No. 16 Michigan escaped with a 13-12 victory over Western Michigan on Saturday night after Bryce Underwood threw a 47-yard Hail Mary touchdown pass to JJ Buchanan as time expired. The winning score came after officials reviewed the final play and put one second back on the clock, giving the Wolverines an unlikely second chance.
Officials review puts second back on clock
The Broncos thought they had secured a historic upset when Underwood's first Hail Mary sailed out of bounds with the clock expired. Western Michigan players were already celebrating on the field when officials called for a review. TV replays showed the clock hitting zero before the ball reached a Western Michigan defender, but officials ruled there was still one second to play.
“I was pretty sure there was one second left,” Michigan coach Kyle Whittingham said in his debut as head coach. Underwood then heaved another throw, and Buchanan leaped to snag it in the end zone, securing the win.
Broncos push Wolverines to the brink
Western Michigan was threatening to hand Michigan its biggest upset since a season-opening loss to Appalachian State in 2007, when the Wolverines were 33-point favorites. The Broncos, who entered the game as 27-and-a-half-point underdogs, forced three turnovers and kicked four field goals, including a late fumble by Underwood.
Western Michigan took its first lead early in the fourth quarter on Dieter Kelly's 39-yard field goal, capping a 20-play drive that consumed 13:40 of game clock. Kelly, a junior-college transfer from College of San Mateo, made his fourth field goal with 35 seconds left, forcing Michigan to score a touchdown to win.
Underwood's late mistakes and redemption
Underwood lost a fumble at his own 31-yard line with 1:50 remaining after throwing an interception in the first half and nearly getting picked off two more times. Despite the dramatic finish, Whittingham kept the celebration muted. “There was not hooting and hollering in the locker room because we have a lot of work to do,” he said.
Western Michigan, which has played major college football since 1962 in the Mid-American Conference, has never beaten an opponent ranked in the top 20 of the Associated Press poll. The Broncos' four field goals and three turnovers were not enough to secure the upset, as Michigan's last-second heroics denied the program its first win over a ranked team in its history.
