBC Sports. “I mean, it’s basically succumbing to the masses who want every official’s head in office after a tough loss where there may have been some controversial calls.
“I know the world doesn’t think they’re responsible, but they certainly are. They’re working all season for the playoffs. [assignments] and when they find themselves in situations like this, they don’t get playoff assignments. Sometimes they are not renewed. If they felt this rose to the level of a required punishment, there are certainly lesser sanctions that might have been more appropriate than ending someone’s career. »
Williamson’s suspension was first reported by Yellowhammer News.
