The fallout from Saturday's controversial ending to Michigan versus Western Michigan is still ongoing and likely won't stop anytime soon.
College football fans are still debating whether or not the referees were right to add a second back onto the clock after Michigan's initial failed Hail Mary attempt. In the end, Michigan avoided the upset thanks to a successful second Hail Mary that many believe shouldn't have happened. Michigan, however, has paid a price for the near-upset, as the team dropped out of the AP Top 25 due to the weak showing.
MORE: Ole Miss-Louisville announcers completely roasted Michigan's controversial Week 1 win.
On Tuesday, the story took yet another turn, as Michigan's official 1-0 record could now be in doubt. MAC commissioner
Jon Steinbrecher released a statement detailing that the conference is formally appealing the results of the Michigan versus Western Michigan game, stating that "replay protocol was not properly followed" after further study of the situation.
WOW. New statement from MAC commissioner Jon Steinbrecher that says "replay protocol was nor properly followed" and that the MAC is formally appealing the result of the Michigan-WMU game. pic.twitter.com/fIpTeDY2TS
— Nicole Auerbach (@NicoleAuerbach) September 8, 2026
“After further study and investigation, it is now evident that replay protocol was not properly followed in determining whether time remained on the game clock at the conclusion of the Western Michigan vs. Michigan football game.
The established replay protocol requires that the game clock displayed on the program feed be used in determining whether time remained. Instead, the Big Ten Conference replay crew relied upon the clock feed embedded within its replay system. As a result, one second was placed back on the game clock and an additional play was awarded.
This was not a judgment regarding the proper amount of time to place on the clock. It was an error in the application of the established replay protocol governing this specific end-of-game timing situation. Had the protocol been properly followed and the program-feed clock been used, no additional play would have been awarded, and Western Michigan would have won the game, 12-7.
As a result, the Mid-American Conference has submitted formal appeals to the NCAA FBS Oversight Committee and the College Football Playoff. The MAC is requesting that those bodies recognize Western Michigan as the actual winner of the game for purposes of their respective rankings, evaluations and selection deliberations, and take such other corrective action as may be within their authority.”
This statement from the MAC reverses course on their initial decision made on Sunday, which stated that "the Big Ten subsequently provided video and audio of the replay, which confirmed the explanation to us". This comes after NBC, among others, spoke out on the matter of the broadcast clock controversy as well.
It remains to be seen if the MAC's appeal will change the official result of Saturday's game, but it's clear this controversy isn't going away.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Why the MAC is appealing the results of controversial Michigan vs. WMU game
