John Cohen and Terry McAuley might not be breaking bread together soon.
On Wednesday, news broke that SEC official Ken Williamson had been suspended indefinitely from officiating games after what was seen as several missed calls in Auburn's 20-10 loss to Georgia on Oct. 11. While Greg Sankey and no one from the SEC office has confirmed the report, Terry McAuley, a longtime official in the conference, responded on Twitter that the news was true.
McAuley doubled down on Thursday morning, going after the Auburn athletic director on Twitter.
This is correct. Unfortunately, the Auburn AD appears to have the power to end a career because he thinks his team was slighted. https://t.co/RG0FiCXbl5
— Terry McAulay (@tjmcaulay) October 22, 2025
At halftime of the game between the Bulldogs and Tigers, Cohen was seen berating an official as they walked off the field toward the Auburn locker room. The athletic director was upset after a controversial call went against the Tigers, with Jackson Arnold seemingly scoring on a quarterback sneak, but it was ruled a fumble. Even after video replay and the fact that at least two Georgia players were offside, the ball was given to the Bulldogs.
In the moment, McAuley argued that the call should have been an Auburn touchdown, but after seeing replays, he changed his mind, posting his opinon on Twitter.
In the second half, Kirby Smart sprinted down the sideline, motioning for a timeout. When the whistle blew the play dead, the Georgia coach somehow convinced the referees that he was clapping, not giving a timeout signal despite all evidence. Georgia kept its timeout and was not penalized in any way.
It's been a rough month for Auburn, which has started SEC play 0-4. The Tigers were on the wrong end of two controversial calls in the loss to Oklahoma as well. On the Sooners' first drive, a wide receiver caught a pass, made a move, then fumbled, with the ball recovered by an Auburn defender and returned for a touchdown. After a replay review, it was determined that the receiver never had possession.
It got worse for Auburn in the second quarter, as an Oklahoma receiver started limping toward the sidelines, signaling that he was out of the play, only to stop right before the sideline and being left wide open for a touchdown. After the game, SEC officiating released a statement saying it should have been a 15-yard unsportsmanlike penalty on the Sooners.