Highlights: Michigan beats WMU in wild fashion
An officials ruling to give No. 16 Michigan one more play ended up making the difference for the Wolverines against Western Michigan.
Video Transcript
Welcome to Ann Arbor.
A beautiful September evening.
From Michigan Stadium, they are juiced up for their season opener here at Michigan.
The Wolverines looking to take another step in returning to national championship contention, doing it in year one of the Kyle Whittingham era, year two of the Bryce Underwood era.
Full house in The Big House, and the Wolverines have them revved up for some football.
Is the leader of that group.
Starting lineup brought to you by Hilton.
Fumbled snap, Underwood scoops it up.
Gets rid of it on a fade away, and it's brought in.
Buchanan goes up high and brings it into Western territory.
20 yards on the pickup, and Buchanan's catch radius on full display in the first two.
Grips.
First third down of this first possession for the Wolverines.
Third and goal.
Hoot-let.
Underwood's gonna have to get special, but he's more than that.
To the edge, diving for the pylon.
Touchdown.
It looked like his knee might have touched before he got the ball in.
The extra effort from the sophomore, and we'll take a look to make sure that he broke the plane.
Cory Crunk, number 26, played it perfectly.
He was in position, but this is a uniquely special athlete.
Was the knee down before the ball crossed the plane?
He's down.
He's inside the one-yard line, but he's down.
We have to review.
The runner was short of the goal line.
It'll be fourth down at the half yard line.
Underwood over the top, and he's got it.
Touchdown, Michigan.
Seventh career rushing touchdown for the big-bodied quarterback, who makes it happen near the goal line.
On third down.
Michigan transfer Cole Cabana is in there in the backfield.
On third down and five.
Bring three with a spy, and Lowery gets devoured.
Right on cue, Dom Nichols with back-to-back plays.
Gonna be able to create pressure with three and four man rushes.
That time he did.
Punt from Milmore.
Now Andrew Marsh from the 28.
He muffed it- Muffed it and it has it taken away.
Western Michigan had a turnover taken away from them, and they jump right on the football here.
Will they try to draw?
They will run it.
Play action.
Lowery feeling the pressure, on the run, and it's short and incomplete in the direction of Brooks.
Michigan will get the stop after the turnover.
And mentally stronger than they've been over the last couple.
Again, there's Daly, their best pass rusher.
Bull rush.
Can't get to him.
Lowery out of the pocket, and he delivers on the run for a first down.
It's Brooks with another catch.
We're in the front.
Marshall one of the most improved players through camp according to Kyle Whittingham.
Now a third down and eight.
Set up the screen.
Cabana couldn't get away.
Nice tackle by Smith-Snowden to force a fourth down.
This might be quarterback draw here.
Instead it's a handoff and it's losing yardage.
What a first half for Dom Nichols.
Drop back pass throw, so we might see changes in the coverage.
Marshall in motion, fake it to him.
He's got the blitz pick up.
But Underwood didn't see it from the other side.
He gets crunched.
Dylan Moore is wreaking havoc.
Mataele stays in there.
Hand it.
Littlejohn, got a block.
Littlejohn is gonna be close.
Zeke Berry and Rogmore there to make the stop, and we'll see where they place this football.
About a half yard short, but that spot says that the nose of the football is gonna keep the chains moving- It's down and keep this drive alive.
Cabana back into the backfield.
They bring four.
Completion to the 40, and that's where Chenault will get stopped.
36 and a half to go.
Yeah.
And you wouldn't know that by tonight.
Oh.
Oh, it's picked.
Look out, the tiptoe down the sideline.
But he was out of bounds.
At the 26, Dylan Moore has done everything for this team.
Rule on the field is interception.
The intercepting player stepped out of bounds.
First down, Western Michigan.
He's lucky, but he- he might get a penalty for taking his helmet off before he got off the field too.
This is a big time They're gonna take a look at this, whether he was out when he caught it, where he stepped out.
I think it's clearly a pick.
Right there.
Yeah.
Will the play clock operator please reset the game clock to nine seconds.
So now you've got nine seconds.
But see, that's why you punt when they did.
Sure.
You pin them back, you give your defense the best possible scenario- Play clock, thank you very much and they turn it into a turnover.
Peter Kelly from the 45, and he splits the sticks.
And it's short.
No, it's good .
Ooh.
It took me a second there.
The Michigan reaction looked like it was short.
Instead, it is a good field goal to get it to within one.
Third and 14.
Empty for Lowery.
Michigan brings four.
Lowery over the middle.
Right on the money, and it's gonna be a first down.
Avion Chenault had it in stride.
16 yard pickup to end the third quarter.
Third and 11, they will go conservative.
Cabana on the run, and the stutter-step move gets him back to the line of scrimmage, but no further.
And the kick is perfect.
Broncos go in front in the fourth.
Championship team as a freshman in 2023.
Sets up third down and three with Marsh in motion.
Underwood's looking that way.
Now he'll step up and deliver incomplete.
It was knocked down.
Looking for Buchanan and Pope was the one to get a hand on it.
Renauld had the big third down conversion on their last drive.
Brooks sent in motion on third down and six.
Handoff, Buckley with a hole and a first down.
Wow.
Spun forward by Bowles.
But when they needed the big play, they go to their leader out of the backfield for their biggest rush of the night.
On the horizon, they'll get one more play off.
It's Underwood stepping up, and it's Underwood that's gonna take off.
Underwood with the legs is gonna get the first down.
Lost the football at the end.
Never blew it dead, and Western Michigan believes they've got it.
The Broncos with a heads-up play.
Let's see who comes away out of this pile with the football, and we'll see if Underwood was down after the fact.
And it is Western ball.
The ruling on the field is a fumble recovered by the defense.
The Broncos with a huge momentum shift.
And the only question now is just was his knee off the ground when the ball came out?
He was hit good, knocked the ball loose.
KJ Burley's gonna wear the hat, and as they look up top on the jumbotron, here's what they see.
Killick from 33.
He buries it.
Well handled by Milmore.
Second down and 10.
Nine seconds remaining.
Deep drop.
Underwood.
Five seconds left.
Underwood's gonna toss it towards the end zone.
Into the crowd and out of bounds.
Time expires.
It's the attack from the MAC.
Western Michigan sends shock waves across the college football world and pulls off the week one stunner.
They take down the Wolverines 12 to 7.
The previous play is under further review.
Nine seconds to start this play.
You see it tick away.
The throw finally got in the air with three seconds left.
And it's, it's done before anybody- Yeah touches it or it goes, it looks like, out of bounds.
And it's a moot point now.
I still think you had time to, to, to throw a shorter one and then throw to the end zone.
They opted to go for the Hail Mary type play as a one final play, but the ball was thrown out of the back of the end zone anyway.
After review, there is one second remaining in the game.
Third down.
Terry, I would assume that this is based on where they feel like the ball goes out of bounds?
It's, it's the moment So the, the, the defender jumps from out of bounds, so the clock should stop the moment it hits his hands, because he's out of bounds.
He's leapt from out of bounds and touched the football.
As a slot receiver, here he is right here, number six, JJ Buchanan.
Does this have shades of the 2013 Iron Bowl?
Will it be a Bryce Underwood magical moment to throw away the hopes of the Broncos?
On third down.
Deep drop.
Gonna unload it towards the end zone.
Into the crowd.
Buchanan.
It is caught.
JJ Buchanan, touchdown.
A miracle at Michigan Stadium.
That's the end of the game.
