Utah AD Mark Harlan rips officials following loss to BYU, claims game was 'stolen from us'

Utah athletics director Mark Harlan made a surprise visit at Saturday's postgame press conference and made sure his feelings about the Utes' 22-21 loss to No. 9 BYU were known.

Harlan complained about the refereeing in Utah's 22-21 loss to rival BYU at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City. The Utes AD, who has been in charge of running the Utes athletics' since 2018, questioned the validity of his program's loss and called into question the refs.

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"This game was absolutely stolen from us," Harlan said. "We were excited about being in the Big 12, but tonight I am not. We won this game. Someone else stole it from us. Very disappointed.

"I will talk to the commissioner. This was not fair to our team. I'm disgusted by the professionalism of the officiating crew tonight."

Utah joined the Big 12 as part of a mass exodus from the Pac-12 and the 2024 season is its first season as a member. Following his statement, Harlan did not take any questions from the media and did not elaborate on the calls he questioned.

A potential call in question could be when Utah cornerback Zemaiah Vaughn was called for a holding penalty on a fourth-down at the Cougars' 1-yard line with 1:29 remaining. The penalty wiped out a sack of BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff that would have won the game for the Utes.

Following the first down on the penalty, BYU advanced the ball down the field, and kicker Will Ferrin hit a 44-yard field goal to clinch the rivalry win. With the win, the Cougars are now 9-0 and 6-0 in Big 12 play, keeping alive a chance at the 12-team College Football Playoff.

(This story was updated to change a video.)

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Utah athletics director Mark Harlan rips refs after loss to BYU