Michigan Drops Out of AP Poll Top 25 After Controversial Hail Mary Win, WMU Gains Votes

Michigan's controversial victory over Western Michigan on Saturday, after they were given one last second on the clock and another chance at a Hail Mary, wasn't devoid of repercussions.

The Wolverines were ranked No. 16 in the Associated Press' preseason poll but were dropped out of the top 25 entirely in the Week 1 rankings. Western Michigan, meanwhile, picked up 12 votes.

The Wolverines still received 69 votes and remain on the cusp of the top 25.

It appeared that Michigan had suffered a stunning 12-7 loss against Western Michigan, at home, after Bryce Underwood's Hail Mary attempt sailed out of bounds with the stadium and broadcast clock hitting zero. But Big Ten replay officials reviewed the play and determined that WMU safety Micah Davis had jumped from out of bounds and touched the ball before the clock hit zero, giving Michigan one more second—and one last Hail Mary attempt.

This time, Underwood connected with JJ Buchanan on a 47-yard touchdown heave, giving Michigan a 13-12 win and creating some early controversy for the 2026 college football season.

Big Ten officials issued the following statement after the game:

Mid-American Conference officials initially accepted that reasoning and ruling, as did Western Michigan president Russ Kavalhuna.

"It is just a discrepancy," he said in a press conference after the game. "What the viewing public see and what the reviewing officials see are different. I used to be a federal prosecutor. I've looked into this pretty closely, and I don't discern anything unfair or untoward in this process."

But on Monday, the MAC said in a statement that the replay protocols were incorrectly applied and the conference formally appealed the result, hoping to overturn Michigan's controversial win:

AP voters, meanwhile, already issued their own ruling on the matter, dropping Michigan out of the top 25 entirely.

As for the rest of the poll, Ohio State remained the No. 1 team, while Georgia moved up one spot to No. 2, Notre Dame moved up a spot to No. 3, Texas moved up one spot to No. 4 and Indiana moved up one spot to No. 5.

Oregon, following a close call against Boise State, dropped four spots to No. 6. LSU moved up three spots to No. 8 following its blowout of Clemson, while Virginia moved up 21 spots to No. 25 despite having a bye week (the Cavaliers did beat NC State 34-8 on Aug. 29, however).