The Morning After: Michigan Football Embarrasses Itself On the Field in More Ways Than One

Passion is one of the driving forces of fandom. That’s especially true in college football, where fandom is more rabid than ever.

Ann Arbor was rocking on Saturday night in anticipation of seeing the Michigan Wolverines take the field for the first time in 2026.

The Wolverine faithful was immediately greeted with a touchdown drive that likely gave the fanbase visions of grandeur. Bryce Underwood looked comfortable. He looked decisive. He looked like a different quarterback than the one who struggled for the majority of his freshman season.

While Western Michigan answered with a field goal of its own, the feeling within the stadium was that the Wolverines were going to continue to move the ball down the field at will to crush an inferior opponent from the MAC.

That was the expectation, and a reasonable one. While coaches say a lot of different things throughout the course of a week for games like this, most of them know the deal.

Not all wins are created equal in college football. There are haves, and have nots that are more exaggerated than in perhaps any other sport.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, the aforementioned passion of the fan bases in college lead to fans doing things that are not allowed in professional sports, for example.

Field/court storming is infinitely more common in the college game than it is in the pros.

When Michigan beat Ohio State to finish the 2021 and 2023 season to clinch a spot in the Big Ten championship game, 110,000 fans stormed the field to celebrate with the team.

The moment was fitting for college sports. Students were on the same field with the heroes they may share classes with.

Furthermore, a win over the school’s biggest rival is the best possible win that could happen in their home stadium at that point in time.

College football did not establish home playoff games until the 2024 season. Michigan’s biggest win possible in Ann Arbor was against Ohio State in 2021 and 2023. They were, in essence, playoff games.

With the way the win in 2021 ended a drought, and the win in 2023 helped emphatically state Michigan’s turning of the tide in the rivalry, storming the field felt more appropriate.

The Difference

That is a stark difference from what took place on the field Saturday night.

Yes, Michigan won Saturday’s game in exhilarating fashion. Regardless of who the opponent is, any game that is decided on the final play is going to have an exciting outcome.

HAIL MARY MIRACLE!

Michigan wins it on the FINAL PLAY OF THE GAME! pic.twitter.com/rSAyXj9azh
— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) September 6, 2026

The excitement level goes up exponentially when that play is as improbable as a hail mary is.

Throw in a little clock controversy like Michigan experienced on Saturday night, and you have the perfect recipe for an unhinged reaction within the crowd.

It makes sense for an emotional reaction to JJ Buchanan’s 46-yard touchdown to pull Michigan into the winner’s circle after they felt destined for a defeat nearly as infamous as 2007’s loss to Appalachian State.

The emotions, however, should not have spilled over onto the field. After Buchanan’s touchdown Michigan’s fanbase did the unthinkable.

They lost control, they lost awareness of the situation. They lost their minds, to be very frank.

“That wasn’t a moment we wanted to be living in to be honest,” edge rusher Dom Nichols said after the game.

Nichols and the rest of his teammates gave similar sentiments to what happened Saturday.

Nichols noted that he felt sick to his stomach after Michigan escaped with a 13-12 win over Western.

Why would he feel that way? Because he knows the deal.

All wins are not created equal in college football. In the pros, there’s no such thing as a “bad” win. Players are paid professionals, and that respect must be given to every opponent.

College is not the same way. Conferences are better than others. They have more resources to get players and coaches.

Michigan should never, under any circumstance, be in a dogfight with a team from the MAC. Michigan touts itself as the winningest program in the history of college football. They are proud members of the Big Ten Conference, in pursuit of national championships.

Their fanbase knows these things. They cite all of Michigan’s records chapter and verse as if they are second nature.

It feels arrogant to say that storming the field for beating a team like Western Michigan is beneath Michigan, but it is.

Michigan’s players knew that.

Their crowd should have too.

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