The Gophers’ odds of winning the Little Brown Jug game Saturday were left to a very small percentage chance of recovering an onside kick attempt at Michigan Stadium.

Trailing Michigan 27-24 with 1:37 remaining, Minnesota pulled off the improbable — until an offside penalty was called on U special-teams player Matt Kingsbury.

Whether Kingsbury was across the 35-yard line or not appeared to be a razor-thin distance based on TV replays, and that high-stakes call is given to one of the eight officials who rarely makes decisions from a position straddling a line during games.

College football mechanics have the umpire move from their regular spot behind linebackers on the defensive side of the ball during scrimmage plays to a spot on the kicking team’s restraining line during onside kicks. On Saturday, umpire Keith Vaverchak threw that game-altering flag.

On onside kicks, the linesman and line judge — who, as their names suggest, straddle the line on all scrimmage plays — align on the receiving team’s restraining line, not the kicking team’s restraining line. They would be best suited to determine if a player is offside because they look for it on every snap across more than 100 scrimmage plays per game.

This finer point might be considered too deep in the weeds for some, but a lot was riding on the decision in a close Big Ten Conference game.

While the Gophers still would have needed to score a touchdown to pull off an in-regulation road upset of the Wolverines, the penalty could have a lingering affect on whether the Gophers (2-3, 0-2 Big Ten) reach bowl eligibility come November. If the flag wasn’t thrown and the U comeback was completed, the outcome could have significantly damaged the chances No. 10 Michigan (4-1, 2-0) can reach the College Football Playoff in December.

Gophers coach P.J. Fleck said he had a conversation with Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti and officials. “We know they are reviewing it and we expect to hear something (Monday) afternoon,” Fleck said during his Monday morning news conference.

Fleck told the Pioneer Press later Monday morning that he won’t be a “BCD.”

“I’m never going to blame, complain or deflect,” Fleck said. “Never. There is ABCD. BCD are not very good. ‘A’ is about accountability. All I can control is the accountability that I have as a head coach to make my football team better, so it doesn’t come down to one play.”

But a decision from the official who wears a “U” on his shirt had an outsized impact on one (pretty important) play.

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