Michigan snagged a 13-12 win over Western Michigan on Saturday, September 5, but the way it went down with a Hail Mary after an added second on the clock has ESPN pundits absolutely fuming, calling the Big Ten’s explanation pure ‘nonsense.’ Western Michigan might be publicly accepting defeat, but some of the biggest names in sports media are not buying the Big Ten’s story for one second.
Clocks Aren’t Synced in 2026? Dan Orlovsky Isn’t Buying It
Look, the Big Ten explained early Sunday morning, two hours after the game, that the official clock showed one second left when the ball touched a Western Michigan player out of bounds. That one second, they say, necessitated the extra play which Michigan used to avoid a historic upset. But here’s the kicker: NBC’s clock showed the clock had already hit zero before that player even touched the ball. And while NBC noted its clock isn’t the official one, former Lions quarterback Dan Orlovsky on ESPN’s “Get Up” was completely unimpressed.
“In 2026, we don’t have clocks synced up the same way. Are you serious?” Orlovsky blasted on Monday. He said his own eyes watched the ball go down, the clock hit zero, and then the Western Michigan player touched the football. “If we as viewers don’t have the appropriate clock, then why are we watching?” he asked, adding, “Everything about that tells me that game is over.” He summed it up with a punch, saying “Everything about that feels like it’s lying.”
Stephen A. Smith Dropped the ‘R’ Word and It’s Hard to Argue
The skepticism didn’t stop with Orlovsky. Stephen A. Smith took to “First Take” and shared his absolute disbelief, going so far as to suggest Western Michigan even benefited financially from taking the high road after this controversial ending. Western Michigan was paid a cool $1.5 million from Michigan for the game. Smith’s quote sums it up best: “I hate using the word ‘rigged,’ particularly in this day and age, in this climate that we’re living in, but dammit, if it looks like a duck and it walks like a duck, it ain’t a damn mongoose.”
He continued, “There’s two different clocks that they’re referring to? Nobody should be buying that nonsense. I’m not buying it one bit. It’s absolutely ridiculous they came to that conclusion. It’s an absolute joke. There’s no question about it.” Western Michigan was a massive 27.5-point underdog, and they were so, so close,one second away, depending on who you believe,from the biggest win in their program’s history. Despite all the noise, Western Michigan president Russ Kavalhuna and head coach Lance Taylor, along with the Mid-American Conference, have accepted the Big Ten’s explanation and their replay review evidence. But for many, the damage to credibility is already done.
This wasn’t just a tough loss; it was a controversial ending that has the sports world talking about what’s fair. With eyes on every whistle and every second, how can we truly trust the official clocks in college football moving forward? It makes you wonder how future nail-biters will be handled when the stakes are this high.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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