Eastern Michigan quarterback Mike Glass lost his cool and wound up making contact with an official in the closing seconds of the Eagles’ 34-30 loss to the Pitt Panthers in the Quick Lane Bowl on Thursday night in Detroit.
Glass was ejected with 10 seconds left after throwing punches at two players. The second punch Glass threw at another Pitt player also knocked down a referee who was trying to break up the fight.
After the game, Glass expressed remorse, tweeting, “I let God and my family down!”
Eagles cornerback Kevin McGill also was ejected earlier for unsportsmanlike conduct. Eastern Michigan coach Chris Creighton said officials told him McGill spit on an opponent.
“There’s absolutely no excuse for any of that,” Creighton said. “They’re embarrassed by it. They apologized to the team. I’m embarrassed. I apologize to anybody’s who’s watching.”
Kenny Pickett threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Taysir Mack — who played at Grand Street Campus in Brooklyn during high school — with 47 seconds left to lead Pittsburgh (8-5) to victory.
“Our kids held their composure,” Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi said.
Eastern Michigan ended its season with a 6-7 record.
As for Glass, he was 28 of 50 for 311 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. The senior also ran for 83 yards and a score.
It also was a record-setting game for Glass, who surpassed Charlie Batch’s single-season records of 3,390 yards of total offense and 23 touchdown passes set in 1997.
But that’s not what Glass will be remembered for in this game.
“He’s in tears in the locker room, begging me to talk to the team before I could say a word,” Creighton said. “He made a mistake and he is truly sorry for it. I’m ultimately responsible for it and I’m embarrassed, but I love him 100 percent.”
— with AP