It is often said that football is a game of inches.
In the final seconds of the 2025 Celebration Bowl between South Carolina State and Prairie View A&M, it was more of a game of millimeters.
In the fourth overtime of the Bulldogs’ 40-38 victory over the Panthers, South Carolina State running back Tyler Smith caught a pass from Ryan Stubblefield and was tackled by Prairie View A&M defensive back Kamren Amao for the game-winning two-pointer. only Kicked the ball over the pylon for a successful conversion.
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The final call, though, has been the subject of much scrutiny and debate, and replays from multiple angles suggest the call was as close to a live broadcast as it could have been.
The on-site judgment was that the conversion was successful, and the original judgment was upheld after video review. The Panthers failed to get into the end zone on their two-point conversion, and quarterback Cameron Peters coughed up the ball when he was tackled at the 5-yard line, ending the game.
The controversial two-point conversion capped a wild comeback for South Carolina State, which trailed 21-0 at halftime. The Bulldogs rebounded, scoring 21 points to tie the game in just 6:14 of the third quarter. With two minutes left in the fourth quarter, facing a 28-35 deficit, Stubblefield teamed up with Jordan Smith to complete a 10-yard touchdown in the third and sixth quarters, sending the game into overtime.
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The final score was a highlight of a game for Jordan Smith, who had nine catches for 152 yards and two touchdowns.
In the losing effort, Peters passed for 412 yards and four touchdowns.
This is South Carolina’s second Celebration Bowl victory in the past five years. The Bulldogs lost to Jackson State 28-7 last season.
Prairie View A&M is playing in the Celebration Bowl for the first time since winning its second Southwestern Athletic Conference title since 1964. With the loss, the Panthers improved to 10-3, their most wins in a season since 1963.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: South Carolina wins Celebration Bowl on controversial two-point field goal
