NATCHEZ — It’s every fan, coach and player’s worst nightmare — losing because of what seems to be poor officiating. And Mickey Magee said he knows the feeling.

Magee coached the 8-and-under Ater Warehouse Steelers in the Miss-Lou Youth Football League. The Steelers made it all the way to the 8-and-under Super Bowl before losing to the Russ Wood State Farm Jets 24-22 on a last-second touchdown run by the Jets’ Jaquan Wilson.

But Magee said he and assistant coach Scott Slover saw some questionable things happen during the last play that went unnoticed by the referees.

The final play took place after time expired on the clock due to a false start penalty called on the Jets. Since the game cannot end on a penalty, and a false start is a dead ball foul, the Jets were given an extra try.

On Wilson’s winning run, Magee said the Jets’ right tackle did not have his mouthpiece in his mouth, and appeared to false start. The result should have been a dead ball penalty, which would have backed up the Jets and given them a longer field on their final play, Magee said.

“After the game, I felt like I had a big empty spot in my stomach,” Magee said. “Maybe I got into it a little too much, but my first thought was, what about the kids?

“They did everything I asked them to. We were down, and they came back, and it was sad. I had the whole team coming up to me and saying we won.”

And the worst feeling in the world is when you realize you’re powerless to change the outcome, Magee said.

“It’s not rage, just disappointment,” he said. “We worked so hard as a team, and to have two other guys telling you the other team one is hard to swallow.”

League commissioner Mike Bowlin later gave the Steelers a sportsmanship trophy at their post-season party, saying he was proud the Steelers fans and coaches didn’t riot following the loss.

“I just felt like they played hard enough to win the ball game,” Bowlin said. “It could have been a YouTube moment, with parents and kids going crazy, but I thought his coaching staff handled it very well.”

Magee said he looked at the video, and it confirmed to him his feelings that penalties should have been called on the Jets during their final play.

“I just had a sense of relief, knowing I was right, and the kids knew I was right,” Magee said.

“I didn’t get the video until a few days later, and I wanted to hold off on saying anything until I saw it, but there were clearly two missed calls on the final play.”

Before the Jets scored their final touchdown, the Steelers got a go-ahead touchdown to give them a 20-18 lead with less than two minutes to play. The Steelers went for the two-point conversion, but Magee was later accused of trying to run out the clock before running the two-point play.

“That’s totally untrue,” he said. “I think you have 30 seconds to call and play, and once you get to the line, there’s no play clock, but you do have to start within a certain amount of time.

“There were various ways I could have eaten the clock, like calling a time out, but I didn’t. There was confusion in the huddle, and I had to get the play right.”

Despite the bitter end to the season, Magee said he’s still happy he got the opportunity to coach the group he had.

“This is great preparation for middle and high school football,” he said.

“What they pick up at this age is huge. When I played, I didn’t break out until junior high and junior varsity, but they’re picking up stuff I learned then at ages 5-8.”

Magee said he also plans to move up to coaching the 10-year-olds next season.

“Mike came up to me and said he wanted me and Scott back,” Magee said. “His No. 1 reason was because of the sportsmanship we displayed after the final play happened.

“Without the video, I probably would have let it go away. It was a season to remember, but a disappointing end.”