Stephen A. Smith, Paul Finebaum question if Big Ten demanded silence from WMU to receive payment

One of the most controversial endings in the history of college football came in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on Saturday night, when the Michigan Wolverines hosted the Western Michigan Broncos. The Wolverines lost 12-7 at the end of regulation after Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood's Hail Mary attempt soared out the back of the end zone as the clock hit triple zeroes. However, the Broncos' celebration was halted by game officials for video review, which determined that one second remained when the ball was touched out of bounds, giving Michigan one last chance to convert on a Hail Mary. That's just what the Wolverines did, with Underwood connecting with JJ Buchanan for a touchdown, winning the game 13-12 for Michigan. It didn't take long for the Wolverines' victory to prompt widespread outrage, forcing the Big Ten to release a statement, including the official video review; NBC to pin responsibility for keeping the game clock on the Big Ten; and even Western Michigan head coach Lance Taylor and president Russ Kavalhuna to address things on CNN. Kavalhuna confirmed that, at his request, the Big Ten showed him the video it used in the ruling that showed "a second left on the clock." However, on Monday, two of ESPN's biggest stars, Paul Finebaum and Stephen A. Smith, questioned whether the Big Ten used its deep pockets to coax the public concession from Kavalhuna. "I'm not buying it one bit. It's absolutely ridiculous that they came to that conclusion," Smith said on Monday's episode of First Take. "And then to hear Big Ten officials explaining it, I'm like, 'Wait a minute, what's in Michigan? Who do they have supporting them?' I think we need to find out how much Western Michigan got paid; I mean, Michigan paid them. They got some money off this game or whatever. Western Michigan certainly benefited financially. I'm assuming that's the case; I do not know. "The reason I'm bringing that up is because they should have raised holy hell in the aftermath of this outcome and they didn't do so. They came across to me from the coach to the president and beyond, as a university that was concerned that if they made too much noise it would be a big bad reflection on Michigan and they would pay a price." Finebaum quickly supported the notion that financial incentives from the Big Ten may have played a role in Western Michigan's response. "What Stephen A. said is really the most interesting aspect of this, because I'm guessing, and we'll double-check on this, that they were paid about $2 million," Finebaum said. "That's normally somewhere between a million and a half and two. And that's a big deal for a MAC school. And they probably had to agree afterward for some deal, you cannot go out there and criticize us or you'll leave here penniless. And that's the tragedy of this situation because everyone saw it." Michigan reportedly paid Western Michigan $1.5 million as part of the game contract. Although Western Michigan was going to receive its compensation for the game regardless of the result, both Smith and Finebaum made it clear they didn't feel the right team "won" on Saturday night. "Stephen A. is correct: Michigan lost this game," Finebaum said. "If you reverse the teams, Michigan wins. It's just the way it goes. This is an absolute screwing of a second-tier, in terms of conference, team. They're not a second-tier team; they were better than Michigan on Saturday night. And it really is a shame. I'm not going to get carried away and compare it to a tragedy, because we have real tragedies going on in the world right now, but in the parlance of college football it's absolutely unnecessary." "There's no question this outcome should have been 12-7," Smith concluded. "It shouldn't have happened. It's definitely an egregious mistake on the part of the officials or whoever is responsible for it. I'm not buying it one bit. I know what the hell I saw. Michigan lost this da*n game. It's a shame that the outcome was the outcome." The post Stephen A. Smith, Paul Finebaum question if Big Ten demanded silence from WMU to receive payment appeared first on Awful Announcing.