Friday, September 5, 1969
THE MICHIGAN DAILY
Page One, Section Two
Turf might stay grey
cner,
but
where's
sweet smell?
By LEE KIRK
Although the color combination isn't
exactly what Michigan coach Bo Schem-
bechler had in mind, a serene green rug
of Tartan Turf now rests on the hal-
lowed ground of Michigan Stadium.
Schembechler had envisioned a "great"
blue carpet with yellow lines, but found
that the model didn't come in that color
combination. Just as Henry Ford only
made his cars in black, so unimaginative
Monsanto makes Tartan Turf only in
green with white trim.
However, both Schembechler and Ath-
letic Director Don Canham are extremely
enthusiastic about the new synthetic grass.
"The advantages of this installation are
just too numerous to ignore," Canharn
said. "The Manufacturers agreed to in-
stall it at their original price. Increas-
ing demand for Tartan Turf also made
it imperative for us to act now."
Canham feels that synthetic turfs like
Tartan Turf and Astro Turf are the wave
pf the future. By having it put down
now instead of later, Michigan has not
only gotten a lower price but has gained
a advantage over opponents who are un-
accustomed to the new surface.
The standard football cleat, so often
the culprit in leg injuries, is not very
effective on synthetic grass. Many teams
that have to use this type of surface are
experimenting with rubber cleats a n d
some large linemen prefer to use tennis
shoes to obtain the most possible trac-
strategy,
tion. Michigan will be trying a soccer
style shoe.
Getting used to the unique footing af-
forded on Tartan Turf is more; than a
problem of finding the right shoe. Many
coaches feel that it places an added
burden on defensive backs, some of whom
have found it difficult to make the quick
cuts necessary to keep up with receivers.
Maintenance costs with Tartan Turf
are practically nil. Before it was installed,
the Athletic Department had to spend
$20,000 annually to re-sod and repair
the stadium surface. There was also the
problem of cutting the grass and repair-
ing bare spots that developed with use.
Now all that the grounds crew will need
is a large vacuum cleaner to clean off
the turf just like Mom cleans the rug
at home.
Canham feels that over the years the
$250,000 cost of the turf will be more than
recouped by the reduction in maintenance
costs.
The problems that arose in the early de-
velopments of artificial grass have largely
been solved. The texture has b e e n great-
ly improved and the color has begun to
look almost like the real thing.
Monsanto officials received a real shock
last season when the carpet they had put
down for the University of Tennessee be-
gan to turn black. Scientists who studied
the problem at first feared that the turf
had undergone some chemical change,
but they found that black fibers added to
make the color truer tended to rise up
after .use and become more visible. This
problem has since been solved.
Perhaps the biggest advantage of syn-
thetic turf is the dramatic reduction in
injuries that accompany their use,
Schembechler noted that "studies have
shown that football injuries are really
cut down with the use of this artificial
surface. Other coaches who have played on
this tye of surface are unanimous in their
approval."
The Intramural Department is also in-
stalling Tartan Turf on one of the prac-
tice fields on Ferry Field and the job
should be completed in a couple of weeks.
When finished, the field will be lit for
night use by intramural and club teams.
In the past, the soccer, rugby and la-
crosse clubs have played many of their
games on rocky and rutted Wines Field,
while the Ferry Field area was used ex-
clusively by varsity teams.
Because of the high durability of Tar-
tan Turf, Canham also hopes to make
the football stadium available for club
sport games and some general use, al-
though the football team wil lhave prior-
ity. Canham hopes to eventually h a v e
artificial grass put down on other univer-
sity playfields, although the cost is cur-
rently somewhat prohibitive.
Despite the apparent rise of the arti-
ficial and the synthetic, though, in your
heart you know that nothing will ever
really replace grass.
Daily -Eric Pei'geaux
Heads meet on synthetic gruss
Grid hopes
rest
By MORT NOVECK
o)n new
untested
talent
*
*
*
The Mourning
«,dy> barba Aft er
Is Bo like Bump was.. .
... or will he take a chance?
TMPOSSIBLE as it may seem, Michigan has a chance at a
Rose Bowl berth.
A new coach, loss of the offensive duo of Ron Johnson and
Dennis Brown, and a much tougher schedule imply that the odds
should be poor. But these problems are largely discounted.
The one thing which could block a trip to Pasadena is a
game against a nonconference opponent, Missouri. The Tigers
coach, Dan Devine, hates the Big Ten. He thinks Big Ten foot-
ball is overrated and he loves to prove it. He would like nothing
better than to beat Michigan.
Michigan, however, is in a sticky situation. After the Mis-
souri game, the Wolverines encounter Purdue, Michigan State,
and Minnesota back to back. This means four very strong, very
keyed-up grid squads will be gunning for Michigan four games
in a row.
COACH BO SCHEMBECHLER. will have to make one very
important decision-whether or not to go after the Tigers. The
result of the Missouri conflict will be important in the way it
affects the Michigan squad for the next three games. Schem-
bechler can either lay off the nonconference team and prime
for the three conference clashes, or he can push for a Missouri
victory.
The first choice is the easier path out. After all, Michigan
never keys up for the game before the Big Ten schedule begins.
They always call that game a giveaway. If the team happens to
be better than a lackadaisical Michigan squad, the Maize and
Blue chalk up a notch in the loss column and forget about it.
If they win, everyone says how lousy the nonconference team
was. Bo can follow this path if he wants.
If Michigan does not key up for the game, however, it is
almost certain they will lose, maybe very badly. This will mean
they will definitely be coming up against Purdue off a loss; and
no matter what any coach says, it isn't good to have to battle
back. Besides that, beating Missouri would give the team national
recognition. There is a lot of incentive for Coaph Schembechler
to go after the Tigers.
A MICHIGAN VICTORY over Missouri would be a strong
boost psychologically for the Wolverines. They would go into the
Purdue contest knowing they can beat the best. It would also
show Michigan's opponents that the Wolverines must be reckon-
ed with and are no easy pushover.
Unfortunately, any victory over Missouri will not, come
easily. The team is rough and strong, They will go down fighting
hard and will hurt the opposing team. Michigan must be able
to withstand the punishment of Missouri, and still be able take
on Purdue, Michigan State, and Minnesota. Tthese teams can
be just as punishing as Missouri. It is quite possible that injuries
during the Missouri battle could cost them future games. The
price of the victory could be quite high.
On the other hand, it is possible that a triumph against
Missouri could give Michigan enough of a psychological boost to
make them forget minor injuries and be just as strong for the
other teams- When the team finds out it actually is strong
enough to beat anyone it wants, it may start seeing Roses. If a
trip to Pasadena looks like a definite possibility, it is amazing
how much stronger a team becomes.
Last year, Michigan ran off victories against Duke, Navy,
Michigan State, and Indiana. They realized they might be better
than they thought, and they really took off. The next four teams
were really humiliated. If the Wolverines can get this confidence
again this year, they could pull a repeat performance. A Mis-
souri victory would go a long way towards giving them that
confidence.
THUS SCHEMBECHLER IS LEFT with a very sticky
problem. If he sits back and accepts the loss from Missouri, he
hurts his chances for national recognition as well as starting
the team off thv wrong foot for the conference schedule. On
the other hand, the chances that Michigan will be healthy for
While many of the Wolverine
gridders speeding around in the
center of Michigan's largest car-
pet will be the same ones t h a t
played on grass last year, the man
standing on the sidelines getting
the ulcers will be different. Since
the new man is also the h e a d
coach some other changes will be
evident.
The m o s t important of these
changes is t h a t the Wolverine
style of football will be different.
Admitting that the offense will
miss halfback Ron Johnson, the
new coach, Bo Schembechler, in-
tends to balance up the running
attack. "Everybody in our back-
field will run the ball,," he states.
In addition to balancing the at-
tack from a personnel standpoint,
Schembechler intends to u s e a
more varied offense than was uti-
lized last year. As he describes it,
"I suppose you could call it a mul-
tiple formation offense."
"Rather than running from dou-
ble width all the time like they
did last year we'll have a spread;
formation with an end split out
and a wingback in the slot, we will
also shift our backs into different
positions, and we even have the
old regular T formation with both,
ends tight. In addition, we will al-
so run from double width the way,
they did."
One of the backfield shifts he'
is planning is changing the flank-
erback into a wingback. He feels
that this will force the defense to
play a -more balanced game and
wil give the Michigan runners a
better chance.;
Another change Schembechler,
introduced to the Wolverine of-t
fense is the increased use of the
quarterback option. He believes,
What's Inside
The new coaches p.. 2
Michigan's opponents p. 3
National outlook. p. 3
The Devil's Disciple p. 4
I.M., Club Sports .. p. 5
daily sports
ight editors:
bechler has confidence that his
Pat Atkins and Eric Siegel players can come through, they
are thus far untested in combat.
Afore Spors on Page 11, Section 1 Craw, though a regular, was
used primarily as a blocker for
Johnson and scored only one
touchdown last season. Moorhead
this to be very important, stating, he d o e s encounter., however, saw only limited duty as Brown's
"Option football to me is the key should be on offense rather than backup and Doughty, receiver in
to success in offense in colleges. on defense. Seven of the eleven high school and as a freshman,
I think that is what makes college - has never run with the ball from
football great, the fact that quar- defensive starters will be return- behind the line of scrimage. If
terbacks are running these option ing regulars. The five men on the this offense proves impotent it
pass and runs. We like our quar- line will all be combat proven vet- ,will be hard to win football games.
terback to run." erans. Ends Phil Seymour and Ce- If these players come through
Changes have also been made cil Pryor, tackle Dan Parks, and Michigan could become a strong'
defensively. Last year's four man
line has been changed to a five middle guard Henry Hill were all team. If they don't, all the coach's
man line. Though according to regulars last season. T h e other i offense is designed to compen-
the coach "on many occasions and tackle will be Dick McCoy or Pete sate for the loss of the squad's1
sometimes even whole games we Newell who are both experienced. star runner but it can't score:
will operate from a four man line, McCoy, however, was injured this touchdown's without somebody to
depending on whether its apass-week in practice and may be lost. carry the ball across the goal line.
ner for the job. Schembechler
thinks Moorhead can run. "WhenI
he turns up field he's a good
runner and he's got good speed."
Other prospects for quarterback
are Jim Betts and Bill Berutti.j
How well this revamped back-
field will do is the key to the
team's success. While Schem-j
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1969 Schedule
SEPTEMBER
VANDERBILT at Ann Arbor
WASHINGTON at Ann Arbor
OCTOBER
MISSOURI at Ann Arbor
PURDUE at Ann Arbor
Michigan State at East Lansing
Minnesota at Minneapolis
NOVEMBER
WISCONSIN at Ann Arbor
Illinois at Champaign
Iowa at Iowa City
OHIO STATE at Ann Arbor
(Ail Home Games at 1:30 EST)
ler is impressed by some of the !
teams.' He is particularly concern-
ed because "I figure seven of the
ten teams we play have bona fide
outstanding quarterbacks and its
real hard to defense against a
good college quarterback."
Ha also feels that Michigan has
a harder schedule than some ofa
ing or running team.j
A new position known as wolf-I
back is also being- instituted. As
Schembechler describes it, "Wolf
if the type of guy who goes to the
wide side of the field or the
strength of the formation." Essen-
tially the wolf is a free man who
can be shifted where ever henis
needed to counteract the offense.
HOPEFULLY the wolf will be
able to help prevent the big play
or the long gain by the opposing
offense. Schembechler believes.
that "today you can't count on
defensively completely dominating
an offensive team. "They're go-
ing to move the ball but sometime
you've got to put the knife in there
anid hit them for a loss and force
them into a punt."
Linebacking is a 1 s o solid. Ed
Moore was a regular as a sopho-
more last year while Marty Huff
was voted top sophomore.
Heading up the defensive back-
field will be Tom Curtis, consid-
ered one of Michigan's top pros-
pects for national honors this
year. His fellow halfback Brian
Healy was a regular last year and
safety Barry Pierson is also ex-
perienced.
WOLFMAN WILL be a tough
position to play according to Sch-
embechler but he thinks sopho-"
more Tom Darden, whom he de-
scribes as a fine football player,
will be able to fill the slot.
Depth should not be a problem
on defense. There are several
The kicking situation in in flux the other Big Ten teams. Indiana
at the moment. Both placekicker does not have to play either Ohio
Tim Killian and punter M a r k State or Michigan.' Ohio State
Werner are returnees from 1a s t also got a break in that it plays
year but Schembechler wants to Wisconsin, Illinois and Northwes-j
try Dana Coin, who it is said is a tern, the weakest teams in the'
good place kicker, and F r a n k conference.
Titus who has a strong leg. He Injuries, especially in the of-
also wants to look at Paul Staroba fensive line, could be trouble-
as a punter. Schembechler w a s some. As Schembechler says,
not pleased with the kicking dur- "There's no doubt that if you
ing spring practice but he attri- lose a key player you're going to
butes this to a lack of practice be hurt, but except on the line,
rather than a lack of skill. we've got pretty good depth.
In considering Michigan's op- Otherwise we figure we have a
position for this year Schembech- little more depth defensively."
t w, te < .,a , ": N;w v ^dsr i ;
The balanced offense should
eliminate the situation where the
loss of one player cripples t h e
entire attack but an injury could
hurt nev rtheless. The Wolver-
ines- were healthy when they
started practice, Dierdorf, Baum-
gartner and Starova all recover-
ing from last years injuries, but
the drills have taken thefi toll.
In addition to McCoy, three oth-
ers - Pryor, Killian and B ill
Taylor - have suffered injuries.
It is expected, however, that all
will be ready for the opening
game.
Though he won't know until the
season starts, Schembechler is
optimistic about his squad. While
he doesn't have the great individ-
ual talent that the team had last
year he thinks he has several fine
players who should be able to
make his new balanced offense
work.
In order to carry out his de- promising sophomores who will be
fensive plans Schembechler needs l able to help as well other exper-
a defense in depth, with quick- fenced players. Among them are
ness and persuit. He hopes he has defensive back Bruce Elliot, line-
the necessary personnel. backer Mike Taylor, and defensive
Any personnel problems which' ends Mike Keller and Butch Car-
penter.
Offensively depth may be a
problem, especially on the interior
line from tackle to tackle. The
biggest question mark is at center
where Tim Killian is trying to
make the switch from linebacker.
He has never played the position
before but Schembechler feels that
with experience he can make the
switch.
The rest of the line is exper-
ienced but not deep. Bob Baum-
gartner, Dick Caldarazzo and
Frank T i t a s are experienced
guards. Dan Dierdorf and Jack
Harpring are strong tackles, but
h problems may result if any of
these players are injured.
Pass reception is a strong point
on the squad. Leading the receiv-
ers is tight end Jim Mandich, who
is given an excellent chance to
become an All-American. At split
end are Bill Harris and Jerry
Imsland while Paul Staroba is a
highly rated wingback.
The biggest losses from gradua-
tion were suffered by the offen-
sive backfield. Schembechler ac-
knowledges that he doesn't have
the great talent at tailback like
Ron Johnson on his squad but
hopes that his balanced offense
- can fill the gap.
m
.