Field Hockey Wins the Big Ten

Although you may not be able to tell from our blog, Michigan does compete in more than just football. Here's a shout out to the University of Michigan field hockey, who clinched the regular season Big Ten title with their 3-2 victory over Northwestern Sunday. Their season began on a low note, as they began 2-4, with all the losses coming against top 5 teams, including an overtime loss at #1 Maryland. Since then Michigan has reeled off 11 straight victories and has climber to #4 in the country. The team heads to California this weekend to finish out the regular season with matches against California and Stanford, before returning to the Midwest to compete in the Big Ten tournament in Columbus November 1-4.

Completely Unrelated Random Fact of the Week: Virginia Tech won the Under Armour College Bass National Championship. First, the Virginia Tech team only found out that college bass fishing existed six months ago. Second, college bass fishing exists, and it's sponsored by Under Armour. Really.

#25 Michigan 27 Illinois 17

Michigan comes out of Champaign with a huge 27-17 victory over the Fighting Illini. Michigan came over key injuries that kept Mike Hart out and caused Chad Henne to miss time during the game. The Wolverines turned the ball over three times coming away with just one takeaway of their own in the fourth quarter on a muffed punt.

Carlos Brown had a great game, rushing for over 100 yards in his first career start. Mario Manningham also came up with some big catches and turned in his third consecutive 100-yard game. It was another crazy Saturday of college football that should have Michigan shooting up the poll.

We'll have another post further recapping the Michigan win after the press conference on Monday. Thank you to anyone who listened to us on our second WCBN road broadcast. Tune into wcbn.org or 88.3 FM in Ann Arbor to hear us break down the win on Extra Points. We'll also have a photo gallery on the way with pictures we took down on the sideline at the end of the game. Until then, goodnight and GO BLUE!

Michigan 17 Illinois 17 going into the fourth quarter

From Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois:

Michigan and Illinois are all knotted up at 17 as we go into the fourth quarter. Henne has been in and out of the game with injuries but has been effective while playing, going 11-16 for 159 yards thus far. Carlos Brown has stepped up in the running back position with 97 yards on 20 carries. Michigan has been its own worst enemy, committing three turnovers while not taking away any from the Illini. The same can be said for Illinois who have been flagged for three personal foul penalties in key situations. One roughing the punter, one late hit out of bounds, and one 15-yard face mask that all kept Michigan drives alive.

Andrew and I are headed down to the field, so hopefully the Wolverines can pull this one out!

Tonight's Broadcast

For those wanting to hear tonight's broadcast live from Memorial Stadium in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, here is the link: www.wcbn.org/listen.html, then hit sports stream.

The game kicks off at 8 PM EDT, so tune in around that time to listen live.

Broadcast Highlights

For those of you who listen to our games and want to hear the highlights or for those who wonder how good a student's call of a football game can be, here is a link to the site on which we post the highlights of every call that we make: http://umgoblue.com/absolutenm/templates/?a=425&z=1

Check it out some time.

First Road Test: Michigan at Illinois Preview

Michigan will enter tomorrow’s game at Illinois coming off its most impressive performance of the season in last week’s 48-21 victory over Purdue. The Wolverines looked like the team they were expected to be at the start of the season. With the victory, big Blue re-entered the top 25 at #24 in the AP poll for the first time since their preseason ranking of #5 before losing to Appalachian State. Illinois is experiencing the opposite. After reaching a ranking of #18 after back-to-back upset victories over Penn State and Wisconsin, Illinois was upset by Iowa 10-6 last week sending them out of the top 25. Still the Illini have surprised Big Ten country this season and have an offense that provides a real threat to the Wolverines.

Illinois Offense vs. Michigan Defense:

The big story coming into the game has to be Illinois’ spread offense with a mobile quarterback. Quarterback Isiah (Juice) Williams, has passed for 716 yards while rushing for 319 for the year. In the two losses for Michigan this year, both Appalachian State and Oregon had similar mobile quarterbacks. Michigan has yet to prove that they can stop a guy at the helm such as Juice Williams. In addition, the Illinois offense has been led by running back Rashard Mendenhall who is 3^rd in the country in yards per carry averaging 6.5 ypc. He has run for 839 yards and 10 TDs so far this year and has some considering him as a Heisman candidate. Together, Illinois is leading the Big Ten and is eighth in the country in rushing with 243.4 yards per game. On the outside, Juice Williams can look deep to wide receiver Arrelious Benn who is a threat to score anytime he touches the ball. In addition to being the leading receiver on the team with 424 yards on the year, Benn has also rushed 23 times for 134 yards and has returned a kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown. This offense certainly has plenty of weapons to hurt the Wolverines and behind a veteran offensive line led by Senior LG Martin O’Donnell, this will be the biggest test for the Wolverines since the Oregon game.

Michigan’s defense, however, has rebounded since the first two games. The front seven led by sophomore end Brandon Graham and linebacker/defensive end (and Butkus Award semifinalist) Shawn Crable has done a great job getting pressure on the quarterbacks and stuffing the run. The secondary also has stepped up with junior #1 cornerback Morgan Trent surprising many with his improved performance this season. The defensive played arguably their best game of the season last week against a high-powered Purdue passing game, with the first-team defense limiting the Boilermakers to just 7 points before they scored two touchdowns in the final two minutes against the Wolverine reserves. However, during this five game winning streak in which the defense has shown improvement, Michigan has not faced a mobile quarterback such as Juice Williams. In the last decade Michigan has had trouble stopping an offense led by an athletic quarterback and this will be a true test to see if the Wolverines defense has learned to keep contain on such a player. The key to the Wolverines defense is to, first and foremost, slow down the running game with Rashard Mendenhall and limit the big plays on the ground. When Williams drops back to pass, the defensive line needs to apply pressure on the outside and the linebackers must keep contain to limit Williams’ gains to manageable amounts without letting him get into the secondary. Still, since the Wolverines have not proven they know how to handle a mobile quarterback, the advantage has to go to the high-powered Illini attack.

Advantage: Illinois

Michigan Offense vs. Illinois Defense:

The Michigan offense also is coming off their best performance of the year. The only question is the health of Heisman should-be front runner (please excuse the journalistic bias) Mike Hart. Hart went out of the game last week in the second quarter with an ankle injury, but not until he racked up his seventh straight 100 yard game. Hart was walking around on the sidelines in street clothes during the second half, but was not dressed to play. Most players expect Hart to play, but coach Carr says it is a game-time decision. Assuming Hart is in the lineup and mostly healthy, this will be a test for the Illini defense. With senior signal-caller Chad Henne seemingly getting back into the swing of things after sitting out a couple games, the passing game is starting to get to where it was at the end of last season. Mario Manningham returned last week, following a one game suspension for the Eastern Michigan game, in a big way with a career high 147 yards on 8 catches, two for scores. Adrian Arrington also has developed into, perhaps the team’s most sure-handed option this year along with sophomore Greg Matthews Jr. starting to become a weapon as well. Couple that with the nation’s leading rusher in Hart, Illinois will have their hands full. Even if Hart does sit, Carlos Brown, the third string who came in with backup Brandon Minor also getting injured, showed that he can carry the load with 13 carries for 68 yards and two impressive touchdowns.

To try and stop this Wolverine attack, Illinois’ defense will be led by Butkus award candidate LB J. Leman. Leman is sixth in the nation and first in the Big Ten in tackles per game averaging 11.6 and seems to flock to the ball. He will spearhead the experienced Illini defense who returns nine starters from last year. The main priority will, undoubtedly be to try to slow down Mike Hart and the Michigan rushing attack that averages 201 yards per game. Illinois has been a tough team to run against this season giving up only 103 yards per game. But, Michigan’s offensive line, SHOULD, be too tough for that Illini front seven and open up some holes for Hart and Brown. In the passing game, Michigan can really take advantage of an Illinois secondary that has given up 255.4 yards per game through the air. Michigan should look to the outside to Manningham and Arrington who will be going against two, young sophomore corners in Vontae Davis and Dere Hicks. Although young, however, Davis is second in the Big Ten in interceptions with 3 on the year and is capable of making a game-changing play. The key for Illinois will be to get pressure on Chad Henne and force him to make quick decisions. Henne’s decision-making has been questionable this year and he will have to do a better job of making good choices and not throwing into coverage. If he does throw a couple picks, it could be a long night in Champaigne. But the rushing attack should be enough for the Wolverines to overwhelm the Illini.

Advantage: Michigan

Special Teams:

Illinois’ special teams is head and shoulders above the Michigan special teams. Placekicker Jason Reda is 9 for 9 on field goals this season for Illinois with a couple coming from 50 yards. Reda is approaching school records for points scored and field goals made, and is nearly automatic. Of course, on the Michigan side the game of musical chairs at that position continues with kicker K.C. Lopata currently holding the placekicking duties. Lopata has done a solid job thus far being 4-4 on field goals all coming between 30-40 yards. But Lopata has not been tested in a hostile environment and the inconsistency by the field goal unit in protecting the kicker cannot comfort Michigan fans. Michigan does have a big advantage in the kicking game with Zoltan Mesko continuing to be the lone bright spot on special teams averaging 41.1 yards per kick. Illinois punter Anthony Santella is only averaging 35.9 yards per kick, which should result in good field position for Michigan when they can stop the Illini. In the return game, Illinois has shown an ability to score. Arrelious Benn has taken one of his 3 kickoff returns back for a touchdown and Vontae Davis has taken one of his 2 punt returns back for a touchdown. Michigan’s return game continues to be a question with no one quite stepping up to prove to be a game-breaker. Greg Matthews has shown elusiveness in the last few weeks, but still has not shown an ability to break a big return.

Advantage: Illinois

Coaching:

Illinois head coach Ron Zook took over at Illinois in 2005. That season, Zook started 15 freshman and sophomores having the youngest team in the country. That season Illinois went 2-9 and followed that with another young team going 2-10 last season. This year, though, Zook and the Illini have turned the heads of many around the Big Ten and the country and sit at 5-2 and in the thick of the Big Ten title race. He is certainly a coach of the year candidate and has a way of motivating his kids. Lloyd Carr, for the Wolverines, has done a good job turning this team around after losing the opening two games of the season. Even though things looked bleak, the Wolverines have turned things around and are currently undefeated in the Big Ten and also sit at 5-2 overall. The main concern with the coaching this weekend, however, is if the staff has figured out how to counter an offense like Illinois’ with a mobile quarterback. The staff has not shown that ability in the last ten years and until they do, I have to give the advantage to the opponent who runs a spread.

Advantage: Illinois

Intangibles:

The Wolverines will have to go into a hostile environment playing in Memorial Stadium in Champaign at night. The game has been announced as a sell-out and this will be the first true road test for Michigan. The game at Northwestern was said to be more Michigan fans than Northwestern so big Blue will finally see what it is like to play in a loud opposing team’s stadium. Illinois’ is coming off a deflating loss, which knocked them off their cloud from beating Penn State and Wisconsin back to back. Michigan on the other hand is coming off their best performance of the year against Purdue where they finally looked to be clicking on all cylinders. And though they are back in the Top 25, the Wolverines still should have a chip on their shoulder to prove that those first two games do not represent what this team is capable of.

Advantage: Michigan

Prediction:

Illinois 34 Michigan 24

If you listen to Game of the Week (Friday 7-10) or Extra Points (Monday 6-6:30), you may know that I am very superstitious when it comes to Michigan picks. Lately, I have been picking against Michigan and I will continue to do so. Michigan is a three point favorite and I made my pick to have Illinois cover the spread too. Hopefully, I am wrong again.

Player of the game: Juice Williams: 8-10 142 yards 1 TD Passing
15 carries 189 yards 2 TD Rushing

- Rushi

WCBN Weekly College Football Top 25

The students here at WCBN have decided, after watching weeks of poor polls from the so-called experts (The drop that USC took after their lost, compared to Michigan's drop after App. State comes to mind), to make our own poll to see how we compare. While our poll is primarily WCBN/UM students, we also brought in a student from the University of Maryland and the University of Texas to combat our possible bias. We hope that our poll gives you yet another interesting read at how the crazy college football scene is playing out this season. Without further ado, the WCBN Top 25 (First Place Votes):

1. Ohio State (7)
   
2. LSU (1)
   
3. South Florida (3)
   
4. Oklahoma
5. Boston College
6. Kentucky
7. Oregon
8. Cal
9. South Carolina
10. Arizona State
11. West Virginia
12. Florida
13. Virginia Tech
14. Kansas
15. USC
16. Missouri
17. Hawaii
18. Auburn
19. Cincinnati
20. Texas Tech
21. Michigan
22. Texas
23. Tennessee
24. Georgia
25. Virginia

Others Receiving Votes: Illinois, Penn State, Wake Forest, Kansas State, Boise State, Maryland, Air Force

Notes: The top 5 have put lots of space between themselves and the rest of the teams within our polls. Texas and Michigan are actually tied at 21. Every team that received votes from over half of our voters are in the top 25, with every team receiving votes from less than half outside of the top 25. We'll continue this every week, so until next time, good night and go Blue!!

Michigan 33 Eastern Michigan 22

On a record setting day for Senior RB Mike Hart, Michigan defeated cross-town Eastern Michigan 33-22. With a 14-yard run on Michigan’s second possession of the game, Hart surpassed Anthony Thomas (1997-2000) to take over the career rushing yards record. Hart finished the day with 22 carries for 215 yards in less than three quarters of play as the Wolverines pulled away in the third quarter, leading 33-14 when Hart left the game. Eastern would score a touchdown late in the fourth quarter and recover their second onside kick of the game to close the final margin to 33-22.

Michigan Offense vs Eastern Michigan Defense:

As has been the story all year, Mike Hart led the way offensively, accounting for roughly half of Michigan’s total offense and three of the four touchdowns. Hart scored once in the second quarter on a four-yard run and then added two more touchdowns on 24 and 17-yard runs. Hart also added to his own record by rushing for over 200 yards for the fifth time of his career. With his sixth straight 100 yard rushing effort, Hart is now tied with Jamie Morris for consecutive 100 yard games. Hart is the first Wolverine running back to start the season with six straight 100 yard games.

Chad Henne struggled a bit in his first full game back from injury, throwing two interceptions, one of which in the end-zone. Adrian Arrington stepped up in the absence of Mario Manningham and hauled in a career high 102 yards on six receptions. Arrington started off the scoring with a 31-yard TD reception in the first quarter. Michigan ended up with 459 yards of total offense, but much of that was in the first three quarters when the outcome was still in doubt.

Edge: Michigan

Eastern Michigan Offense vs Michigan Defense:

EMU struggled offensively for much of the game before the Michigan reserves came into the game in the fourth quarter. EMU was able to move the ball at times, but for the most part, the bend but don’t break Michigan defense was able to keep them out of the end-zone. EMU ran for 135 yards, but half of that came from the quarterback position, something that the Michigan defense continues to struggle with. Eastern ran a spread offense similar to that of Northwestern. Andy Schmitt completed passes to eight different receivers during the game.

The Michigan defense started right where they left off against Northwestern with a Jamar Adams interception. On the day, the Wolverines intercepted two passes and recovered a fumble. The defense did a better job of not allowing the big play which has been their biggest problem this year.

Edge: Michigan

Special Teams

Well, for the first time this year, Michigan was perfect on field goals. K.C. Lopata took over the place-kicking duties from Jason Gingell and made both his attempts from 31 and 36 yards. Lopata did have an extra point blocked, but that was probably due to poor protection. The Wolverines struggled with their kickoff coverage again, allowing an 86 yard return by Dontayo Gage. Zoltan Mesko only averaged 32.8 yards per punt, but two of his three punts were downed inside the 20.

Eastern Michigan recovered two onside kicks and returned a blocked extra point attempt for a two-point conversion. The first onside kick was to start the second half and was recovered by the kicker, Zach Johnson. EMU would then recover another onside kick late in the fourth quarter, but were unable to score again to make it a one possession game.

Edge: Eastern Michigan

Player of the Game: Mike Hart: 22 carries, 215 yards, 3 TD

Notable Stats:

Mike Hart: 22 carries, 215 yards, 3 TD

Adrian Arrington: 6 catches, 102 yards, TD

K.C. Lopata: 2-2 FGs

Obi Ezeh: 9 tackles, forced fumble

Brandent Englemon: 6 tackles, forced fumble, INT

Tim Jamison: 2 sacks

Darren Matthews (EMU): 11 tackles

Press Conference Notes:

• K.C. Lopata seems to have won the place-kicker job, at least for the time being.
• In addressing the injury status of the many wounded Wolverines, Lloyd Carr said that the following players would practice, but were questionable for the Purdue game:
• Jeremy Ciulla
• John Thompson
• Chris Graham
• Will Johnson
• Tim McAvoy
  

This week's game vs Purdue will be televised on the Big 10 Network. You can listen to our live broadcast here.

And he can hit too

Mike Hart - High School Run

Congratulations Michael Hart - Michigan's All-Time Rushing Leader!

With a 14-yard run midway through the first quarter, Mike Hart became Michigan's career leader in rushing yards. Hart finished the day with 215 yards on just 22 carries in less than three quarters of play. Hart's big day led Michigan to a 33-22 win over Eastern Michigan. This was Hart's fifth career game in which he surpassed 200 yards rushing, extending his own record. Hart also tied Jamie Morris with his sixth consecutive 100-yard rushing game to start a season.

Congratulations Michael Hart, from all of us at WCBN Sports!

Michigan vs. Eastern Michigan Preview

It’s time for the battle of Washtenaw County tomorrow afternoon as the University of Michigan Wolverines will do battle with the Eagles of Eastern Michigan. EMU will take the seven mile trek to the Big House trying to avoid the 55-0 shutout they suffered two years ago at the hands of the Wolverines. The Eagles come into this game with a record of 2-3 after losing last weekend 30-7 at Vanderbilt. The Wolverines enter with a 3-2 mark and are on a three game win-streak after winning their first road game at Northwestern last week 28-16. History would point to a Michigan victory as they have won each of the seven showdowns between the schools, but here’s the breakdown for this year’s game:

Michigan Offense vs. EMU Defense:

Michigan’s offense will finally have Senior signal-caller Chad Henne behind center for the entire game. Henne, who had been out for two games with a knee-injury, made his comeback last week by starting and leading a scoring drive on the first possession at Northwestern. However, the coaching staff elected to rest Henne for the remainder of the first half in place of Ryan Mallett. After the Mallett led Wolverines entered the locker room with a deficit, Henne came back and played the rest of the game leading Michigan to a victory. Henne is expected to start and play the majority of the game tomorrow. He and the Wolverine defense should have their way with the EMU defense. The Eagles have not yet played an offense with the talent of Michigan’s. Michigan’s main advantage comes in the running game and Michael Hart. The Wolverines average over 190 yards rushing per game while the Eagles have given up 180 against lesser opponents. When the Wolverines do go to the air, however, they will be without star wideout Mario Manningham who was suspended for the game for violating an unspecified team rule. Despite the loss of Manningham, Adrian Arrington and Greg Matthews should have their way with the young secondary of EMU lead by redshirt freshman Ryan Downard.

Advantage: Michigan

EMU Offense vs. Michigan Defense

The Eagles offense comes into this game without much to show from the first five games of the year. They are averaging only 17 points per game, barely over 100 yards rushing per game, and 155 yards through the air. There is not one area where the Eagles will hurt you, but the positive for EMU is they USUALLY do not beat themselves. Sophomore Quarterback Andy Schmidt has completed 63% of his passes for 755 yards and 6 TD’s with only 4 INT’s. However, the Eagles are coming off their worst offensive performance against Vanderbilt last week. Schmidt threw three interceptions in the game and the Eagles managed only seven points. Schmidt will have to take better care of the ball to keep EMU close in this one. Michigan’s secondary has been inconsistent this season including lapses in last week’s game against Northwestern. Look for Schmidt to try and pick on freshman Donovan Warren and avoid Junior Morgan Trent when he goes to the air. Still, Michigan has gotten a lot of pressure on the quarterback in the last few games which should overwhelm the offensive line and get to the young Schmidt before he can go through his reads.

Eastern’s rushing attack has been inconsistent all year and is coming off a 62 yard performance last week. Senior Running Back Pierre Walker has not rushed for more than 66 yards in a game yet this season. However, in the Northern Illinois victory, the Eagles looked to Sophomore receiver DeAnthony White for big plays and on three carries he gained 78 yards. Still, with Brandon Graham and the Michigan defensive line playing well, the Eagles inconsistency will provide them with no comfort on the ground. Questions in the linebacking corps due to injuries might give the Eagles some hope, but look for the Wolverines to dominate the Eagles.

Advantage: Michigan

Special Teams:

Michigan’s kicking woes have been well documented this season as kicker Jason Gingell has made only 3 of Michigan’s 9 field goal attempts. Unfortunately for the Eagles, they have not been too effective in the kicking game either. The Eagles are 3-6 on field goals this year with first team kicker Sean Dutcher going 2-5. In the punting game, both team’s kickers Zoltan Mesko (Wolverines) and Zach Johnson (Eagles) have nearly identical statistics. Mesko has averaged 42.8 yards per punt while Johnson has averaged 42.6. When either team needs to punt it away, the defense should get favorable field position.

In the return game, Eastern Michigan has the advantage with kick returner Dontayo Gage. He’s averaged 26.4 yards and has scored on a 90 yard touchdown. On the Michigan side, the team has struggled, at times, to hold on to the football and returns have been minimal.

Advantage: Eastern Michigan

Intangibles:

With Chad Henne making his (full-time) return to the huddle, and after Mallett’s sub-par performance last week, the Wolverines will be back to having the comfort of a Senior leader calling the plays. Michigan’s offense started to click last week, but without Henne’s favorite target Manningham, the team will have to rely on Adrian Arrington who has had a very productive year so far leading the team in receiving. Henne’s experience in the huddle will have this team ready.

Michigan’s early season blunder against Appalachian State has given every team hope to mimic the Mountaineers. That is one thing the Eagles can talk about for motivation before the game. But in the Big House, the Eagles should be overwhelmed despite only having a seven mile drive. Michigan is coming off three wins while the Eagles are coming off a dreadful performance against Vanderbilt.

Advantage: Michigan

Outlook:

Michigan should cruise against an overmatched Eagles team, but this team struggled against an overmatched Northwestern team last week and in the first week of the season. Chad Henne and Michael Hart, however, will not let another huge upset happen in their senior season at the Big House. The Wolverines will cruise to a 38-7 victory. Michael Hart will go over 150 yards as the offense cruises allowing reserves to come in for the entire fourth quarter. On defense, Brandon Graham and the defensive line will have another dominating performance against the outmatched Eagles. There will not be a second upset of the century this year.

Most Valuable Player of the game: Brandon Graham: 3 sacks, 5 tfl, forced fumble

Remember to tune into wcbn.org and click sportstream to hear the game live tomorrow.

Preview by Rushi

Big Ten Rules on Administrative Error

The Big Ten ruled today that Michigan will not have to forfeit the Penn State game, here is the official press release:

Big Ten Rules on Michigan Administrative Error

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The Big Ten Conference Compliance and Reinstatement Subcommittee ruled today (Oct. 4) that the University of Michigan will not be required to forfeit any 2007 football games.

The Michigan Athletic Department reported an administrative error involving Artis Chambers (Fort Wayne, Ind./Snider HS) to the Big Ten Conference Office. Chambers, who retains his athletic scholarship and can continue practicing with the team, will miss the remainder of the season.

Henne Knows Way To Pasadena

Michigan trailed at the half. The offense had been bogged down with the exception of one drive. The defense was tired, they had been out on the field for the majority of the half. The Big Ten Championship was dangerously close to slipping away from this group of Wolverines. That's when Carr made the switch. Mallett out, Henne in-for the rest of the game. In an article I wrote at the start of the season I said that this was Chad Henne's team, with or without being named a captain. When times got rough the 10 other players in the huddle would look to Henne to lead the way, and that is exactly what happened last Saturday in Evanston.

Henne started the game and lead the team with ease down the length of the field for an easy touchdown. Then, assuming the team didn't need their senior quarterback, Carr handed the reins to Mallett. From the moment he entered the game the offense was not the same. Mallett finished 5 of 11 for just 69 yards and a fumbled snap. As Michigan's offense sputtered Northwestern was able to grab a lead by wearing down a tired Michigan defense. Now don't get me wrong, I think Mallett is going to be a great Michigan quarterback, the plays he made in the 4th quarter against Penn State were phenomenal. but he has talent but he is young and raw. The difference between Penn State and Northwestern was Mike Hart. When Hart is taken away from Mallett it plays a huge affect on the way Mallett plays. When Hart is taken away from Henne it doesn't affect him one bit.

This was proven Saturday when Henne reentered the game at the start of the second half and Michigan opened with 4 straight passing plays. Henne was calm and confident standing in the pocket and picked apart the Northwestern secondary by spreading the ball around to all three of his receivers, Manningham, Arrington, and Matthews. Henne led the offense to 3 scoring drives (all touchdowns) and should have had 4 if it weren't for Gingell missing a 4th quarter field goal.

A part of me is happy by the struggles of Mallett, it will benefit him down the road, but more importantly it put to rest any discussion of a QB controversy, one I did not partake in for one second. After watching Mallett struggle no true Michigan fan can say this team is better off with Mallett as the QB rather than Henne. If it weren't for Henne Michigan probably doesn't come back to win that football game, what exactly did Mallett show to make you think otherwise? He lost his touch, he locked on to one receiver, and he was hardly accurate. When Henne reentered the game the play calling changed, less runs, more throws, and it looked like Henne hadn't been out for a single snap. The offense was crisp, it moved the chains, and for a a few minutes it showed the brilliance that it can achieve.

There is only one more goal lef tin the 2007 season and that is to win the Big Ten and head to the Rose Bowl for the 4th time in 5 years. While Mallett might one day find the directions to the Pasadena, right now he is struggling just to unfold the map and locate southern California. Henne has those directions memorized and is piloting the plane back for one more trip.

Manningham Suspended

The Detroit Free Press is reporting that wide receiver Mario Manningham will miss this Saturday's game against Eastern Michigan because of a violation of team rules. Mario is Michigan's leading receiver with 29 catches for 402 yards and 2 touchdowns. While Michigan will hardly miss Mario this weekend against the Eagles heres hoping Mario gets the message and is back on the field against Purdue and for the rest of the season. The offense has already impressed a lot of people to this point and it won't get any stronger without Mario. This comes after Manningham's best performance of the season making 10 catches, a career high, for 123 yards and a touchdown against Northwestern. Arrington and Matthews will be asked to make up for the absence of Mario.

WCBN Sports Radio Weekly Schedule

Monday 8/1

Extra Points 6:00-6:30: We break down the weekend in Michigan Sports, with the focus being on football.

Tuesday 8/2

Daily Sports Report 5:15-5:30: These 15 minutes are split between coverage of all U of M sports and National sports.

Wednesday 8/3

Daily Sports Report 5:15-5:30

Thursday 8/4

Daily Sports Report 5:00-5:30: This longer version features a few minutes on Detroit sports thrown into the mix.

Friday 8/5

Game of the Week 7:00-10:00: This week features Volleyball vs Michigan State live on the air at 7. At the conclusion of the Volleyball match, we will preview the EMU football game for the duration of the time slot.

Saturday 8/6

Football vs EMU live on the Sports Stream

The shows during the week can be heard on 88.3 FM in the Ann Arbor area, or online at http://www.wcbn.org/listen.html from anywhere else in the world. The Football game will be aired live on the sports stream.

Michigan 28 Northwestern 16

Michigan escaped Evanston with a 28-16 victory, pulling away late to make the margin seem larger than it really was. Amado Villarreal started off the scoring with a 27 yard field goal on Northwestern’s initial possession. In a surprise move, Chad Henne got the start at quarterback and led the Wolverines down the field, connecting with Mario Manningham on an 11 yard touchdown pass on Michigan’s first possession of the game. That put Michigan on top 7-3 before Omar Conteh answered back with a 49 yard touchdown run to put Northwestern on top 10-7. Villarreal tacked on two more field goals from 49 and 27 yards before halftime to push the Northwestern lead to 16-7 at halftime. Henne threw two more touchdown passes in the second half to Carson Butler and Adrian Arrington. Mike Hart capped off the scoring in the fourth quarter with a one yard touchdown run that put the game out of reach.

Michigan Offense vs Northwestern Defense

Chad Henne started for the Wolverines and looked effective on his first drive, going 4-6 for 65 yards and a touchdown. Ryan Mallet came on to replace Henne on Michigan’s second drive and struggled leading the offense the rest of the first half going 5-11 for 67 yards. Mallet’s best play of the game came on a third and five where he was pressured out of the pocket and hit Adrian Arrington on the sideline for a first down. Any talk of a quarterback controversy (which was ridiculous to begin with) was ended with the play of Henne on Saturday. Henne ended the day 18-27 for 193 yards and three touchdowns to three different receivers. With his first touchdown pass to Manningham, Henne surpassed John Navarre for the career passing touchdowns record. Manningham hauled in 10 catches for 123 yards and that one touchdown. The Northwestern DB’s gave Manningham a cushion which left the 10-15 yard underneath routes open all day long.

Mike Hart continued his streak of 100 yard games this season, rushing for 106 yards on 30 carries. Northwestern’s defense did a great job of containing him in the first half, limiting to just 30 yards. When Henne returned to the field in the second half, the improved passing game seemed to open up some holes for Hart. John Gill led the way for the Wildcats with 10 tackles and one sack for the game.

Edge: Michigan

Michigan Defense vs Northwestern Offense

Northwestern moved the ball at will in the first half on the Wolverine defense, scoring all of their 16 points in the first half. C.J. Bacher completed passes to six different receivers in the first half. Northwestern had success running the ball with Omar Conteh who carried the ball 15 times for 119 yards, good for a 7.7 average. Bacher also was able to run the ball, gaining 38 yards on the ground excluding sacks. The Michigan

The defense picked up its intensity in the second half, forcing five turnovers. In fact, four consecutive Wildcat drives ended with a turnover. Brandon Graham and Shawn Crable forced fumbles, one of which was recovered by Crable and the other by Terrance Taylor. Morgan Trent, Obi Ezeh, and Tim Jamison each had interceptions of Bacher.

Edge: Push (first half to Northwestern, second half to Michigan)

Special Teams:

Michigan’s kicking woes continue as Jason Gingell missed a 26 yard field goal and a 39 yarder. That makes him 3-9 on the year, and 1 for his last 7. Crossing our fingers just isn’t getting the job done; we need some new go-to superstition. Zoltan Mesko continued his great year, booting a season long punt of 60 yards that pinned the Wildcats at their own one yard line. Mesko’s six punts went for an average of 44.5 yards and three of them were downed inside the 20.

For Northwestern, Amado Villarreal stayed perfect on the year, making two field goals from 27 yards and one from 49. Return-wise, Stephan Simmons’s kickoff return for 52 yards was the only significant return for either team on the day.

Edge: Northwestern

Intangibles:

It seemed like there was more maize and blue than purple in the stands at Ryan Field. Home field advantage was nonexistent as the Michigan fans were as loud, if not louder than the Northwestern fans. The teams came into the game with opposite momentum. Northwestern had just been blown out by Ohio State and the week before that had lost to Duke. Michigan had won two in a row over Notre Dame and then #10 Penn State. None of this was evident from the way that both teams opened the game. Northwestern seemed to be riding high on momentum while the Wolverines played sluggishly.

Edge: Push

Player of the Game: Chad Henne 18-27 193 yards, 3 TD, 0 INT

Henne gutted this one out after he was only supposed to play the opening series of each half. He stayed on and played the entire second half, leading the Wolverines to victory.

Monday Press Conference Tidbits:

· Mike Massey who left the Northwestern game with an injury to his left knee will have surgery this week and is out for the rest of the season.

· Freshman Zion Babb has been moved from WR to CB. It wasn’t said outright at the press conference, but my guess would be that this move came about due to the departure of Johnny Sears.

· Tim McAvoy is listed as the starter at RG for Eastern Michigan. McAvoy left the Northwestern game with an injury, but Lloyd Carr declined to comment on any injuries besides for Massey’s.

· Carr also refused to comment on the Artis Chambers situation that was reported earlier today.

· Carr did mention that K.C. Lopata might get a chance to win the field goal kicking job this week. Carr said that he’d look at both Lopata and Gingell in practice this week before making his decision.

· Henne said that he expects to start on Saturday against EMU

· Michigan Stadium became an octogenarian today, celebrating its 80^th birthday. The first game at Michigan Stadium was played 80 years ago today. Special prize to anyone who can respond in the comment section with the score and opponent that Michigan faced that day.

Thank you to everyone who tuned into WCBN’s first ever road game broadcast. We were faced with some technical difficulties but somehow we got it figured out with about 5 minutes to spare before kickoff. We hope you’ll tune in again on Saturday as Michigan hosts Eastern Michigan. That game will be televised on the Big 10 Network, but you can catch our broadcast live at noon by going to http://www.wcbn.org/listen.html and clicking on the sports stream.

Eligibility Issue for the Wolverines

The Michigan Daily is reporting today that freshman safety Artis Chambers is ineligible for the rest of the season. Chambers enrolled at the University early last January, but apparently he is only eligible under NCAA guidelines, not Big 10 Conference rules. This means that the three non-conference games that Chambers played in were legal, but not the Big 10 game against Penn State. The Big 10 could make the Wolverines forfeit that win over Penn State.

As soon as the Wolverines found out that Chambers was ineligible, he was immediately removed from their roster. Chambers will still practice with the team, but will not be able to play until next season. The Big 10 is expected to pass down their ruling sometime this week.

Michigan 28 Northwestern 16

Michigan climbed above the .500 mark for the first time this season as they came from behind to knock off Northwestern 28-16 in Evenston. On a day full of upsets (six of the AP top 10 teams lost) the Wolverines managed to stay composed and rally after a 16-7 halftime deficit.

Michigan Offense vs. Northwestern Defense

There were two Wolverine offenses that took the field Saturday, one led by senior quarterback Chad Henne, and the other led by freshman quarterback Ryan Mallett. After their respective performances on Saturday, there should no longer be any rumblings over who should be the Michigan quarterback. As Coach Carr and Mallett said after last weeks game, "This is Chad's team."

Chad Henne played the first series and led the Wolverines down the field, capping the drive off with an 11 yard touchdown pass to junior Mario Manningham. Mallett took over for the remainder of the first half and struggled as Michigan struggled to establish a running game, as senior Mike Hart ran for only 31 yards on 12 carries. Overall Mallett was quarterback for five drive, which resulted in three three-and-outs, four punts, and another missed field goal by Jason Gingell.

Chad Henne came out and took over in the second half and led the Wolverines to the victory. He threw two more touchdown passes (16 yards to Adrian Arrington and 5 yards to Carson Butler) as the Michigan offense finally lived up to preseason expectations, putting up 21 points in the second half while marching up and down the field. Mike Hart rebounded from a tough first half to finish with 106 yards and a touchdown on 30 carries, moving him in to second place on the all-time Michigan rushing list. Hart needs only 33 yards to pass Anthony Thomas for first place. meanwhile Chad Henne also set records on the field. With his first quarter touchdown pass he broke a tie with John Navarre for the most touchdown passes in Michigan football history, the Chad extended that record to 75 touchdowns with his second half passes to Arrington and Butler. For the day chad was an impressive 18-27 for 193 yards and three touchdowns, and he did not through an interception. Mallett finished 5-11 for 67 yards.

Although the offensive line struggled to make holes for Mike Hart in the first half, they improved as the game went on. More importantly they only allowed one sack of Ryan Mallett, and did not allow the Wildcat defense to touch Chad Henne. Yet again there was an injury to Michigan starting RG, as Tim McAvoy was hurt, but again a backup stepped in and played well, with junior Cory Zirbel stepping in on Saturday.

Edge: Michigan

Michigan Defense vs. Northwestern Offense

Michigan continued their trend of playing poor defense in the first half Saturday, allowing Northwestern to put up 16 points and 323 yards in the first half. Michigan struggled against Northwestern's spread offense as C.J. Bacher picked the Michigan secondary apart while backup running back Omar Conteh gashed the defense. The score could have easily been worse, but the Michigan defense firmed up in the red zone, forcing Northwestern to settle for three field goals. nevertheless Michigan found themselves trailing 16-7 at the half.

In the second half the defense came out and played like they did last week against Penn State, as the shut out the Wildcats in the second half and held them to 94 yards, while forcing five turnovers (three interceptions, two fumbles) and sacking C.J. Bacher five times. Senior linebacker Shawn Crable led the way for the Wolverines, recording 10 total tackles (5 for a loss), one sack, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery. Senior defensive end Tim Jamison also had a nice game, recording four tackles, a sack , and also getting an interception off a tipped pass that he returned for 37 yards.


Edge: Michigan

Special Teams

Once again Michigan struggled on special teams. Kicker Jason Gingell missed two more field goals, one from 26 yards and the other from 39 yards. For the season Gingell has only made three of nine field goals, and has looked worse as the season goes on. On the bright side, sophomore punter Zoltan Mesko continued his excellent season as he averaged 44.5 yards on his six kicks, including a booming 60 yard punt. He also placed three of his kicks inside the 20 yard line. Once again Michigan had no return game to speak of, although there were no muffs this week.

Edge: Northwestern


Intangibles

Northwestern came out and marched up and down the field on the Michigan Defense, but the unit rebounded in the second half and came out playing with a chip on their shoulder. The offense finally clicked under Henne's leadership, and the team is now 2-0 in big ten play.

Notable Stats:


Total yards: Michigan 380, Northwestern 417

Turnovers: Michigan 0, Northwestern 5

Shawn Crable: 10 tackles, 5 TFL, 1 sack, FF, FR

Chad Henne: 193 yards, 3 tds, 0 interceptions

Player of the game

Chad Henne came back from his knee injury and played very well. He led Michigan on four scoring drives, and it would have been six if Michigan could kick a field goal. Honorable mention to Shawn Crable, who was all over the field wreaking havoc on the Northwestern offense.