MAC Appeals Michigan Victory, Requests NCAA and CFP Recognize Western Michigan as Winner
The Mid-American Conference filed a formal appeal Tuesday to the NCAA FBS Oversight Committee and College Football Playoff requesting they overturn Michigan's 13-12 victory over Western Michigan and recognize the Broncos as the winner. The MAC cites improper replay protocol in the final second, arguing the replay crew used the wrong clock feed to award Michigan an additional play.
The Mid-American Conference filed formal appeals to the NCAA FBS Oversight Committee and the College Football Playoff on Tuesday requesting those bodies recognize Western Michigan as the actual winner of Michigan's 13-12 victory, citing improper replay protocol in the final second. The MAC argues that the Big Ten Conference replay crew violated established procedure by relying on the wrong clock feed to restore one second to the game clock and award Michigan an additional play.
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 replay crew relied upon the clock feed embedded within its replay system, resulting in one second being placed back on the game clock and an additional play being awarded, per Sporting News. The MAC argues that had the protocol been properly followed by using the game clock instead of the replay clock, the referees would have determined that there was no time left after Michigan's first Hail Mary attempt, according to Sporting News.
The MAC requested that the NCAA FBS Oversight Committee and the College Football Playoff recognize Western Michigan as the actual winner "for purposes of their respective rankings, evaluations and selection deliberations," per Sporting News. The NCAA's football rulebook states that "when the referee declares that the game is ended, the score is final," providing a rule-based foundation for potential denial of the appeal. The NCAA has never reversed the outcome of a game due to an officiating error in its history, according to Sporting News. In the past, the NCAA has vacated or forfeited wins based on certain scandals, but procedural officiating errors have not prompted outcome reversals.
The established replay protocol requires use of the game clock displayed on the program feed. Instead, the Big Ten replay crew relied on the clock embedded within its replay system, resulting in one second being placed back on the game clock, allowing Michigan's winning Hail Mary pass.
The NCAA's core rule that a final score is final once declared offers an institutional barrier to the appeal's success. Watch whether the FBS Oversight Committee or CFP respond with any formal ruling, or whether silence on the matter becomes the de facto answer.
The score is a fact. The story gets checked.
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