Western Michigan had no choice but to accept Michigan's bogus Hail Mary

The Western Michigan Broncos nearly pulled off the upset of the season on Saturday night, as they held a late lead over the No. 16-ranked Michigan Wolverines at The Big House. Thanks to four field goals from WMU kicker Dieter Kelly — whose golden leg would've had a statue built of it in Kalamazoo had the Broncos held on — all Western had to do was keep Bryce Underwood and the Wolverines from completing a last-second Hail Mary to secure victory.

And that they did, at least upon first look (and second, and third). The game went final, with triple zeros on the clock, as the Western Michigan Broncos celebrated the biggest victory in program history. Even Underwood, dejected as ever, was walking off the field next to Kyle Whittingham in the duo's first career game together. The Big Ten had other plans, gifting Michigan another second, which Underwood took advantage of.

Big Ten's explanation for call in Michigan's favor won't cut it with fans

The Big Ten's explanation of the call — which came via replay review with Big Ten referees at the helm — is actually pretty simple. Apparently, the time kept on the field didn't match the game clock, which was linked to the television broadcast. As a result, a Western Michigan player who was standing out of bounds made contact with the ball with a second remaining, hence why Underwood had one more chance to avoid the wrong kind of Michigan history.

What the Big Ten is essentially asking is to take their word for it, which is rich coming from a conference that had a lot to benefit from Michigan winning, and a lot to lose if the Wolverines were defeated before conference play even began. The Big Ten-SEC war for the College Football Playoff is as evident as ever, with the future of the tournament up for grabs. Expansion, both in the form of larger conferences and perhaps a postseason spin-off, could very well determine the future of the sport. The Big Ten loses ground in that arms race should Michigan lose in embarrassing fashion against a non-Big Ten team, let alone a MAC team.

Get it now? Again, I'm not here to spin conspiracy theories. Perhaps there was more evidence than initially meets the eye. But what I do know is that WMU and the MAC sure aren't about to make a big deal about it. Money talks.

Why Western Michigan and the MAC will accept their loss to Michigan

On Sunday morning, the MAC issued a statement saying they have accepted the Big Ten's explanation of events. That won't appease fans hoping Western Michigan would sue those responsible in a literal court of law, but it's the far simpler and, frankly, realistic explanation. There are more Michigan alum in the court system than Western Michigan alum, especially in the state of Michigan. A ruling would never go their way.

And, perhaps most importantly, teams like Western Michigan — and really the conference as a whole — rely on handouts from teams like Michigan, which prefer an easy win to start the season than a heavyweight, ranked matchup against a fellow top-25 team. Every now and then, we get moments like these, but by and large the Michigan's of the world cover the spread against the underdog Broncos. There's a reason the Wolverines by favored by more than 25 points.

Michigan paid Western Michigan an estimated $1.5 million to play this game. Making a stink about how it ended could cost the Broncos future Power-4 opponents, and thus future paydays the athletic department desperately needs to break even. It really is as simple as that.

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