No. 6 Ole Miss had a rough finish to the first half against No. 3 Georgia in the College Football Playoff quarterfinals at the Sugar Bowl (New Orleans, LA) on New Year’s Day. And ESPN play-by-play announcer Sean McDonough and color commentator Greg McElroy didn’t hesitate to call out the Ole Miss blunder.
After getting to the Georgia 43-yard line following a targeting penalty, Ole Miss appeared to be set up for the opportunity to trim a nine-point deficit in the final 30 seconds of the second quarter, but very poor execution followed for the Rebels.
Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss threw consecutive incompletions, leaving the Rebels with third-and-10 and 15 seconds remaining, with zero timeouts left. Chambliss proceeded to throw a completion, but Ole Miss tight end Dae’Quan Wright came up two yards shy of the sticks and was unable to get out of bounds. The clock ran out before the Rebels were able to get set for a field goal, keeping the score at 21-12 into halftime.
This all came after Ole Miss kicker Lucas Carneiro made field goals of 55 and 56 yards in the first quarter, so the Rebels were well within his field goal range if they could have left time on the clock.
“They’re running in the field of play; they don’t get the first down, and they can’t spike it, because it’s fourth down!” McDonough said. “So, they’re trying to run the field goal (unit) on!”
“This is a disaster!” McDonough continued. “Terrible clock management! Joe Judge responsible for managing the offense, with Charlie Weis Jr. calling the plays. That was absolutely not what Pete Golding could have had happen!… No points, when it looked like they were already in field goal range.”
“Dae’Quan Wright has got to know the situation there!” ESPN color commentator Greg McElroy added. “You cannot run back inside! You have to get out of bounds! Get what you can get! Get out of bounds! Give your kicker a chance! He catches it right here! Go get four or five!”
“Get out of bounds!” McDonough responded.
“Right there, outside!” McElroy explained as ESPN showed the replay. “Instead, he turns it inside, and it costs them three points!”
On Thursday, McDonough learned that he was named the 2025 National Sportscaster of the Year, and his willingness to call it like he sees it is one of the big reasons why so many sports fans appreciate his broadcasting.
About Matt Clapp
Matt is an editor/writer at The Comeback and Awful Announcing.
He can be reached by email at mclapp@thecomeback.com.