AUSTIN, Texas >> Georgia coach Kirby Smart was initially careful with his words when asked about Texas fans littering the north end of the field with water bottles and other trash after an interception for the top-ranked Longhorns was briefly wiped out by a pass-interference penalty before officials changed their call.

“I won’t comment because I want to respect the wishes of the SEC office,” Smart first said when asked about the disruption during the fifth-ranked Bulldogs’ 30-15 win Saturday. “But I will say now we have a precedent that if you throw a bunch of stuff on the field and endanger athletes, that you’ve got a chance to get your call reversed.”

The Southeastern Conference released a statement early Sunday that said officials made the proper decision with no penalty on the play with 3:12 left in the third quarter. There was contact between cornerback Jahdae Barron and receiver Arian Smith before the pick.

But the league said the disruption caused by the debris on the field would be reviewed related to SEC sportsmanship policies and procedures.

After finding the officials made the correct call, the SEC penalized the Longhorns for the interruption Sunday after review; Texas will be fined $250,000 and must meet requirements assigned by SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey.

Longhorns coach Steve Sarkisian was irate at officials for the call that had appeared to take away Barron’s 36-yard interception return to the Georgia 9. The coach then headed toward the far corner of the field, signaling to the student section to settle down and quit throwing things.

As the debris was being removed, officials were discussing the play and picked up the flag.

Smart was then protesting to official Matt Loeffler, who the coach said told him that the initial penalty was called on the wrong guy.

Sarkisian said the officials never told him why the call was changed.

Two plays after the reversal, Quinn Ewers threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to Jaydon Blue to get the Longhorns to 23-15.