People warned Oregon fans just how terrible the Big Ten officials are but the Ducks were adamant that it couldn't get any worse than the Pac-12 referees were. Now, fans are taking back every word of hate they ever sent in the direction of their old refs.
In the Week 9 matchup against No. 20 Illinois, the No. 1 Oregon Ducks were once again... screwed over, for lack of a better phrase... by Big Ten officiating.
Yes, the Ducks dominated the first half and there was no doubt that Oregon was the top team in the nation as they built a 35-3 lead over the first 30 minutes. However, Oregon's lead could have and should have been even larger.
When Illinois quarterback Luke Altmyer was taken down by four Ducks during the first half, he clearly lost control of the ball and it was immediately picked up by Oregon's offensive linemen. Yet, when it came down to it, the referees didn't even think about reviewing the call, and the fumble went unnoticed by the officials.
Another Oregon turnover missed on the field with no Big Ten review pic.twitter.com/FU2csuCMJO
— kwade (@KwadeSays) October 26, 2024
This isn't the first call that Big Ten refs have already missed this season when calling an Oregon game.
Just two weeks ago, during the Ducks' games against Ohio State, referees missed a blatant interception when Will Howard's pass to tight end Will Kacmarek popped up and linebacker Jeffrey Bassa picked it off.
Oregon came up with this ball and it was not reviewed 😬
— College Football Report (@CFBRep) October 12, 2024
Oregon just got screwed.
pic.twitter.com/c6I9V25NEn
Many people will say that Oregon shouldn't be greedy, the Ducks are winning their games at the end of the day. However, if calls like this continue into the Big Ten Championship game, it could be the different between Oregon earning a bye in the College Football Playoffs or having to face a top-12 team in the first round of the post season.