Two calls by SEC officials in the Iron Bowl will live in infamy for Alabama long after this unfulfilling season is gone.

They gave Auburn enough time at the end of the first half, and then, according to Alabama coach Nick Saban, the refs didn’t give his team enough of it at the end. Saban’s comments and actions during and after the game have caused confusion for Alabama fans and provided comedy material for everyone else.

Fair or not, it’s all going to linger for some time.

Did Saban have a point, though?

Responding to an email, the SEC clarified the situation at the end of the first half, but did not address Saban’s complaint about officials being “unfair.”

Unfair? Don’t care.

Saban called the SEC’s officials “unfair” for not giving his team enough time to substitute players at the end of the game. Fooled by Auburn coach Gus Malzahn, Alabama then lost the Iron Bowl on a penalty for too many players on the field.

“Pretty unfair play at the end of the game,” Saban said. “They substituted the punter as a wide receiver so we put the punt team in. And then when the quarterback was still in there, we tried to put the defense back in.

“I thought they should have given us a little more time to substitute and get Waddle out as a returner and we get called for having 12 guys out on the field.”

The comment has gone viral like the flu.

It was like giving an early Christmas present to bitter college football fans around the conference and the country who have endured years of beat downs by the Crimson Tide. By the reaction of opposing fan bases to the comment, you’d have thought Saban did something completely pathetic like writing a letter to the editor about SEC bias, or purchasing billboards around Birmingham to harass the SEC.

Saban also complained vehemently about a decision from the officials at the end of the half that allowed Auburn to kick a 52-yard field goal. His reaction was caused, in part, by something an official said to him before the play.

“Well I don’t know if I should tell you that,” Saban said after the game,”but um … the [official] beside me said they won’t be able to get it off anyway.”

Considering Auburn won the game 48-45, the call at the end of the first half to put an extra second on the clock was hugely significant to not only the Iron Bowl, but possibly the College Football Playoff.

“They said there was one second on the clock, but it’s a live clock,” Saban said during his halftime interview, “so if they chop the clock there is no way they can snap it, and kick it in one second. If you clock the ball, you’ve got to have three seconds to do it. So, I don’t know.”

The SEC explained the end of the half in great detail, and I’m sharing the entire email now with readers in the interest of clarity:

"At the end of the 1st half in the Alabama vs Auburn game, during a play that resulted in a first down inbounds, the game clock went to 0:00. Replay stopped the game to review the clock. The decision from the Instant Replay Official was that video evidence showed there was 1 second on the clock when the player was down so the clock operator was instructed to put 1 second back on the game clock. The referee came back out to the line of scrimmage and informed both teams that the clock would start on the ready for play. The referee got back in position and blew his whistle and wound the clock. The snap was off before the clock went to 0:00. The play was officiated consistent with Rule 12-3-6-d, which states:

Rule 12, Article 3, Section 6

d. Clock adjustment at the end of any quarter.

If the game clock expires at the end of any quarter, either during a down in which it should be stopped by rule through play when the ball becomes dead or after the down upon a request for an available team timeout, the replay official may restore time only under these conditions:

The replay official has indisputable video evidence that time should have remained on the game clock when the ball became dead or when the team timeout was granted; In the second and fourth quarters only, the team to which the ball would belong after it becomes dead would next put the ball in play from scrimmage (not the try); In the fourth quarter only, either the score is tied or the team that will next snap the ball is behind by eight points or fewer; and The replay official’s video evidence includes the timeout signal by an official in the case where the game clock should have stopped for a requested team timeout."

Auburn had time at the end of the first half due to the replay. As for the end of the game, Alabama just got caught with too many players on the field.

Saban was out-coached by Malzahn at the end of an Iron Bowl again. Even the best have bad days. In a state where the Iron Bowl is a year-round saga, Auburn fans will be respectfully discussing it until next November.

Joseph Goodman is a columnist for the Alabama Media Group. He’s on Twitter @JoeGoodmanJr.