Utah AD's epic rant: Utes win 'absolutely stolen' in Holy War loss to BYU

Emotions often run high during rivalry games. Utah athletic director Mark Harlan was still fuming after the Utes' 22-21 home loss to BYU in a classic Holy War showdown on Saturday night.

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Utah appeared to secure an upset of the ninth-ranked Cougars with a fourth-down sack of BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff, but a defensive holding penalty gave the Utes new life.

Retzlaff drove BYU down the field to set up Will Ferrin's game-winning 44-yard field goal and preserve the Cougars' unbeaten record (9-0) and keep their College Football Playoff hopes alive.

After the game, Harlan addressed the media and blasted Big 12 officials with a rant rarely seen by athletic directors.

"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."

Brett Yormark will definitely want to talk to Harlan. And the Big 12 commissioner most certainly will be as upset as Harlan about one of the league's new members questioning the integrity of the conference and its referees.

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