Why did Michigan-WMU refs use a game clock no one else could see for their pivotal review?

Fox rules expert Mike Pereira says replay officials are advised to use the clock television viewers see when trying to determine whether time should be added back after what was seemingly a game-ending play.

Had Big Ten replay officials done that Saturday night during Michigan’s game against Western Michigan, the Wolverines would not have gotten another second to beat the Broncos with a Hail Mary.

“It is my understanding that if there is a discrepancy between the video and replay command center vs. the television network video that everybody sees, that replay is to use the TV video,” Fox Sports rules analyst Mike Pereira told The Athletic Sunday. “And that is the same protocol in the NFL, in the UFL. It’s the same. You use the footage that everybody sees if there is a discrepancy.”

That is not, however, spelled out in the NCAA’s Instant Replay Case Book. There is no reference to which clock to defer to if there is a discrepancy.

Within the Timing section of the Instant Replay Case Book, there are references directing officials to use “… the game clock superimposed on the replay monitor …”

At the heart of the issue that caused one of the wildest and most controversial endings maybe in the history of college football, was a discrepancy of fractions of a second.

The clock viewers could see on NBC’s broadcast as Michigan’s first Hail Mary attempt sailed beyond the back of the end zone and touched a Western Michigan defender clearly hit 0:00. NBC brushed over its involvement during halftime of Sunday’s Washington-Washington State broadcast, with host John Fanta mentioning the clock shown on the television screen is not the official game clock. Game officials are responsible for tracking the official clock with the conference of the home team.

The in-stadium clock replay officials had a camera trained on and were using to make the call had a second left when they determined the WMU defender touched the ball and ended the play.

Western Michigan president Russ Kavalhuna said during a Sunday news conference with Broncos coach Lance Taylor that Big Ten officials explained the two clocks were slightly out of sync, with the TV clock running a few tenths of a second fast.

The Big Ten released video and audio of the replay officials’ deliberations about two hours after Michigan’s miraculous touchdown thwarted what would have been a stunning upset by WMU — and a humiliating loss for the Wolverines.

The replay official videos, from an angle that was not shown during the broadcast, appeared to back up the decision that a WMU defender — after he stepped out of bounds — touched the ball when there was a second left on the stadium clock.

On the next play, Bryce Underwood hit JJ Buchanan with a stunning 47-yard touchdown pass.

Kavalhuna and Taylor were magnanimous, accepting the explanation despite the obvious disappointment.

“I’ve looked into this pretty closely … I don’t discern anything unfair or untoward in this process,” said Kavalhuna, who noted that he is a former federal prosecutor.

“Ultimately, the refs did not cost (us) this game,” Taylor said.

Pereira explained that deferring to what the public can see on television helps remove the perception that calls could be changed based on video that only officials see.