Less than 24 hours had passed since a controversial – mostly thanks to replays on the huge video boards at Mercedes-Benz Stadium and on TV – call by an official helped lead to a 10-6 loss to Calhoun, Peach County took a step.

          The school will appeal to the GHSA on Monday.

          Tucker Sargent of WMGT-TV, 41 NBC, in Macon was the first to report the meeting early Saturday afternoon after talking to head coach Chad Campbell.

          “They’re going to hear from us Monday,” Campbell told Sargent. “We’re going to be heard at the highest level. … We just want to be heard.”

          Principal Ken Hartley told Marvin James of WMAZ-TV, 13 CBS, in Macon that “We are fighting this football call. We are in talks with setting up a meeting with the GHSA.” Hartley has reportedly sent a letter to the GHSA and new executive director Robin Hines – the former superintendent of Houston County who replaced Gary Phillips in May – and the board of trustees and requested a meeting.

          Attempts to reach Campbell Saturday were unsuccessful.

          Two members of the board have Central Georgia ties, and one has strong Peach County ties.

          Michelle Masters is the assistant superintendent for school operations in Houston County. She has worked in administration at Warner Robins and Bleckley County high schools.

          Mary Persons principal Jim Finch was an assistant coach and defensive coordinator at Peach County and was a colleague of Campbell’s for several years before leaving in 2006 to become principal at Rutland.

          He stayed there for a year before being hired for the same position at Mary Persons in the summer of 2007. Finch coached at Peach County under Rodney Walker, who was starting his second year at Mary Persons when Finch was hired.

          The play came with more than three minute left in the game, Peach County having taken possession of the ball at its own 46 with 4:53 left. The Trojans gained 31 yards on two plays, then only two in the next three, and called time with 3:40 left, facing a fourth and 8 from the Calhoun 21.

          Quarterback Antonio Gilbert, who had a pass intercepted and returned for the game’s only touchdown with 23 seconds left in the first half, was hit as he threw down the left side to sophomore Noah Whittington.

          Whittington appeared to catch the ball at about the 5 and possess it, and take about two steps before defensive back Brannon Spector – who had that interception and touchdown - tackles him from behind. Whittington reaches the ball out with his right hand to cross the goal line. The ball pops out of his hand as it hits the ground, and replays from Georgia Public Broadcasting cameras appear to show that the ball had broken the plane before it popped out.

          And rules state that the ground cannot cause a fumble. The ball rolled to the back of the end zone, and GPB cameras didn’t show if it went out of the end zone or was picked up by a Calhoun player.

          Neither mattered, since it was ruled incomplete, when indications are that it was complete. Most interpretations indicated it should have been ruled a touchdown. But if ruled a complete catch, officials would have to determine if Whittington’s body touched the ground before the ball popped loose.

          The play and eventual impact - Peach County lost - exploded on social media.

          One issue was ruling the pass incomplete, rather than complete and down at the 1, complete and a touchdown, or complete and fumbled.

          Further clouding the issue was whether Whittington had stepped out of bounds and returned to the field, which was overshadowed on Saturday but emerged more on Saturday.

          No GPB angles showed as much, but the the main pressbox camera angle picks up Whittington at about the 10, and he is right along the sideline and most likely out of bounds.

         Other pictures posted online seem to show his left foot was out of bounds, although the clarity isn’t perfect.

         And a video on Twitter posted by Calhoun player Nate Bonner but uncredited seems to show that Whittington went out of bounds on his own after mild contact and returned to make the catch.

          Reviewing scores of videos and pictures offers an indication that the ball was caught and Whittington took a few steps forward. After that, it doesn’t appear to be as clear as stated on Friday.

          Replay angles for that determination were not as conclusive, although an angle by Fox 5 in Atlanta shows that Whittington’s body may have touchdown a fraction of a second – at about 23 seconds – before the ball touched the goal line.

         Another angle Fox 5 showed from GPB is a little clearer than most, and shows – as do some others – that the ball may have been slipping from Whittington’s hand as he went down – at 41 seconds, frame by frame - and before it crossed the plane.

          Those aren’t overly clear, but there is an indication the ball could have left Whittington’s complete control too early.

          Other angles are more unclear one way or the other as to the timing of the body touching and the ball crossing.

          Dimetria Whittaker of Fort Valley started an online petition on change.org, which, according to Wikipedia “ to facilitate petitions by the general public.

          Headlined “High school students robbed!”, it begins, “We are a small town with a big heart. Our heart was stolen from us yesterday due to the Georgia High School Association (GHSA) officials incorrectly calling a touchdown an incomplete pass. Furthermore, to add insult to injury the referee lets the Call stand without any discussion or consultation with his crew of officials chosen to officiate a State Championship Game. A game of such a lasting magnitude just can’t be allowed to be decided by such a gross level of incompetence.”

         And at the end, it seeks redress, and ostensibly use of replay at championship games:

         “We are asking that the Executive Committee of the Georgia High School Association overturn the officiants ruling on the play and allow that instant replay be admissible in High school championship games. We are not asking for an apology but a change in policy.”

         As of midnight Sunday, the petition had more than 9,000 signatures. But such a petition is only a statement and has no binding value.

         The storm of reaction initially was all in Peach County’s favor, but Calhoun head coach Hal Lamb noted after the game a pair of apparent fumbles by Peach County that his team recovered that weren’t called. One came on a drive that ended with a Peach County field goal, and videos posted online showed both were fumbles.

         Two GPB replays posted by, among others, Ben Lamb, son of the Calhoun head coach, show the fumbles.

          There is a precedent for appeals, coming last May when the GHSA board voted 5-2 to overturn a call in a Johns Creek-Lee County semifinal baseball game.

          Johns Creek had apparently forced a third game with a walk-off bases-loaded walk, but Lee County argued that the runner at second did not touch third to complete the play, as per national federation rules. Umpires agreed after a discussion of 20 minutes or so, the game remained tied, and Lee County won in the top of the eighth.

          Johns Creek appealed, citing inappropriate conduct – that the umps ruled the game over before it officially was, and players may have stopped because of that. Then-commissioner Gary Phillips ruled the decision must stand, but GHSA counsel Alan Connell granted an appeal of that call, and it was upheld, citing that video could not be used. Another appeal went to the board of trustees, which voted 5-2 to uphold the appeal.

          That led to a game 3, won 8-0 by Lee County to advance.

          GHSA President Glenn White, who heads the board of trustees, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution it was the “hardest decision on a GHSA matter that he had ever made” and “It’s just not practical to review every missed call and every kid that was (called) safe but was actually out. We have set a precedent, so we need to get ready because there will probably be other people coming to see us.’’