Retiring 'Beef Ref' Talks Clemson-Alabama Pick Play

College football referee MIke Defee, also known as 'Beef Ref,' is retiring from the game.

In an interview with CBSSports, Defee said he was leaving officiating behind to focus more on his other job as a manager of over 800 employees for a firm that specializes in electrical and instrumentation in petrochemicals. The economic effects of COVID-19 have played a role in his need to be home more.

Defee might be most known for being the lead referee during the 2017 College Football National Championship game in which Clemson beat Alabama 35-31.

His large arms caught the attention of viewers, but he was also part of one of the best finishes in college football history. One of the most memorable plays ever in Clemson football, however, didn't come without controversy, which Defee addressed in the interview.

On Jan. 9, 2017, in Tampa, Fla., the Tigers trailed Alabama 31-28 with 2:01 remaining and Clemson's ball at its own 32-yard line. Quarterback Deshaun Watson and company needed just a field goal to tie, but after a couple of clutch passes to Mike Williams and Jordan Leggett and a pass interference penalty on the Crimson Tide, Clemson suddenly found itself at the Alabama 2 with 9 seconds left in the game.

That's when the Tiger coaching staff called the now-famous "Crush" play, which had Watson roll out to his right to find Hunter Renfrow for the short touchdown with one second remaining. Clemson made the extra point to go up by four and would hold on to capture the program's first national title in 35 years.

On This Date: Deshaun Watson found Hunter Renfrow to give @ClemsonFB the title 🏆 pic.twitter.com/G62Vmh0Lqp
— ESPN (@espn) January 9, 2019

However, the play sparked debate about a "rub route" from Clemson receiver Artavis Scott, who got in the way of an Alabama defender to help spring Renfrow open enough for Watson to find him in the corner of the end zone. Scott said it was a clean play, and Defee's crew didn't throw a flag for illegal contact.

"That wasn't a pick because the defender jerks (Scott) to the ground," Defee told Dennis Dodd of CBSSports.

A play that forever lives in Clemson lore was greatly disputed by Alabama, and probably always will be.

"Usually on a pick route, you aren't supposed to chop somebody, you're supposed to pick them and go at your route, but the guy literally just chopped Minkah (Fitzpatrick) down," Alabama linebacker Tim Williams said after the 2017 game. "But hey, it's football."

Clemson, meanwhile, had been using that play all season, and it's one of the reasons former co-offensive coordinator Jeff Scott was adamant about running it at the goal line with the national championship on the line.

"That one we kept in our back pocket," Jeff Scott said. "I tease the guys all the time because we've had a lot of big games. They've been wanting to run that play, and I said we were saving it for a big game, and we needed it tonight."

"Crush" made history and took down a giant. Alabama had already won four national titles in seven years, including the previous season against Clemson, under Nick Saban and looked primed to claim another when the Tide led 24-14 in the third quarter.

However, the Tigers outscored them 21-7 in the fourth quarter and made legends on the field that night.

"What better way to finish than Deshaun Watson hitting Hunter Renfrow, two ends of the spectrum," Jeff Scott said. "You've got a five-star, No.1 quarterback in the country throwing to a guy who was a (former) walk-on. I think that really epitomizes our program. It's an appreciation for everybody."