There was nothing relaxing about the end of the Boca Raton Bowl on Tuesday night.
In the final minutes of the contest colloquially known as the Bush’s Bowl of Beans game, players from the Toledo Rockets and Louisville Cardinals got into a heated altercation after a late hit.
With 1:58 remaining in the game and holding a five-point lead, the Cardinals opted to run the ball with Issac Brown.
As the running back broke the run outside, he was carried out of bounds and then driven to the ground on a late hit from Toledo defender K’Von Sherman.
‘Unnecessary’ late hit sparks brawl
Tempers flared on the Louisville bench with some shoving, punches thrown and flags flying from the referees as they tried to maintain order.
“Absolutely the last thing you want to see in what has been a hard-fought, well-played bowl game is a scrum on the Louisville sideline,” an ESPN announcer says on the live broadcast.
“That was unnecessary, that was frustration being taken out,” a second commentator says after watching a replay of the incident. “Louisville clearly taking issue with the late hit.”
After separating the teams, the referees gathered and then assessed three unsportsmanlike conduct penalties to Louisville and one to Toledo. The offsetting penalties resulted in a replay of first down.
Notably, Sherman was not given a penalty for the late hit, which puzzled the commentators.
After order was restored, the Cardinals held on for a 27-22 win.
No comment on Michigan job
Louisville head coach Jeff Brohm, who has been linked to the opening at Michigan after Sherrone Moore’s dismissal and subsequent arrest, declined to speak about the Wolverines job after the game.
“Well, I don’t speak on other jobs,” Brohm said, according to Sports Illustrated. “I’m happy with this one and happy we got the victory and we’re gonna enjoy that.”