Every college football season produces a moment that, years from now, will make people look at each other and say, “I remember where I was when that happened.”
For Kyle Whittingham, Bryce Underwood and Michigan football fans everywhere, that moment came Saturday night in the Big House.
The Wolverines trailed foe Western Michigan State, 12-7, with one second left on the clock. Their season opener, which they entered as 27.5-point favorites, was slipping away.
Underwood, Michigan’s sophomore quarterback, took the look at midfield and rolled left. He dropped back, bought himself a moment and made a Hail Mary pass into the outstretched arms of wide receiver JJ Buchanan to lift the Wolverines to an impenetrable 13-12 victory over the Broncos.
But should the show have been allowed to run?
That’s the question that will undoubtedly be on the minds of Western Michigan’s coaches and players after Underwood’s first Hail Mary attempt went out of bounds as the clock struck zero.
Western Michigan players had already begun celebrating what they believed to be a historic victory. Then the officials went to review the play.
Television replays appeared to show the clock reaching zero before the ball touched the hands of a Western Michigan defender. But after review, the officials ruled there was one second left.
The Big Ten Conference released a statement explaining the decision, saying that “after video review, it was determined that Western Michigan’s No. 18 started his jump shot from an out-of-bounds position (left foot) and contacted the ball with one second left on the clock.”
The Mid-American Conference and Western Michigan contacted the Big Ten office to seek clarification regarding the video replay and putting a second back on the game clock.
MAC Commissioner Dr. Jon Steinbrecher said the Big Ten explained that “the ball touched a player who was out of bounds before the clock hit 0:00, resulting in an overtime play.”
That one extra game changed everything.
“The extra second was huge,” Whittingham said in his postgame press conference. “As I saw the first Hail Mary and the ball sailed out of the back of the end zone, as I glanced at the clock, I was pretty sure there was one second left. But that’s definitely not up to me.”
And so Underwood did it again. This time, his Hail Mary found Buchanan, sending Big House to bed and lifting the Wolverines to a victory that, for a few minutes, seemed impossible.
Bryce Underwood connected with JJ Buchanan for a 47-yard touchdown pass that led the Wolverines to a win over Western Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
“This game will go down in Michigan history,” Whittingham said. I don’t know if it’s in a positive way, but it will surely go down in history.”
For much of Saturday night, it looked like Michigan was headed for the wrong kind of story.
Underwood started the game strong, leading the Wolverines on an 11-play, 75-yard drive that ended with his 1-yard run. But Lance Taylor’s Western Michigan team refused to give up. The defending MAC champions kicked four field goals and forced three turnovers, including a costly fumble in the fourth quarter by Underwood.
The Broncos took their first lead early in the fourth quarter and stayed calm until the final whistle, threatening to hand Michigan its most stunning loss since Appalachian State left the Big House with a win in 2007.
Instead, Michigan got a second. And a miracle to follow.
Somewhere from Ann Arbor to college campuses across the country, many people now have a story that begins the same way:
“I remember where I was when I saw it.”
