BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Mississippi State coach Jackie Sherrill has been reprimanded by the Southeastern Conference for publicly criticizing officials.

"Coach Sherrill has violated the Southeastern Conference Code of Ethics,'' SEC Commissioner Mike Slive said Friday.

Slive said conference bylaws make clear that "coaches, players and support personnel shall refrain from public criticism of officials.'' Sherrill was not immediately available for comment Friday.

Sherrill told reporters at his weekly news conference Tuesday that he planned to present the conference with evidence of mistakes made by officials during last Saturday's 34-10 loss at South Carolina.

The documentation included frame-by-frame photos of disputed plays he sent to Bobby Gaston, the league's coordinator of officials.

The coach said he was disputing the Gamecocks' first touchdown, the downing of a punt by South Carolina near the Bulldogs' goal line and other technical errors.

"I don't get upset at judgment calls because it's hard sometimes to see if somebody is actually holding or not holding,'' Sherrill said. "But, boy, if you throw the flag, then you're supposed to see the whole thing.''

Mississippi State (1-4, 0-3) has lost three straight and has yet to beat a Division I-A opponent. The Bulldogs play Troy State on Saturday.

"I have reminded Coach Sherrill of his responsibility to comply with the policies of the SEC and this rule,'' Slive said. "Any further violation of conference policies of this nature may result in a suspension of coaching duties for one or more games.''