East Carolina running back Marlon Gunn Jr. scored an incredible touchdown with approximately five minutes left in the third quarter of the Military Bowl. It was called back due to an inadvertent whistle.
The game-changing call resulted in a 14-point swing against the Pirates.
All of the people who say that college football bowl games do not matter did not watch the Military Bowl. They missed out on the most chaotic two minutes of the postseason thus far.
East Carolina scored a 68-yard touchdown.
This bizarre sequence of events took place with just over five minutes remaining in the third quarter. East Carolina had the ball on offense at the 32.5-yard-line on 4th-and-1.
The Pirates decided to go for it instead of punting and the gamble paid off in a big way.
Gunn, who replaced starting running back London Montgomery after he did not return from Christmas break, took a handoff to the right side. Pitt was there to stop him short of the line to gain but he ran over a defender for the first down. And then he just kept going.
On fourth down in the Military Bowl, East Carolina’s Marlon Gunn Jr. rips off one of the best runs of bowl season for a TD.
— Bobby Football (@Rob__Paul) December 27, 2025
BUT an inadvertent whistle calls the play back … a few plays later Pitt forces a fumble and returns it for a score. Insane. pic.twitter.com/8wk94ENpmU
It was not only one of the best runs of the bowl season, it was one of the best runs of the entire year. Gunn went 68 yards for six but the play did not count.
An inadvertent whistle resulted in a 14-point swing.
Officials intervened to call back the touchdown for an “inadvertent whistle.” They ruled a first down for East Carolina but they took the big gain and subsequent touchdown off of the board. An official apparently blew a whistle by accident. The whistle was determined to cause an interruption.
However, you cannot hear an inadvertent whistle on the broadcast. None of the defensive players stopped their pursuit of the ball-carrier. The play did not appear to be impacted by the whistle.
It was overturned anyway.
As a result, the Pirates did not go up 17-7 like everybody thought. Instead, they were right back on offense to face a 1st-and-20 just two plays later. And then they fumbled.
To make matters worse, the Panthers picked up the loose ball for a scoop-and-score.
All by himself ☝️@Rasheembiles forces the fumble and takes it to the house!
— Pitt Football (@Pitt_FB) December 27, 2025
📺 ESPN pic.twitter.com/Ie8DJ8BZVC
Pitt took a 14-10 lead less than 30 seconds after East Carolina appeared to go up 17-7 on the long touchdown run by Marlon Gunn. The inadvertent whistle resulted in a 14-point swing.
In a situation where the Pirates could’ve rolled over as all of the momentum went in favor of the Panthers, they responded right back with a long touchdown just a few plays later. It counted this time.
HES TOO FAST OMG @GlobalAnt_26 https://t.co/lr2mZglFcZ pic.twitter.com/bhjgXbK6ZF
— ECU Football (@ECUPiratesFB) December 27, 2025
They also got the ball right back on the next Pitt possession and got three points from the ensuing drive!
FALL ON IT @TheRealJordy1 💀 https://t.co/FCtUlmkFyL pic.twitter.com/7KhnImtqSZ
— ECU Football (@ECUPiratesFB) December 27, 2025
There will not be a more chaotic two minutes in college football this month. An inadvertent whistle led to a scoop-and-score, which led to a long receiving touchdown, which led to a fumble, which led to a field goal. The bowl haters are furious! This is fun!