Referees wipe out Akrum Wadley's 74-yard touchdown because the NCAA hates fun

Hawk Central

IOWA CITY, Ia. — North Texas runs a 3-4 defense, so it's going to blitz a lot with its linebackers. And then it's going to blitz some more.

But there's a downside for the Mean Green's aggressive scheme: It opens up one-on-one matchups for Iowa's playmakers on the outside. That happened late in the first quarter Saturday, when Akrum Wadley beat a corner on a wheel route and outran him for 74-yard touchdown.

Iowa's Akrum Wadley (25) catches a pass and runs it into the end zone but was called for unsportsmanlike conduct and it was over turned during their football game at Kinnick Stadium against North Texas on Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017, in Iowa City.

Except ... it wasn't a touchdown.

Wadley high-stepped his way into the end zone, drawing an unsportsmanlike conduct flag. In college, that call nullifies the score and enforces the penalty from the spot of the infraction. It's a new rule in 2017. The 74-yard touchdown turned into a 68-yard pass with a 15-yard penalty.

Some took to Twitter to question the call.

For the other side of the argument, Iowa radio broadcaster also brought up a good point after the play:

The Hawkeyes wound up scoring on the drive. Seven plays later, Nate Stanley found T.J. Hockenson for an 8-yard touchdown.

Matthew Bain covers preps, recruiting and the Hawkeyes for the Iowa City Press-Citizen, The Des Moines Register and HawkCentral. Contact him at mbain@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter at @MatthewBain_.