“These are the 3 best officials in the country (in my opinion). It doesn’t get better than this. I expect this to be a great game and well officiated,” wrote OfficiatingObserver17 on X, giving a tip of the cap to the referees chosen for the Final Four showdown. And honestly? The praise felt warranted—at least at first glance. Three veterans, who hadn’t watched either of the teams play all season, were stepping in. But as the championship game game tipped off and tensions rose, so did the frustrations. Missed calls, questionable fouls, and inconsistent whistles had fans flooding the comment section. Suddenly, the “three best officials” tag started to sound a little too generous.

Ron Groover, Doug Sirmons, and Terry Oglesby– all with immense officiating experience were assigned for the championship game tonight. It was Sirmons’s 10th Final Four and title game combined, while Groover and Oglesby were going for their seventh and sixth, respectively.

“Their selection for the final is a reflection of consistent performance, sound judgment and the ability to manage the intensity of March Madness at its highest level,” RefrSports. com said of the three-man team for the night. Calm, fast-paced, ability to make tough calls. That’s how the three were described individually. However, not everything seemed to have sat right.

As the Florida Gators took on the Houston Cougars for a shot at the title, something felt… off. First thing, Florida’s All-American guard, Walter Clayton Jr., looked nothing like the offensive force fans had seen just days ago—when he dropped a stunning 34 points against the Auburn Tigers. This time around, though? The Cougars had his number. They completely smothered him, holding him scoreless for the first half.

Yup—zero points. Clayton went 0-for-4 from the field, all of his attempts from behind the arc. He managed to grab two rebounds, committed two turnovers, and, to his credit, dished out a game-high five assists. But this wasn’t just a “bad shooting night.” Something else bothered the spectators.

As the game reached the 7:02 mark in the second half, the scoreboard read 51-51. Tensions were rising. But the fouls? They were already out of control. Houston had racked up 14 fouls. Florida had 10. Then came the observation: inconsistency and consecutive calls, turning the game around. Fans weren’t going to sit quiet.

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Only one foul was called on Florida in the first half, but that could simply reflect cleaner defense early on. But come the second half, whistles stacked up. Just 2:23 minutes in, 5 fouls were called on Gators solely and consecutively. In the next second, Todd Golden was slapped with a technical.

“Refs think we paid to see them,” came a comment.

Then, when Houston started to pull away—with 11 left—it felt like the whistle flipped. The officials suddenly hit Houston with nine fouls, allowing Florida to crawl right back into the game. It wasn’t just one or two borderline calls. It was a run that screamed control, as if the game needed to be tightened up on purpose.

“The refs remembered, oh, Florida is supposed to win. Then called Houston for 9,000 fouls in a row. Disgusting,” wrote another fan.

Every time Roberts touched the ball in the paint, he was getting two-hand shoved with zero whistles. Meanwhile, ticky-tack fouls were being called on the other end, only adding to the confusion and frustration.

“All players want, regardless of sport, is consistency. Call it how you see fit but be consistent from the first whistle. Terrible job by the refs,” added another.

Well, the foul disparity painted a telling picture. Houston had 19 fouls called against them, while Florida had just 11. Whether it was missed calls, or simply a tighter whistle on one end, fans definitely noticed the imbalance. At that point, it felt like Houston was about to run away with the game. But after Florida’s bench got slapped with that tech, something unexpected happened. You’d think the Gators would unravel under pressure—except they didn’t. Instead, it was Houston that started spiraling.

One moment, Houston’s sitting on a 10-point lead and cruising. The next, Florida’s clawing their way back and drawing every whistle in sight. 15 of their points in the second half, came from free throw attempts. “If you ever want to appreciate NBA referees, watch a college game,” a comment read.

Todd Golden clearly wasn’t happy either. He was seen in a heated conversation with one of the officials at the scorer’s table, soon joined by his assistant coaches. His frustration also earned him a technical 3 minutes into the second half. “Todd Golden needs to knock out one of these fucking refs. #Gators,” one fan fumed on social media.

Despite all the drama, his accomplishment can’t be overlooked. At just 39 years old, he’s led Florida all the way to the national championship. That makes him the youngest head coach to reach the title game since Jim Valvano in 1983, who was only 37. And while the conversation may be dominated by whistles and techs today, Golden’s rise is a storyline that deserves its own spotlight.