{
  "id": 6042410,
  "title": "Western Michigan Officials Refuse to Blame Refs, Big Ten for Last-Second Loss",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/06/western-michigan-officials-refuse-to-blame-refs-big-ten-for-last",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-06T21:20:31.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Front Office Sports",
    "slug": "front-office-sports",
    "url": "https://frontofficesports.com/article/western-michigan-officials-refuse-blame-refs-big-ten-last-second-loss/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The Western Michigan Broncos suffered a last-second defeat to Michigan State on Saturday night in Ann Arbor, Michigan, after a controversial review added an extra second to the clock, granting the Wolverines a Hail Mary touchdown to clinch the 13-12 triumph. In response, WMU President Russ Kavalhuna and head coach Lance Taylor addressed the issue at a press conference the following day. Despite the contentious nature of the situation, Kavalhuna and Taylor maintained a diplomatic stance, acknowledging the need to move forward. They expressed respect for both the officiating crew and the Big Ten Conference leadership, emphasizing that their team's performance and season were not to be defined by a single play. The WMU officials had reached out to the MAC commissioner Jon Steinbrecher and Big Ten commissioner Tony Pettiti to explore potential appeals, but ultimately found no avenues for recourse. Both conferences subsequently released statements, with the Big Ten providing video evidence of a WMU player contacting the ball with one second left on the clock. Taylor plans to meet with his team to discuss the game and prepare for the remainder of the season, acknowledging that there were previous clock management issues that could be improved upon. The incident has sparked a debate among sports media personalities regarding the implementation of live-replay reviews in college football games, with some advocating for stricter rules similar to the NFL's instant-replay system.",
  "summary": "\"Don't feel sorry for us,\" said head coach Lance Taylor.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}