The 10th installment of the Cricket Celebration Bowl featured a little bit of everything; rallies, great plays and a lively crowd who picked up the intensity as the game went on.
Unfortunately, MEAC champion South Carolina State’s heart-stopping 40-38 four-overtime victory over SWAC winner Prairie View will likely be remembered for the most controversial call in the Celebration Bowl’s history.
Ryan Stubblefield’s two-point conversion attempt with running back Tyler Smith was ruled good by replay officials as Smith desperately tried to extend the ball past the goal line and pylon after being met at the edge of the end zone by a PV defender.
The officials ruled on the field — and after replay review — that this was a good 2-point conversion by SC State.
It was close, they said. pic.twitter.com/z7Xmmaf6HH
— HBCU Sports (@HBCUSports) December 13, 2025
As several ESPN camera angles showed, it appeared the ball never reached the pylon or the plane of the goal line. Still, two points were awarded to South Carolina State and the Panthers’ last attempt for the tie was snuffed out.
It is very unfortunate that an exciting, if somewhat confusing, ball game came down to a call that looked to be an obvious one to make.
Former Florida A&M head coach Willie Simmons posted an explanation of the rule on X, formerly known as Twitter, and while Simmons clearly knows more about the game than any of us, it is still hard to accept that the call hurts what was, up until that point, a fun and chaotic game.
Let me clarify the TD rule for everyone who watched the Celebration Bowl today. The end zone does NOT stop at the pylon. The end zone is an infinite line and as long as the ball crosses that imaginary plane at ANY point before a body part touches, it is a TD. So it was indeed a…
— Coach Willie Simmons (@HCWillieSimmons) December 13, 2025
Prairie View jumped out to a 21-0 halftime lead before a botched third quarter reverse attempt gave the Bulldogs a short field and their first score.
Two South Carolina State scoring drives later, the game was tied at 21.
Prairie View did take three more leads after that; 28-21 in the third quarter, 35-28 in the fourth quarter and 38-35 in the first overtime.
South Carolina State continued to rally behind reserve quarterback Ryan Stubblefield, who replaced injured starter Billy Atkins and wrote a different Celebration Bowl story for himself after 2024’s disaster against Jackson State.
Both teams had chances to win earlier than the penultimate play, but strangely conservative playcalling on both sides left many observers scratching their heads.
With that in mind, both Chennis Berry and Tremaine Jackson will likely say that you can’t let it get to the point of a controversial call deciding a game.
Still, for all the excitement, chaos and drama that the 2025 Celebration Bowl provided, there will forever be a black and white-striped stain on what could have and should have been a memorable game all its own.
