The SEC is suspending longtime referee Ken Williamson for the remainder of the 2025 college football season, according to Mark Schlabach and Pete Thamel of ESPN.
The decision was made as a result of Williamson and his crew's performance during the the matchup between Georgia and Auburn on Oct. 11. The Bulldogs won that game 20–10, despite trailing 10–3 at halftime.
Williamson was reportedly set to retire at the end of the 2025 season, so this suspension will ultimately mark the end of his officiating career.
There were a pair of notably controversial rulings from the officiating crew in the game.
Late in the first half, Auburn was looking to pad its lead. The Tigers had the ball on third-and-goal and quarterback Jackson Arnold attempted to dive into the end zone. With his arm outstretched, the ball was punched out by Georgia linebacker Raylen Wilson and recovered by the Bulldogs. Officials ruled it a fumble on the field before reviewing it.
Despite replays on ABC's broadcast showing multiple angles in which it appeared the ball crossed the plane of the end zone, and the commentators seemed to also believe it should've been a touchdown. Nonetheless, Williamson's crew upheld the call on the field.
Later in that same game, Kirby Smart appeared to be signaling for a timeout while running down the sideline. Officials granted the Bulldogs a timeout, only for Smart to insist that's not what he was calling. Smart claimed to have been trying to tell the officials that Auburn players were clapping as a means of emulating Georgia's signs, which would be a penalty.
Smart pleaded his case with the referees, and the timeout was ultimately overturned.
Williamson has been a referee in the SEC for the last 21 years, but his career will come to a rather unceremonious end as a result of the controversially officiated game earlier this month.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as SEC Suspends Longtime Referee Over Poor Performance in Georgia-Auburn Game.