Northwestern’s plan from the start of a last-ditch drive Saturday was to go for a touchdown and then gamble for the win with a two-point conversion.
But the final piece — the potential winning points — failed when quarterback Trevor Siemian sprinted back from the line on a snap and slipped on the Ryan Field turf with three seconds left as Michigan preserved a 10-9 victory.
“Throughout the second half we said we were going to score,” said Siemian, who led Northwestern on a 14-play, 74-yard drive with a 3-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Tony Jones. “I thought (the conversion) was the right call, everybody was pumped up about it.”
A fourth straight loss left the Wildcats (3-6, 2-4 Big Ten) with increasingly slim postseason bowl hopes heading into next Saturday’s clash at Notre Dame.
Michigan (5-5, 3-3) has won three of its last four and needs to take one of its last two to become bowl eligible.
The Wolverines picked off Siemian twice, sacked him and backup Matt Alviti a collective five times and held freshman running back Justin Jackson to 35 yards on 17 carries.
But with Michigan containing the run, Siemian picked up the slack by going 32 of 49 for 273 yards, with 45 passing yards on the final drive.
While limited, Jackson still had key runs in the final surge while a critical pass interference play on a ball intended for wide receiver Cameron Dickerson put Northwestern at Michigan’s 7 with 48 seconds to play.
After two rushes, Siemian hit Jones in the corner of the end zone to climb to within a point and set the stage for the two-point attempt.
“We didn’t score a lot of points so I felt like I’d take a one-play opportunity,” Fitzgerald said. “Three yards, one play to try to win. Being aggressive.”
Siemian had a couple of options.
“If the guy was open in the flat we were going to give it to him or if there was a guy coming to the weak side,” Fitzgerald said. “(But then) Siemian was sprinting to his right and it looked like he lost his footing.”
Northwestern’s defense held Michigan to 54 yards in a listless first half.
The Wolverines ended nearly 39 minutes of shutout football with De’Veon Smith’s 3-yard touchdown run with 6:49 remaining in the third quarter.
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The Wildcats then had an opportunity one possession later as safety Ibraheim Campbell, playing his first game since Sept. 27, returned a Devin Gardner interception 79 yards to the 15.
But Northwestern failed to capitalize and punted after an intentional grounding pushed them back near midfield.
NU got on the scoreboard on Jack Mitchell’s 21-yard field goal with 7:26 left. Earlier, he missed a chance to take the lead when a 36-yard try went wide.
Michigan kicker Matt Wile hit a 37-yard field goal with 3:10 to play for a 10-3 lead.