The Michigan Review

Gridders: Reality Check

by Rob Wood

Just when you thought it was safe to go into a season of Michigan football hoping for the best… you get the more traditional U-M season. All of you freshmen and sophomores have finally experienced a Michigan loss in your tenure as official Wolverines. Take it from someone who has been here a while: it will happen again. Maybe not this weekend or the next, but even the most enthusiastic among you must admit that perfection doesn’t come along too often here in Ann Arbor. You may have heard blasphemies about 8-4 seasons and even the nasty rumor that it had been about fifty years since our immaculate Maize-and-Blue warriors won their last national title. While all that was magically dispelled last year with twelve striking displays of perfection, the inevitable can only be delayed for so long. In other words, you can’t win ’em all. In a few weeks, you will begin to understand this more personally — midterms, anyone?

To be fair, it was more than just a poor performance on a few key plays that lost the game at Notre Dame on September 5th. While fumbles, incompletions and missed field goals made U-M’s offense ineffective, it took more than that to put the final nails in Michigan’s coffin.

The Fighting Irish came to the game in force, quite literally. While the first half was dominated by Michigan, the second half was all ND. The Irish played the option, of course, with Jarious Jackson running for 62 yards and passing for 96 more, but it was Notre Dame’s power and physical domination of the line of scrimmage in the second half that put the Maize-and-Blue out of the game.

This past weekend’s debacle with Syracuse showed that Michigan’s defense absolutely cannot handle an option attack. Donovan McNabb made the defenders look like the slow kids on the playground in a game of keep-away.

The last few minutes of the game provided Wolverine fans with a glimmer of hope, as freshman quarterback sensation Drew Henson took command of the offense and put the team in the end zone three times in the game’s final seven minutes. While not a certainty, it is quite possible that he will start against Eastern Michigan this weekend.

Even though the Eastern Michigan game will be a fun regional clash to see (both teams’ fans in one immense stadium will be quite interesting), it probably will not seriously threaten Michigan’s record. A bigger school generally means bigger players, and it just doesn’t look like EMU will be able to dismantle Michigan’s offensive and defensive lines.

Michigan State always jumps into interstate-rival mode as it plays Michigan, but the fact remains: when the Spartans beat Michigan, it is the high point of their year; when the Maize-and-Blue dump MSU, it is just another day at the office. Still, it is a fun game to watch. Things got a bit more cheery for Michigan State last weekend in Lansing, as they put Notre Dame back in its place with a dominating offensive attack and a big-play defense. If the Spartans keep up this level of play and Michigan does not grow some heart soon, things could get messy when the Spartans come to town.

Iowa has had its up week and its down week, thus far. Because of the ineptitude the Wolverines have shown on the field, however, Iowa just might have the weaponry to overwhelm U-M this year.

Indiana and Minnesota have not been much more than speed bumps over the past decade or so. If they prove to be anything more this year, it will be a surprise.

Both Penn State and Wisconsin have the capability to thrash Michigan, if current trends continue. Just do not bet on that to happen. The last time the Wolverines started 0-2, it was 1988 and Bo Schembechler was at the helm of the ship. Michigan went on to finish the rest of its games unbeaten, at 9-2-1 on the season. There is still hope that the Wolverines can get their game together for a run at a decent finish to this season, and even another Big Ten championship.

While the November 21 game at Columbus will continue the legendary series between Michigan and Ohio State, a prediction on the game is almost always in vain. That is the one game of the year by which both teams live and die, and calling the outcome is like trying to predict the next Heisman Trophy winner. Was it not supposed to be Peyton Manning last year? Those poor Knoxville faithful... (heh heh)

For the first time in a long time, Michigan will be playing a regular season game after the Ohio State game. It is supposed to be a vacation game, of sorts. They will be traveling to Hawaii (must be nice, eh?) to face the Rainbow Warriors. Michigan had better not take this game lightly, however. Notre Dame tried to take this kind of vacation, last season, and just barely slid by U of H.

All in all, things do not look promising for Michigan football so far this season. If they fail to turn around soon, the 8-4 seasons of the recent past might even begin to look desirable. It will take heart, conditioning, and a stable, consistent field-commander at quarterback to help the Maize-and-Blue rebound from their worst start in a decade, but if last season taught U of M anything, it is that miracles do happen. MR

This article was published in the 16 September 1998 edition of The Michigan Review (Volume 17, Number 1).
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