Shedeur Sanders shoves referee, FOX rules official calls him 'lucky he wasn't ejected from the game'

After Shedeur Sanders got sacked in the third quarter of Saturday’s game against Kansas, players from both KU and Colorado exchanged words. In the middle of the scrum, Sanders appeared to shove the head referee, and FOX rules analyst Mike Pereira called him “lucky he wasn’t ejected from the game.”

Sanders went down after multiple Jayhawks sacked him for a loss on third down. One player appeared to start celebrating while walking over him, and he took exception and wanted a flag called. Somewhere in the middle of the exchange, he appeared to push the head referee.

After reviewing the replay, Pereira called it a clear shove. While the officials can get in the middle of a scuffle to shut it down, he said players can’t, and he said Sanders could’ve been ejected.

“There’s no question that he does,” Pereira said on the FOX broadcast. “Look, I get why he’s upset because people are almost climbing over him after he was down. The officials can use their hands all they want to try to keep order but you cannot come back, as a player, and push an official. In the chaos, the officials don’t see it, but he’s lucky that he wasn’t ejected from the game.”

"He's lucky he wasn't ejected from the game." @MikePereira takes a closer look at Shedeur Sanders' push on the ref ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/SSESj7QtId

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 23, 2024

Shedeur Sanders was in the midst of an impressive day as Colorado and Kansas trade blows in a crucial Big 12 matchup. He completed 23 of 29 passes for 366 and three touchdowns. However, the Buffs defense struggled to contain KU’s offense, especially the running game, as the Jayhawks scored on each of their first seven possessions.

Devin Neal put together a monster day for Kansas to lead the charge. As of the 8-minute mark in the fourth quarter, he had 37 carries for 207 rushing yards and three touchdowns, along with four receptions for 80 yards and a touchdown in the air, to help the Jayhawks win a game that could have massive College Football Playoff implications.

Colorado entered Week 13 ranked No. 16 in the CFP rankings, looking to chart a path toward a Big 12 title game appearance and a spot in the final 12-team bracket. Deion Sanders has engineered an impressive turnaround in Boulder after last year’s 4-8 campaign, and it’s also paying off on the recruiting trail after the commitment of elite quarterback Julian “Ju Ju” Lewis earlier this week.