Notre Dame scored its first points against Michigan on Saturday thanks to some... Let's call it dubious... Officiating.
The Fighting Irish, facing a third-and-10 at their own 43, attempted a long pass with 7:33 remaining in the third quarter as they trailed Michigan 17-0. Ian Book attempted to hit tight end Cole Kmet, but Michigan defensive back Brad Hawkins instead came up with a leaping interception.
Except, officials called safety Khaleke Hudson (No. 7) for pass interference, despite the fact he never touched Kmet.
MORE: Scores, highlights from Saturday's top-25 games
Here's a look at the play in question:
Pass interwhat? Pic.twitter.com/JLdt4K6UUI
— Bryan Fischer (@BryanDFischer) October 27, 2019
Five plays later, Book hit Kmet for a 7-yard touchdown to make it 17-7. Needless to say, Michigan fans in attendance were none too pleased. They pelted the field with yellow towels for what they, not unreasonably, thought was a bad call.
Students pissed about the PI call pic.twitter.com/PVfSnnnvAj
— MVictors (@MVictors) October 27, 2019
One even landed squarely on Kmet's head:
Notre Dame is on the scoreboard after getting bailed out by a PI call on an INT, and irate fans are covering the field with rally towels pic.twitter.com/MgE7CNcQrv
— RedditCFB (@RedditCFB) October 27, 2019
Of course, that's no excuse to throw anything onto the field, regardless of fans' thoughts on officiating. That said, their anger was probably allayed a little when Shea Patterson and Co. Marched down the field to make the score 24-7.