Even two weeks after Michigan’s controversial win over Western Michigan, the controversy over the ending isn’t dying down. The Wolverines hoped that their win over Oklahoma would have changed the narrative, but for a lot of college football fans, the Week 1 result is still not sitting right with them. Now, a former Heisman winner has joined in on the calls to change the result of the game.

“If the proper protocols for replay weren’t followed, then the FBS Oversight Committee should overturn the result of the game and make Western Michigan the winner of the game against Michigan,” Robert Griffin III’s X post read. “Period. End of Story. Saying “hey, they got it wrong, but we won’t fix it” only makes it worse and is a slap in the face to the fans of football everywhere.

On the final Michigan drive as they trailed 7-12, Bryce Underwood attempted a Hail Mary throw. However, before any player touched the pass, the broadcast clock hit zero. The Broncos started celebrating, but they had to cut it short after the Big Ten replay officials added one second to the clock. Michigan got another chance, and this time, Underwood connected with JJ Buchanan to seal the game.

In the immediate aftermath of the game, the Big Ten issues an official statement explaining what happened in the replay and how the referees arrived at their decision. Initially, Western Michigan head coach Lance Taylor didn’t make a big issue of it and instead focused on his team’s inability to defend on the last play. Even the MAC accepted the ruling.

But two days after the game, the MAC appealed the decision. The NCAA denied the appeal, with the FBS Oversight Committee saying that it can’t change the final score of the game. In its statement, the Oversight Committee also admitted that the Big Ten officials didn’t follow the proper replay protocols.

Griffin believes the officials’ failure to correct their own mistake and revisit the final play does not set the right standards for the sport. The Broncos entered the season as the MAC’s preseason favorite, with a chance to earn the conference’s playoff bid, and a win against the Wolverines would have strengthened their case.

The MAC appealed to the CFP after the NCAA declined to change the result despite acknowledging that Western Michigan should have won. The Wolverines won the season opener, where one second was added to the clock after Michigan’s Hail Mary attempt, which gave Michigan another play to win the game.

“Had the prescribed protocol been followed and the program-feed clock been used, no additional time would have been restored, no additional play would have been awarded, and Western Michigan would have won the game 12–7,” MAC Commissioner Jon Steinbrecher wrote in a letter to the CFP committee.

The committee gave the same response as the NCAA, clarifying that it doesn’t have any legal authority to change the outcome, as reported by Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger on September 18.

In addition, the CFP responded that the committee will not judge Michigan or Western Michigan based on this game alone. Instead, the committee will evaluate it “alongside every other game on both teams’ schedules,” the difficulty of the schedule, and also the overall strength of the record.

There is no precedent in college football of game results getting changed due to an officiating error. In 2016, officials incorrectly gave Central Michigan an untimed down against Oklahoma State after an intentional grounding penalty. Central Michigan scored a Hail Mary touchdown to win the game. Afterward, both the Big 12 and the MAC accepted the error. However, the NCAA didn’t change the result.

Similarly, Miami won a 2015 game against Duke on an 8-lateral kickoff return. The officials didn’t call multiple errors on the play, including illegal blocks and a knee-down. The ACC suspended the entire crew, but the result stood.

This scenario is different from the NCAA vacating wins for major infractions. Those wins are not given to the opponents. But if you are Western Michigan, the whole thing should leave a bitter taste. Mere acknowledgment of the error will not give any joy to Western Michigan. Moreover, if they miss out on the playoffs due to this result, this controversy will get reignited in December.