College football does not need much help to create chaos. Tulsa and North Texas found a way to manufacture another chapter Thursday night. With the Golden Hurricane trailing in the third quarter, QB Baylor Hayes sent a pass toward the end zone that was deflected by a North Texas defender. What happened next looked like a football blooper that somehow survived the replay booth.

Tulsa WR David Wells Jr. came down with the tipped ball near the sideline for a five-yard touchdown. The officials initially ruled him in bounds. The broadcast crew, however, was not buying it. Matt Barrie, Chase Daniel and rules analyst Paul Carcaterra immediately started picking through the replay via CFB Kings. And their first reaction was that this looked like a play that should be overturned.

“His right foot ends out of bounds,” they said during the broadcast. “That’s got to be overturned right there. They’re going to review this for sure.” Except it wasn’t.

The replay created a strange problem for the officials. Wells appeared to touch the football after getting a foot out of bounds, which raised the question of whether he could legally be the first player to establish control of the tipped pass.

“Does 24 touch the football with his right finger before he’s able to get back in?” they questioned. “That’s the only way I can see that.”

The officials eventually determined that the available video did not provide enough indisputable evidence to overturn the original ruling. So, the touchdown stood. The broadcast crew repeatedly returned to the replay.

“Here’s a look again,” they said, replaying the video. “24 clearly touches it right foot down by David Wells. He gets his right foot back in, but he’s already stepped out of bounds, and he can’t be the first one to establish himself with the football. He’s out of bounds.”

The ruling stayed put, though. Wells, who transferred to Tulsa from Oregon State, wasn’t finished making an impact. He caught another touchdown from Hayes in the fourth quarter, helping Tulsa erase a deficit in a game that eventually turned into a full-blown shootout, but the bizarre touchdown was only one piece of a ridiculous night.

North Texas vs. Tulsa turn controversy into a wild finish

North Texas had opened the season with plenty of momentum, and QB Tayven Jackson continued showing why the Mean Green’s offense has become so dangerous. He entered the matchup completing 74% of his passes for 1,187 yards and six touchdowns. RB Jahiem White was another problem for Tulsa. He had been averaging seven yards per carry with seven rushing touchdowns, and his 14-yard touchdown in the third quarter helped North Texas build a 31-17 advantage before Tulsa started clawing back.

Hayes’ return was equally important for Tulsa after missing the previous two games with an injury. He threw touchdown passes to Javon Ross and Wells and added rushing scores, including the 10-yard touchdown that tied the game with 31 seconds left. Then overtime arrived.

North Texas moved to the Tulsa 1-yard line before Jackson eventually powered across for the touchdown. Tulsa answered with Damari Alston’s two-yard touchdown run and a two-point attempt that appeared to fall short on replay. That left North Texas with a 45-44 victory.

So yes, the Wells touchdown became one of the night’s strangest talking points. But it didn’t decide the game by itself. Still, it was the kind of call that leaves everyone staring at the replay. The announcers saw an apparent boundary issue. The replay booth saw no indisputable reason to overturn the ruling, and somehow, in a game that finished 45-44, that five-yard touchdown from a tipped interception may remain the play everyone remembers.