After even further review, both calls from the replay booth in the final minutes of North Carolina's 29-24 victory over Notre Dame were accurate, the ACC's coordinator of football officials said Sunday.

"They were both close, but there was irrefutable video evidence to support the reversals as correct,'' Doug Rhoads said in a phone interview.

There were actually four plays reviewed during Saturday's dramatic, and frankly bizarre, game at Kenan Stadium. But the final two -- in the final 2 minutes, 2 seconds -- were the most controversial and had the biggest impact on the outcome.

* With Carolina leading by five points, wide receiver Brooks Foster grabbed a 29-yard pass from Cameron Sexton in the air, came down on his left foot, and had the ball pop after he fell forward on his elbow/forearm. The Big East officials on the field called the grab a completion, but it was overturned by the ACC replay official in the booth, Rhoads said, based on guidelines set by the College Football Officials Association.

So Carolina had to punt.

"If a player is airborne and catches the ball, with or without contact, when the player comes to the ground, he must maintain possession of the ball,'' Rhoads said, citing the CFOA's rules. "If he immediately loses it, it's incomplete."

As for the rule that the ground can't cause a fumble? "There was no fumble, because there was no catch,'' Rhoads said.

* With time winding down, Notre Dame quarterback Jimmy Clausen marched his team toward the end zone. With 11 seconds left, he threw to wide receiver Michael Floyd, who caught it around the 7-yard line. UNC cornerback Jordan Hemby tackled him, the ball popped loose, and Tar Heels safety Trimane Goddard dived on it at the 19. Officials on the field originally ruled Floyd down by contact, so Notre Dame (which didn't have a timeout) tried to spike the ball with one second left. Time appeared to run out, and both teams started running onto the field -- until officials started waving them back to their respective sidelines.

Joe Rider -- the replay official in the booth who officiated for the ACC on the field for two decades -- buzzed the officials on the field before Clausen snapped the ball, Rhoads said. There was a delay in announcing the review because of all the hubbub.

After looking at several different replays in the booth, Rider judged that Floyd fumbled as he rolled over another player's back, and that three seconds should be put back on the game clock.

The review lasted more than four minutes, Rhoads said, because Rider had trouble communicating immediately with the official on the field. (It may have been caused by an equipment malfunction, or just so much noise that the field official couldn't hear.)

Rhoads added that nothing likely would have been different if the officials on the field and in the booth worked for the same league; unless it is otherwise stated in the contract, he explained, the home team's conference provides the replay official and the visiting team provides the officials on the field.

"The most important thing is that replay got it right,'' Rhoads said, adding that before replay, that might not have happened.

BRIEFLY: The victory pushed Carolina (5-1) to No. 18 in The Associated Press poll. It marks the Tar Heels' highest ranking since Sept. 5, 1998, when then-No. 12 UNC lost to Miami (Ohio) 13-10.

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