There was an instant replay review, then a review of the review.
Fifteen minutes later, Oregon and USC had a ruling on a somewhat meaningless touchdown that pulled the Ducks within 18 points with 14 minutes left in Sunday's game.
"An almost 15-minute delay in the game was ridiculous, and it was incorrect besides," Oregon coach Mike Bellotti said Tuesday.
How long was the replay? As of last week, the Pac-10 had reviewed 71 plays for an average of 2:02. After eight replays this weekend, the average time went up to 2:09.
Here's what happened: After Oregon's Jonathan Stewart caught a touchdown pass in the back of the end zone, the referees looked at the videotape and found he had stepped out of bounds before catching the ball, nullifying the touchdown.
After the ruling was made, Bellotti threw his review flag and told the official to check and see if the ball was tipped. If Stewart had stepped out of bounds, he could still catch the ball as long as he wasn't the first to touch it.
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"I was thinking, 'Why wasn't it fixed the first time the right way?' Because the ball was tipped," Bellotti said. "I was shocked that it took that long. I guess they didn't notice that the ball was tipped at least once, maybe twice."
USC coach Pete Carroll isn't a fan of instant replay.
"I never have been," he said. "My whole stance is I think the game was designed to be played with a flow to it, and there's a human element to it. It couldn't have been more evident in that game."
After the final ruling, Carroll was captured cursing out an official.
He said he wasn't given a proper explanation for the change.
"It was a mistake on my part and it was wrong, to blow up," Carroll siad. "I don't mind apologizing for that."
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