By MARK LONG
AP Sports Writer

GAINESVILLE, Fla.(AP) -- Florida coach Urban Meyer believes
Southeastern Conference officials missed a late hit on Tim Tebow
in Saturday's game against Georgia.

Meyer said Wednesday the crew calling the game should have
flagged Bulldogs linebacker Nick Williams for knocking his
quarterback to the ground well after he had gotten rid of the
football.

Meyer sent video of the play to Rogers Redding, the league's
coordinator of officials. Meyer declined to reveal what the SEC
told him, saying he didn't "want to step out of line."

Last week the SEC changed its discipline policy about coaches
publicly criticizing officials, making the punishment either a
fine or a suspensions and doing away with the reprimands. It was
unclear whether Meyer would be fined for commenting on
officiating.

Meyer told reporters on the SEC conference call the play was
directly in front of the referee and should have penalized.
Tebow handed off to running back Jeff Demps, took a few steps to
his right and wasn't looking when Williams came unblocked off
the right edge and slammed into his chest.

"That should have been a penalty in my opinion," Meyer said.
"Obviously, it should have been. You've got to protect
quarterbacks. That's the whole purpose. It's right in front of
the referee. I'm not sure how they're going to handle that, but
... that was one of the plays we did send in."

Meyer didn't mention the play until asked about it Wednesday,
possibly trying to avoid drawing punishment from the league. He
also prefaced his comments by saying he has "great respect" for
SEC officials and the way the league handles complaints.

The SEC decided to stop handing down reprimands for ripping
officials last month after three coaches in less than a week
were reprimanded.

Commissioner Mike Slive was given full discretion by the
league's athletic directors and presidents to hand out the
punishment. He will determine the amount of fines and lengths of
suspensions on a case-by-case basis.

The SEC's officiating - and public complaints by Tennessee's
Lane Kiffin, Mississippi State's Dan Mullen and Arkansas coach
Bobby Petrino - has drawn plenty of unwanted attention for the
league.

An officiating crew was suspended after it called penalties the
league said were not supported by video evidence in the
LSU-Georgia game Oct. 3 and the Arkansas-Florida game Oct. 17.
The SEC publicly announced the suspensions, an unprecedented
move by the conference.

When told of Meyer's comments Wednesday, Kiffin wondered what
would happen to his league counterpart.

"Urban Meyer? Criticized the officials?," Kiffin said. "That
will be interesting. We'll see."