"Absolutely pathetic one-sided officiating" - CFB fans blast referees in Auburn vs. Baylor game after missing multiple penalties on Tigers

The Baylor Bears lost at home in their season opener against the Auburn Tigers. Dave Aranda's team suffered a 38-24 loss at McLane Stadium, raising questions about his fit as the head coach of the team.

However, apart from the disappointing performance, fans were more upset with the fact that officials missed out on several penalties that the Tigers committed on the field. One of the most prominent ones that took center stage on social media happened in the third quarter.

Wide receiver Ashtyn Hawkins made a run with the ball after catching a 13-yard pass from Sawyer Roberston. However, Auburn linebacker Demarcus Riddick visibly grabbed him by the face mask, which led to the wide receiver plummeting to the ground. Despite this, the referees did not call for a penalty against the Tigers in that play.

Angry fans called out the biased decision taken by the officials on social media.

The Bears have had a tough start to their sixth year under Dave Aranda. Last season, they finished with an 8-5 record while losing the Texas Bowl game against the LSU Tigers.

However, on the bright side, quarterback Sawyer Roberston showed a lot of promise in his third year with the team. He served as the backup to Blake Shapen in 2023 before replacing him as the QB1 after he suffered an injury. Against Auburn on Friday, Roberston completed 27 of the 48 passes he attempted for 419 yards and three touchdowns.

Baylor HC Dave Aranda opens up about poor performance from defense in season opener

In the postgame press conference, Aranda opened up about how his team's defense could have been better against Auburn.

"I think the biggest disappointment in all of that, I thought was just the tackling," Aranda said (Timestamp- 2:35 onwards). I wish the tackling would have been so much better. You know, that's something that we may have to address.

"A lot of these plays that hurt us tonight, we will see those again in a week. ... So, we got a lot of work to do," he added.

The Baylor Bears are on the road next to take on the SMU Mustangs on Sept. 6 at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas, Texas. The game is scheduled to kick off at noon ET and will be broadcast on The CW network.

About the author

Priyam is a College Sports content executive at Sportskeeda with a master's in Advertising and Marketing Management and over two years of experience as a writer. When it comes to reporting, Priyam believes doing a technical deep dive is one of his biggest strengths and he loves to dissect plays on the field and factor out the strengths/weaknesses of players.

A fan of the Alabama Crimson Tide football team, Priyam sees Nick Saban as the greatest coach of all time. He is also rooting for Alabama quarterback Jalen Milore after following his progress over the years. The Michigan Wolverines football team is another of his favorite programs and it will be interesting to see how both these teams perform in new coaching eras.

When he’s not reporting, Priyam is usually at the gym or indulging in music. He has been a guitarist and a drummer for the past 17 years and finds his time of peace when playing music.

Know More

Auburn Tigers Fans? Check out the latest Tigers depth chart, schedule, and roster updates all in one place.

Edited by Veer Badani