Purdue's Barry Odom Expresses Confidence in Big Ten Despite Debacle in Ann Arbor
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Twenty-four years ago, Coldplay released a song that might have perfectly summed up the conclusion to Saturday night's game between Western Michigan and Michigan in Ann Arbor.
The lyrics read, "Confusion that never stops, closing walls and ticking clocks." Replace "ticking" with the word "secret," and it would aptly describe the way the Big Ten bailed out Michigan from suffering the second-most embarrassing loss in program history.
For anyone who missed it, Western Michigan appeared to pull off a 12-7 upset of No. 16 Michigan in Ann Arbor. A pass from quarterback Bryce Underwood sailed out of bounds as time expired. However, officials reviewed the play and decided to put one second back on the clock. Underwood connected with receiver JJ Buchanan for a 47-yard touchdown, lifting the Wolverines to a 13-12 victory.
The Big Ten released a statement defending the decision to put one second back on the clock, saying that it has an "official" clock that is not available to fans.
Is that something every coach knew about before the 2026 season kicked off?
"I didn't until Saturday night," Purdue head coach Barry Odom said when asked if he knew about this mysterious "secret" clock during his Week 2 press conference.
That seems like a pretty big issue for the conference, failing to communicate that the scoreboard clock inside Ross-Ade Stadium — or any Big Ten venue — is the official game clock.
Despite Saturday night's debacle in Ann Arbor, Odom expressed nothing but confidence in the Big Ten.
"I do know that we've got the best leadership in college football in the Big Ten Conference. You look at all the moving parts of what it takes to orchestrate a game, and those people in those positions have to take all the information that they have, use that, and then communicate it.
"With the slow-motion, every angle of camera available that there is now, certainly they'll get it right."
Odom said something similar happened Friday night
As Purdue exited the field for halftime in its season opener against Indiana State, Odom said he experienced something similar to the situation in Ann Arbor. It wasn't of the same magnitude, but officials reviewed the clock to ensure no time remained after Jacobo Echeverria Lozano made a field goal to close out the half.
"We were exiting the field for halftime, and the official stopped me and told me ... they gotta make sure everything lined up the way that it did," Odom said. "It's never over until it's over, until the whistle blows."
Obviously, Odom wasn't in Ann Arbor on Saturday. He can't really speak to what happened, but he does believe that it's the official's job to communicate the situation to coaches on the sidelines.
That may be the case, but it certainly doesn't make Western Michigan feel any better, losing a game on the last second of a game that lasted 60:01.
"I do believe that those who are charged with orchestrating, administering and officiating a game have to make decisions based on all the information that they get," Odom said. "Then, it's their job to communicate that to us. I would assume that's what happened in Ann Arbor."
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Dustin Schutte is the publisher of Purdue Boilermakers on SI and has spent more than a decade working in sports journalism. His career began in 2013, when he covered Big Ten football. He remained in that role for eight years before working at On SI to cover the Boilermakers. Dustin graduated from Manchester University in Indiana in 2010, where he played for the men's tennis team.
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