Week 11 Vandy vs Auburn Tigers will go down in all-time classics. Clark Lea’s Vanderbilt edges Auburn Tigers’ in 45-38 OT thriller. The Tigers, playing for interim coach DJ Durkin just days after Hugh Freeze was fired, put up a massive fight. Ashton Daniels was making plays all over the field, but in the end, it was the team’s own mistakes—especially a mountain of penalties—that proved to be their biggest enemy. Ultimately, Auburn’s comeback just fell short, leaving them with a tough loss and a 4-6 record for the season.

One of the most head-scratching moments happened early in the second quarter, when Ashton Daniels took off for what looked like a beautiful 52-yard touchdown run. The crowd went wild, but then the yellow flag came out. It was a holding call on Preston Howard, Auburn’s #15, who was seen blocking a little too aggressively and even taking a Vanderbilt player to the ground. That didn’t stop Preston Howard to pull that move again.

In the third quarter, with 1:19 left, Ashton Daniels kept the ball and ran it himself. Preston Howard literally held Vanderbilt’s No. 8 and dragged him to the ground, making it easy for Daniels to score a 16-yard touchdown. The difference this time was that both Daniels and Howard got away with it. Fans blasted SEC officials for missing the obvious hold and not throwing a flag. But in reality, it was the penalties that ultimately ruined the Tigers’ chances. Auburn finished with 12 penalties for 91 yards, compared to Vanderbilt’s three.

As the game went on, Vanderbilt started to get comfortable, especially after Diego Pavia threw a huge 57-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter that gave the Commodores their first lead. The fourth quarter was a back-and-forth thriller, with Auburn battling back to tie the game at 38-38.

In overtime, Vanderbilt got the ball first, and they made it count. Pavia quickly found another touchdown pass, giving them a 45-38 lead. Just like that, karma struck Ashton Daniels. On the last play (fourth down), Daniels’ pass to Coleman was broken up in the end zone, and that was all she wrote. Despite the dub, the Vandy fans are calling out SEC officials for poor refereeing.

College football calls out SEC officials for poor officiating on Ashton Daniels -Preston Howard holding play

When college football insider and OutKick analyst Tray Wallace posted the clip on X and called out the SEC refs saying, “I think it will be Vanderbilt sending clips to the SEC office this week. How does an official not call holding? He tackled him.” The fans showed up with pitchforks instantly.

The replies were brutal. One fan started with the obvious: “Can’t miss that call… horrible officiating.” It was clear as day. Every person watching could see it. Somehow the only people who didn’t see it were the SEC officials.

Another user went even further and accused the refs of foul play saying, “Because refs are wagering on games. It’s legit that simple tbh.” Strong allegation, but you can understand why fans feel this way when something blatant gets ignored on a scoring play. Meanwhile, the broadcast replay ran over and over again showing the hold clear as sunlight.

A different fan added, “At least the SEC refs have been consistent with missing calls with or on Auburn this season.” And honestly, that part might be true. Auburn isn’t even the villain here, the officiating is. This is not the first time Auburn’s been cooked this season by missing calls. They already got burned against Georgia a few weeks ago and fans still have not forgotten.

Even Vanderbilt fans jumped in. One pointed out the exact same thing happened earlier: “Exact same hold on Vanderbilt’s big play leading to a touchdown in the second quarter went uncalled, so it’s consistent.” This isn’t an Auburn vs Vanderbilt narrative; both sides have suffered from this.

And the last fan summed the entire SEC officiating distrust in one line: “Too much money in college football now for it NOT to be rigged.” End of the day, we’re not here to accuse anyone of rigging games, but the SEC cannot keep having these glaring officiating moments go uncalled. Auburn fans especially have every right to feel like this is happening way too often.