"Refs tried to rob us with calls": Kirby Smart salty after Georgia's dominant win over Texas to secure No. 1 spot

Kirby Smart was far from subdued after Georgia's 30-15 victory over No. 1 Texas. The victory handed the Longhorns their first loss of the season. The Bulldogs’ defense stole the show, choking Texas and leaving Smart proud of his team’s resilience.

“I'm so proud of these guys because no one believed,” Smart told ABC's Katie George after the game. “Nobody gave us a chance. Your whole network doubted us. Nobody believed us. And then they tried to rob us with calls, in this place. And these guys are so resilient.”

The Georgia coach refers to the moment when a Longhorns interception was overturned due to a controversial defensive pass interference call. It followed a delay caused by Texas fans throwing trash on the field, and the officials reviewed the play and reversed the penalty, allowing Georgia to retain possession.

Kirby Smart continued to assert that his team walked onto the field solely intending to compete, not bask in glory.

“Our intent was not to take pictures. Not to do all the superstar stuff. Our intent was to eat. Our intent was to come eat and be hungry. I'm not interested in all the bells and whistles. What I want is a team that fights their a-- off and they did tonight,” he said.

With this win, Georgia improved to 6-1, positioning itself to reclaim the No. 1 ranking in the upcoming national polls.

Also read: Kirby Smart relates QB Carson Beck and Quinn Ewers' playing style

Officials tell Kirby Smart reason behind controversial call

After a wild sequence of events entailing penalty – delay – chaos during the third quarter, Smart learned from officials that a controversial call had been reversed.

The Bulldogs were leading 23-8 when Texas' Jahdae Barron appeared to snag his second interception of the night, only for the refs to flag him for pass interference initially.

However, fans, especially Texas’s student section, started throwing water bottles and beer cans on the field, prompting a lengthy delay. Eventually, the officials corrected their decision, awarding Texas the interception and signaling no penalty for the delay in the game.

"He just said the guy got it wrong,"iKirby Smart said in his postgame press conference. "The guy called it on the wrong guy, which it took him a long time to realize that."

"It’s one of those things that I don’t know what I’m allowed to say or not say, so I won’t comment because I want to respect the wishes of the SEC office," he continued.

However, the Bulldogs rallied after the chaos, defeating the Longhorns at their home.