Jason Whitlock has long said he is a Michigan fan. That support did not keep him quiet after the Wolverines beat Western Michigan 13-12 on September 5. Whitlock reacted with anger after Michigan escaped from what would have been a historic and embarrassing loss.

“This is one of the biggest crimes in sports history. Absolutely criminal what we just watched. That’s the biggest crime in the history of sports. No way Michigan should be allowed to keep this victory,” Whitlock said in his reaction after the game. “The Big Ten, someone in the NCAA, Donald Trump, somebody needs to strip Michigan of this victory that they just stole from Western Michigan. I’m a Michigan fan, but that is criminal what we just watched.”

Western Michigan led 12-7 late in the 4th quarter. With nine seconds left on the clock, Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood’s first Hail Mary sailed out the back of the end zone. The NBC clock and many viewers saw 0:00 with the ball still in the air.

Officials then reviewed the play and put one second back on the clock. Underwood threw another Hail Mary. Utah transfer JJ Buchanan caught it for the winning touchdown, sealing a 13-12 win.

Replay officials focused on Western Michigan safety Micah Davis, who wears No. 18. They said Davis started his jump with his left foot already out of bounds. They ruled that he touched the ball while one second was still showing on the official stadium clock. NCAA Rule 4-2-3-a says contact by an out-of-bounds player makes the ball dead and stops the clock. That is why officials gave Michigan the extra snap.

Western Michigan and the MAC did contact the Big Ten office after the game. They asked for clarification on the replay and the extra second. The Big Ten responded with a written explanation, along with the video and audio of the review. That material matched what the conference had already told the MAC.

The Big Ten later released the replay video and audio. The video showed a side-by-side of the play and a camera locked on the stadium clock. The conference also said that all replay cameras, including the clock camera, were synced to the strobe 85 minutes before kickoff. The Big Ten says the official clock still had time. Broadcast pictures looked like zero. 

The MAC accepted the explanation. The score stays Michigan 13, Western Michigan 12. Whitlock then replied to the MAC’s official statement in a tweet. 

“You could tell last night when Western Michigan coach Lance Taylor calmly accepted the crime that the MAC had told him we get these Big Ten game checks to accept these losses,” Whitlock tweeted. “I watched his postgame presser in awe. It’s all a criminal conspiracy.”

Western Michigan coach Lance Taylor did not blame the officials in public. He focused on how his team could have done a better job with the last two players.

“I thought the crew tonight did a really nice job handling multiple close calls and review situations… I’ll let our commissioner and those guys handle it. At the end of the day, you don’t always control those situations,” Taylor said. 

The problem with Whitlock’s demand is the rulebook. NCAA football does not allow a late complaint or public anger to change the official result once the referee has ended the game.

In this case, the review happened while the game was still going, before the referee called it over, and the extra play was part of the live contest. That is why the 13-12 score stands.

History backs that up. In 2015, Miami-Duke, the ACC listed four errors and sat the crew two games, but the score did not change. In 2016, Central Michigan-Oklahoma State, the conference admitted a rule mistake but left the result alone. 

What the TV clock showed and what the stadium clock showed remain two different pictures. That difference is what Whitlock and many others still cannot accept.