Auburn hosts Arkansas on Saturday, the Razorbacks’ first trip to Jordan-Hare Stadium since the infamous Bo Nix “spike that should have been a fumble” in 2020.

We’ll describe that incident in far more detail below, but suffice it say it’s not the only controversial or simply blown call that affected the outcome of an SEC game over the years. Some of them could have been correctable with replay, while others were simply blown judgment calls or misapplication of rules.

Here are 12 of them, listed in chronological order. (NOTE: This list is by no means comprehensive, as neither the internet — nor the author’s work schedule — is infinite enough to contain all the bad officiating decisions we’ve seen).

1. Preston Gothard ruled out of end zone (Alabama vs. Penn State, 1983)

Alabama trailed defending national champion Penn State 34-28 in State College with 8 seconds remaining on Oct. 8, 1983. On fourth-and-goal from the Nittany Lions’ 4-yard line, Crimson Tide quarterback threw to tight end Preston Gothard in the back of the end zone. Gothard caught the ball and appeared to get one knee down for a touchdown, but officials inexplicably ruled him out of bounds. What could have tied the score — and won the game with an extra point — instead resulted in a six-point loss. Penn State was called offsides on the play, but running back Kerry Goode was stopped short on a retry from the 2 and Alabama lost. The kicker to all this? It was later revealed that a member of the officiating crew — but not the one who made the controversial call — was Dan Guman, father of former Penn State running back Mike Guman (who was famously stopped on fourth-and-goal by Barry Krauss in the 1979 Sugar Bowl “Goal Line Stand.”)

2. A costly, questionable fourth-down spot (Alabama vs. Auburn, 1994)

Auburn had not lost a game in nearly two years when it met unbeaten Alabama at Legion Field in Birmingham in the 1994 Iron Bowl. The Crimson Tide led 21-14 late in the fourth quarter, but Dameyune Craig and the Tigers were driving for a potential tying score. On fourth-and-3 from the Alabama 42, Craig hit Frank Sanders over the middle and the Crimson Tide’s Sam Shade and Tommy Johnson moved in for the tackle. From the television viewpoint, Sanders appeared to have the first down before being pushed back. However, officials ruled him just short of the marker and Alabama took over on downs. The Crimson Tide ran out the clock for the victory. Auburn, still banned from the postseason due to NCAA sanctions, finished 10-1-1 (having tied Georgia the previous week). Alabama moved on to the SEC championship game, where it lost 24-23 to Florida before beating Ohio State in the Citrus Bowl and finishing 12-1.

3. Did Curtis Brown get a foot down? (Alabama vs. Auburn, 1995)

The situation was reversed a year later at Jordan-Hare Stadium, where Auburn might have been the beneficiary of a fortunate call. The Tigers led by four, but the Crimson Tide was driving to potentially take the lead in the closing minutes. On first down from the Auburn 22, Freddie Kitchens threw to Curtis Brown in the corner of the end zone. Brown caught the ball and might have had a foot down, but officials ruled him out of bounds. Interviewed years later by AL.com, Brown said he was “definitely in” and noted that the officiating crew was working a man short because the back judge had left the game moments earlier due to injury. Alabama had three more shots at the end zone, but could not complete a pass and Auburn won 31-27. The Crimson Tide, itself under NCAA sanctions at the time, finished 8-3. Auburn lost to Penn State in the Hall of Fame (now Outback) Bowl to finish 8-4.

4. Jabar Gaffney’s touchdown ‘catch’ (Florida vs. Tennessee, 2000)

Of all the crazy calls on this list, there might none more inexplicable than officials ruling that Florida’s Jabar Gaffney caught a touchdown pass with 19 seconds remaining to give the Gators a 27-23 victory over Tennessee in 2000 at Neyland Stadium. Jesse Palmer’s pass from the 3-yard line was only in Gaffney’s possession for an instant before Volunteers cornerback Willie Myles knocked it loose, but that was apparently enough for the officials in those pre-replay review days. The victory was enough to give the Gators the SEC East championship over the Volunteers, who would have finished tied in the standings and won the head-to-head tiebreaker had the pass to Gaffney been ruled incomplete. Florida ended up 10-3 after losing to Miami in the Sugar Bowl, while Tennessee finished 8-4 after losing to Kansas State in the Cotton Bowl. Instant replay review didn’t come to the SEC for another five years.

5. The push that somehow wasn’t P.I. (Alabama vs. LSU, 2004)

Alabama led defending national champion LSU 10-6 early in the third quarter in Baton Rouge when Spencer Pennington threw toward Keith Brown in the end zone. LSU cornerback Corey Webster shoved Brown out of the way and intercepted the ball, then returned it to the LSU 44. The Tigers went on to win 26-10, so it’s not entirely clear that the missed call directly affected the final score, but it certainly didn’t help. A 17-6 Alabama lead would have been tougher to overcome. SEC director of officiating Bobby Gaston later admitted the call should have been made, but that was small consolation for the Crimson Tide. Alabama went on to finish 6-6 in Mike Shula’s second season, losing to Minnesota in the Music City Bowl. In what proved to be Nick Saban’s final season, LSU ended up 9-3 after losing to Iowa in the Capital One Bowl.

6. A catch that wasn’t a catch (Alabama vs. Ole Miss, 2007)

Saban returned to the SEC at Alabama in 2007, and his first Crimson Tide team was clinging to a 27-24 lead over Ole Miss in Oxford. With 17 seconds left and the Rebels facing 4th-and-22 from the Alabama 46, Seth Adams threw deep to Shay Hodge, who muscled past cornerback Lionel Mitchell to catch the ball inside the 5. At the very least, Ole Miss was in position for a game-tying field goal, but could have also gone for the touchdown to win. However, officials reviewed the play and ruled that Hodge had run out of bounds and then back in to catch the ball, resulting in illegal touching. Rebels coach Ed Orgeron argued that Mitchell had pushed Hodge out, but to no avail. Ole Miss fans were not pleased, and showered the field with liquor bottles and other debris, including at least one pair of high heel shoes. Alabama finished 7-6 after beating Colorado in the Independence Bowl, while Ole Miss ended up 3-9 and Orgeron was fired.

7. Patrick Peterson ruled out of bounds (Alabama vs. LSU, 2009)

Undefeated Alabama led LSU 21-15 with around six minutes remaining at Bryant-Denny Stadium in 2009, when Greg McElroy rolled to his right and looked for Julio Jones. However, Patrick Peterson, LSU’s All-America cornerback, stepped in front of Jones and grabbed the ball on the sideline. Officials did not make a call at first, but after conferring ruled Peterson out of bounds. The play was reviewed, and without conclusive proof Peterson got a foot in-bounds with control of the ball, the call stood. Alabama later kicked a field goal to go up 24-15 and held on for the win. The Crimson Tide eventually marched to a 14-0 record and its first national championship in 17 years, while the Tigers finished 9-4.

8. A costly, controversial targeting call (LSU vs. Mississippi State, 2018)

Targeting has been wildly unpopular among college football fans since it was first implemented in 2008, and anti-targeting sentiment perhaps reached its zenith 10 years later. LSU was 6-1 and cruising to a 19-3 victory over Mississippi State in Baton Rouge, when star linebacker Devin White was flagged for targeting after hitting quarterback Nick Fitzgerald with a glancing helmet-to-helmet shot just as he threw the ball. The play had no impact on the outcome of the game, but since it occurred in the second half, it meant White would be suspended for the first half of the Tigers’ next game. That just so happened to be two weeks later against unbeaten and top-ranked Alabama. With White on the sideline, the Crimson Tide jumped out to a 17-0 halftime lead and went on to win 29-0. Alabama would stay unbeaten until losing to Clemson in the national championship game, while LSU went on to finish 10-3. The NCAA has tweaked the targeting penalty several times over the years, but has maintained the ejection/suspension element.

9. The pass interference call that made all the difference (Auburn vs. LSU, 2019)

Auburn was flagged twice for pass interference on LSU’s final drive in a 22-21 loss at Jordan-Hare Stadium, the first time on third-and-11. However, the second penalty of the drive was more controversial. With LSU facing second-and-10 from the Auburn 39 and just over a minute remaining, Joe Burrow threw in the direction of Justin Jefferson down the left sideline. Auburn cornerback Jamel Dean leapt to knock the ball away with his right hand, and made what appeared to be incidental contact on Jefferson with his left. That gave LSU a first down at the Auburn 24, and the Tigers ran the ball three times before lining up for Cole Tracy’s 41-yard field goal as time expired. It was LSU’s third straight win over Auburn, a streak that would eventually reach four before Auburn finally won in 2020.

10. A fumble that wasn’t a fumble (Auburn vs. Arkansas, 2020)

It’s hard to imagine officials botching a call as badly in the final seconds two years ago at Jordan-Hare Stadium. Arkansas led by one, but Auburn had moved to the 19-yard line with the clock ticking down and no timeouts. The Tigers hurried to the line to spike the ball and stop the clock on third down, but quarterback Bo Nix lost the handle and fumbled the ball before picking it up and throwing it into the ground. Seeing it as a fumble, an Arkansas player jumped on the ball. Officials ruled the play intentional grounding, resulting in a loss of down but still Auburn ball. However, because Nix threw the ball backwards, it should have been ruled a fumble and Arkansas ball. But because officials blew the play dead when Nix’s spike/fumble hit the ground, Arkansas had no chance to recover a fumble. At any rate, with the clock stopped, the Tigers were able to get their field goal team on the field and Anders Carlson booted a 39-yarder for a 30-28 Auburn victory.

11. Of golf balls and mustard bottles (Ole Miss vs. Tennessee, 2021)

Tennessee trailed Ole Miss 31-26 with less than a minute remaining at Neyland Stadium when Hendon Hooker completed a pass to tight end Jacob Warren on fourth-and-24. Officials ruled Warren was stopped just short of a first down by Ole Miss safety Otis Reese, which in real time and via instant replay appeared to be the correct call. That didn’t matter to Volunteers fans, who showered the field with all sorts of items, including golf balls and at least one mustard bottle. The game was delayed for several minutes while order was restored, and Ole Miss went three-and-out and punted. Tennessee’s Velus Jones returned the punt past midfield, but the Volunteers could not move into position for the winning score. Rebels coach Lane Kiffin — the Volunteers head man in 2009 — was the subject of much of the fans’ ire, and caught a golf ball thrown from the stands on his way off the field.

12. Pass interference 30 yards behind the play (Alabama vs. Tennessee, 2022)

Tennessee had more than a few calls and no-calls go its way in a 52-49 win over Alabama two weeks ago, the biggest coming with the Volunteers facing fourth-and-5 from the Crimson Tide 28 and 4:10 remaining. Hooker threw toward Ramel Keyton near the end zone, but Alabama’s Kool-Aid McKinstry picked the ball off and returned it some 80 yards. The turnover would have gone a long way toward sealing a victory for Alabama, which led 49-42 at the time. However, a very late pass-interference flag was thrown on Crimson Tide safety Malachi Moore after McKinstry had already run 30 yards in the other direction. (For the record, the penalty appeared justified, but there was no explanation for why it was assessed so late.) Given new life, Tennessee punched in the tying touchdown on Hooker’s pass to Jalin Hyatt, then won the game with a field goal on the final play.

Creg Stephenson is a sports writer for AL.com. He has covered college football for a variety of publications since 1994. Contact him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter at @CregStephenson.