Sports
Kalamazoo Rallies Behind Broncos After NCAA Denies Appeal Over Controversial WMU-Michigan Finish
By Abigail Taylor | News Channel 3
KALAMAZOO, Mich. — A banner reading “12-7” now hangs above the entrance of Waldo’s Tavern, located across from Western Michigan University’s Waldo Stadium. According to Western Michigan fans, that score reflects what they believe should have been the final result of Saturday’s game against the University of Michigan, following a disputed review of the game’s last play.
Eric Bowler, general manager of Waldo’s Tavern, said he had the banner printed at a local Walgreens the morning after the game. “This just encapsulated perfectly the mood of what’s going on in Kalamazoo right now,” Bowler told News Channel 3. He said the banner will remain on display for at least a few weeks and might reappear during hockey season when the Broncos face the Wolverines on the ice.
On Tuesday, the NCAA announced it could not change the outcome of the contested game, even though the Mid-American Conference (MAC) had formally appealed the result. The NCAA stated that its playing rules do not allow a final score to be altered once a game has concluded. The organization did not address whether the MAC’s claim about a clock error was accurate.
Despite the ruling, the sentiment among Western Michigan fans in Kalamazoo remains unchanged. “We bleed brown and gold,” Bowler said, joking that he hopes no one attempts to take the banner as a souvenir.
The local reaction has extended beyond the tavern. WMU Bronco Barnyard, an online retailer that sells Western Michigan merchandise to fans across the country, quickly released new shirt designs referencing the outcome. According to co-founder Michael Lindauer, two designs have become especially popular: one printed with “12-7,” representing what fans believe should have been the final score, and another reading “60:01,” referencing the extra second added to the clock just before Michigan’s game-winning Hail Mary touchdown.
“Those two have been flying off the shelves, or flying out of the internet, in a sense,” Lindauer said.
Despite the fan reaction, the official score remains 13-12 in favor of Michigan, according to the NCAA, and the Wolverines will be recorded as the winners in the rankings.
For Western Michigan students and fans, however, the controversy has become a rallying point. “I was thinking that this was going to be the greatest football game of my life,” WMU student Mason DeJonge told News Channel 3. “And I mean, that’s true. But it’s for the wrong reason now.”
DeJonge added that the widespread attention has offered a sense of validation. “It makes me feel seen,” he said. “It’s an exciting time for Western and Western sports.”
Across campus and throughout Kalamazoo, many Broncos supporters say they believe the moment could serve as a turning point for the football program moving forward. “I think this can only unite us and bring us together and get us behind the Bronco football team for the rest of the year,” Bowler said.