Most controversial finishes in college football history: Revisiting wild endings on heels of Michigan-WMU

It doesn't matter how much technology we have, how many cameras are on site, or how many refs are in the mix on the field or in command centers. At some point in time, errors compound and chaos reigns in college football.

No. 16 Michigan's incredible 13-12 victory Saturday over Western Michigan to start the 2026 season is just the latest in a long list of controversial endings in college football.

Here's a few of college football's most famous (or infamous) game-ending controversies — depending on which side of the result you're on.

The OG in the game of college football administrative malfeasance happened in 1990 when Colorado beat Missouri 33-31. The Buffs were awarded five downs (you will note four is the maximum according to the rules) and won the game as time expired on a down that obviously should never have happened.

Frankly, there's some discrepancy about whether Colorado QB Charles Johnson even scored on the down he never should have had, but you can add that to the list of stuff that went wrong on the play. As with many college football controversies in the past there's also this fun anecdote: it should be noted that the…

Original source: https://www.cbssports.com/