TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer said his team cannot put games in officials’ hands after a controversial no-call on Georgia defensive back KJ Bolden helped the Bulldogs close a 20-17 win at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
Bolden arrived early on a deep throw intended for Alabama wide receiver Rico Scott, and many Tide fans expected a pass interference flag that never came. After the incompletion, Alabama took a sack on third down near field-goal range and punted, never getting the ball back.
DeBoer said he did not get an explanation from officials and stressed that Alabama has to control what it can control rather than leave outcomes to a single judgment call.
A separate sequence sealed the clock: Alabama cornerback Dijon Lee drew a 15-yard unsportsmanlike penalty for shoving a Georgia receiver in the helmet, letting the Bulldogs run out the remaining time.
DeBoer said the staff preaches emotional maturity and that he did not expect the shove in that moment, calling the response a chance Alabama failed to give itself after fighting back into the game.
The loss dropped Alabama while Georgia climbed to No. 1 in the Top 25. Alabama remained No. 6 in the same poll for a second straight week, the second-highest one-loss team behind Indiana after Texas fell to Oklahoma.
Georgia received 66 of 70 first-place votes, the most any team has collected in the poll so far this season, and will carry that ranking into the next stretch of the SEC schedule.
For Georgia, the finish was another road statement in a hostile environment. For Alabama, the no-call and the late penalty became the postgame talking points of a one-score defeat that still left the Tide inside the top six.
