The Michigan Daily-Thursday, September 7; 1978--Page 29 If at first you don 't succeed .0 0 o and Co. a defense I By CUB SCHWARTZ In this post-Watergate era, a rather iteresting, if not distant comparison as been made by some sports obser- ers between Richard Nixon and Bo chembechler. Vowing complete riousness, they point out not only the milarity of errors (b6th have eroded blic confidence) but the similarity in ver-ups. They depict the post-Rose Bowl Bo as secluded man, intent on licking his ounds while vehemently denying llegations that his team lost the big fowl because it couldn't defend against epass. Well, if Bo were to likewise write a ook, he would mostlikely explain that is team's failure to stop the RUN aused the loss. And while the title of e book might be B.S. the explanation urely would not. Four times the Huskies of ashington were faced with third and our situations, and four times the west oast kids elected to run the-ball. Each 'me they picked up the first down en oute to a 27-20 upset. In fact the mid- est, 'four-yards-and-a-cloud-of-dust olverines' attempted more passes, ompleted more passes and gained ore yardage through the air than did ashington., But the Rose Bowl disaster is ancient istory and with a clean slate facing hem, the Michigan coaches are now oncerned with fielding a defense which ill certainly prove instrumental in the urrent run for the roses. But don't look for any surprises. The aize and blue will again concentrate eir efforts against the run. Last year the defense allowed an verage of only 2.6 yards per rush. And f the three starting linemen from that quad, only middle guard Steve Graves i lost to graduation. His counterparts at the tackles, Dale Mietz and Curtis Greer are both retur- jung for their senior year. Greer was hird on the team in tackles last season ith 88 and Kietz was solid at the other ~ackle. The vacant middle guard position will obably be filled by sophomore Mike Trgovac who got the early nod for his strong spring football performance. "We expect to be much stronger up the middle," said Defensive Coor- dinator Bill McCartney. "We have good, depth and experience at both the tackles and the inside linebackers." The linebackers he referred to, Ron Simpkins and Jerry Meter, are indeed the cornerstones of the defensive unit. This duo was one and two respectively in tackles, accounting for over 250 bet- ween them. While Rick Leach was rolling and Russel Davis was running, it was Ron Simpkins who was breaking virtually every individual defensive record in the school's books. The man was named ABC's Defensive Player of the Game for his performance against Texas A&M - an award to be proud of. He was credited with 113 solo tackles, almost twice as many as the next man on the list - an accomplishment to be heralded. But the truly amazing thing about Simpkins is that he did all this as a sophomore. What's more, he is the first sophomore to break into the starting front seven since 1969. Can a coach ask for more? "We're looking for him to improve this year," answered McCartney. "We look for him to be stronger and to im- prove overall. We hope that he gains some leadership." The Wolverine up front defense also employs a pair of outside linebackers which double for defensive ends. Here lies the biggest replacement problem. Gone is Green Bay's first round draft pick John Anderson and his counterpart Dom Tedesco, both instrumental in preventing the big ground gains last year. And at the end of spring drills nobody had taken hold of either position. The two candidates for the field-side slot are Tom Seabron and Mark DeSan- tis. ,Both saw considerable action in their junior years and the possibility of platooning the two is certainly available. At the other end of the line Bob Holloway and Jeffrey Jackson are in contention for the starting bill. Neither have proven themselves in game situations. The Schembechler philosophy of Big Ten football places a good deal of em- phasis on the front seven. The strategy used to gain the annual trip out west was best put by McCartney. "To win the Big Ten, you have to beat OSU, and to beat OSU, you have to be able to stop the run. The day you will see a weak Michigan 'defense is the day they're weak against the run." The Schembechler philosophy of Big Ten. football places a good deal of em- phasis on the front seven. The strategy used to gain the annual trip out west was best put by McCartney. "To win the Big Ten, you have to beat OSU, and to beat OSU you have to be able to stop the run. The day you will see a weak Michigan defense is the day they're weak against the run." But when a team is very effective against the run, the opponent has little See DEFENSE, Page 36 Backfield keys potent attack By PAUL CAMPBELL The counselor you had at orientation probably told you how important it was to get those academic requirements out of the way early. Spend your first four months at Michigan buried in the questionable joys of freshman comp, foreign language, and inorganic chemistry. But after you've slept through your first class, after you've spent endless distracted hours trying to memorize verb forms, or after you've tried in vain to find a real seat in your Chem lecture, you may-realize there are more impor- tant things to be learned. The intricacies of the triple option, for instance. Or the part the wingback plays in a fullback dive. Or Rick 'Leach's career stats. When you and 99,999 other curious fans show up in the big blue bowl on Saturday, Sept. 16 for the gme between Michigan and Illinois, an education in the basics of Wolverine football will be considerably more useful than the latest buzz on the Bard. Let's start with the triple option. It's an offensive system, one that puts a premium on running. The quarterback moves laterally from center, and can choose to hand the ball to his fullback, pitch it to his trailing tailback, or run forward himself. Quarterback Rick Leach, who has played 36 straight games for Michigan since he came here from Flint three years ago, knows the triple option bet- ter than any college player in the coun- try. He runs it with precision, guts, and intelligence. His coach thinks that's enough to make him a leading candi- date for the Heisman trophy, the high- est award available to a college football player. "In my mind, he's the best quarter- back in the country," is how head coach Bo Schembechler puts it. "He works hard all the time, he's a good all-around athlete, and he loves football." He must love football to resist the nnetie i ntna n tn h rh l pe sc th avi caj Ph en oul op ru hi W ha th hi sp w] ch fu 10' ya ca wa be ga se tw se de ga ha tia the 226 Ro! al Re (60 spa Doily Photo by JOHN KNOX Defense is a trademark of Bo Schembechler's teams during his first decade as coach of the Wolverines. Even when the offense stumbles a bit, the defensive corps come up with the big plays time and again. Above, John Anderson, now with the Green Bay Packers, stops Duke fullback Ned Gonet in a game won by Michigan, 21-9. NEW RECRUITS ADD TO FIREPOWER agers optimistic with healthy Hu By HENRY ENGELHARDT ,Our program can compete with any program in iperica. We can win the Big Ten and go as high sa National Championship." - -Michigan basketball coach Johnny Orr OThis year we're looking to take all the marbles." -Basketball co-captain Tom Staton Like westerly winds, optimism prevails in the ichigan basketball department. BOTH THE COACHES and players believe they rtow what it takes, and more important, they elieve they got what it takes, to bring a National hampionship to Ann Arbor next March. this bullish basketball attitude comes after a ampaign filled with frustration, moments of rilliance, inconsistency and hope for the future. The '77-'78 season was the first of the last five in which the NCAA playoffs did not involve Michigan. The team finished with a 16-11 mark, 11-7 in the Big Ten, good enough to tie for fourth. Great hopes for last season were actually greatly diminished quite a time before the first ball was of- ficially tipped. In April of '77 Earvin 'Magic' John- son chose to sign a tender with Michigan State, leaving Michigan as his number two pick. THEN AT THE INITIAL Wolverine practice, in mid-October, Phil Hubbard, the 6-7, multi-talented center, reinjured his left knee. He was operated on shortly thereafter and spent the entire season in street clothes. Hubbard, who won a gold medal in Montreal on :0 2 ':'; x :r ". :!:::? :::>:<.;;.:>::rr<<::r:<: : ;r:>:;:: .:.:>:::..:;<. the U.S. basketball team, had hurt his knee playing for his country at the World Games in Bulgaria during summer of '77. The co-captain underwent treatment upon his return and was pronounced fit for Michigan's first practice. Midway through the session he went up for a rebound and came down on his left leg. He did not go up for another rebound un- til last May. And now the good news. Hub is back. He has worked very hard getting back into shape. Time was not a factor and Phil took plenty of it. "He's worked every day to get his knee ready," says Orr. "I'm sure it'll be okay." HUB HIMSELF SAYS there is "no pain. It's coming along real good." He has scrimmaged against Joel Thompson, who says: "Hubs strong. Very strong. There's nothing he can't do." Ironically it was Thompson who stepped into the Michigan pivot due to Hubbard's absence and played, to what many consider, beyond his poten- tial. Thompson averaged over 15 points a game, hit- ting 54 percent of his shots from the field. He also led the team in rebounding, with over eight a game. His teammates voted him the squad's Most Valuable Player award at the season's end. THOMPSON'S ACHIEVEMENTS may have been upstaged however, by a freshman from Omaha, Nebraska, Mike McGee, a lightning quick, 6-5 for- ward led the team in scoring with almost 20 points a game. He finished second in the Big Ten scoring race to Minnesota's Mychal Thompson. In fact, he set a record for most points ever scored by a fresh- man in the Big Ten. McGee used his leaping ability to work the baseline and grab many an offensive rebound. He also possesses a great, albeit sometimes incon- sistent, outside shot. He took a good deal of his team-high 439 shots from this area. (In comparison, Thompson took the second most shots-344.) Perhaps McGee's greatest attribute is his poten- tial, though he has said on a few occasions that this upcoming season will be his last before he turns pro. THERE ARE TWO other main reasons, besides Hubbard and McGee, for the smiles and "podners" emanating from the basketball offices: First is the recruiting season completed last April. Orr envisions John Garris, 6-9 from Bridgeport, Ct., to play a good deal of center, moving Hubbard to his natural forward position. Garris is a great leaper, runner and short-range scorer. A second forecourt recruit is Thad Garner, 6-6 tering his eleventh season. "And the teams that win national finals are very deep." Co-captain Tom Staton returns for his senior season. Staton feels last year could have'been bet- ter, both for the team and himself, and he's looking to changethings this year.\ "I'D LIKE TO score a little more," Staton says, after averaging just under eight points a game last season. "I'm going to put forth 150 percent if I can." Alan Hardy, who will be hard pressed to hold onto the starting forward position he won last year, also returns for his final year. Hardy was second on the team in rebounds and scored almost 12 points a game, but he is still known for his potential rather than his production. Mark Lozier, a junior, will be fighting for a star- ting berth at guard. LOZIER IS BEST known for hitting the shot that beat Michigan State last season in East Lansing. His 22-footer was in the air as the buzzer sounded, and when it went through the cords it gave Michigan a most thrilling 65-63 victory. Other returning guards are the twins from Bar- berton, Oh., Mark and Marty Bodnar and Johnny Johnson, from Buffalo, NY. Only one forward returns and that is 6-7 Paul Heuerman, who looked impressive upon occasions last season. Joining Johnson on the departed list are Dave Baxter, Tom Bergen, and Mike Robinson. Baxter was known as "super-sub" for his first three seasons before moving into a starting role last year. He set a new one-season assist record, witb 178, shattering the old record by 40 assists. He had a few outstanding games, including a 33 point per- formance in a last minute loss to Louisville. Both Bergen and Robinson were backup centers last year. Bergen completed his eligibility and Robinson, a prize recruit of a year ago, transferred to Central Michigan. TENTATIVELY, STUDENT ticket sales will work as follows: in late September or early October students will pay for tickets and receive a coupon. A few weeks later students will go in and redeem their coupon for tickets. Seating is based on class stan- ding. Last year $14 bought 13 tickets, but it is expec- ted to cost more this year. Ticket manager Al Renfrew explained that if more than 5,500 students request tickets, split tickets may be the result. This would give students tickets to half the games. The schedule includes a number of interesting match-ups, including Notre Dame in the season finale at the Pontiac Silverdome. The home slate features Alabama as well as Central. Eastern and staying in sch( years of his eli he explains, he Olympics in M( medals in bask( But for now] ready for this should be really ;rsuasive powers of the aseall outs, who almost drool visibly when ey talk about Leach's .404 batting erage last season or his accurate innon arm from center field. The hiladelphia Phillies were impressed ough to offer 100 grand to sign him it of high school. He chose the triple tion instead. Maybe Leach was thinking about the nning backs that were recruited with s class when he made his decision. ho could blame him for wanting to nd the ball to Russell Davis, one of e best high school players in Virginia story? Or Harlan Huckleby, the eedster from Cass Tech in.Detroit ho runs a 9.5 100-yard dash? Davis has certainly fulfilled every in- of his promise. Operating out of the llback position last year, he gained 92 yards on 225 carries (that's 4.9 rds per, in case you're not taking lculus). He scored eight times, and as named-the MVP in the Big Ten. Huckleby, on the other hand, has en somewhat of a puzzle. After ining 958 yards as a freshman, he has en his playing time cut into the past 'o seasons by nagging injuries and his eming reluctance to challenge a fender helmet-to-helmet. Still, he ined 769 yards last season, and would ve to be at the top of any list of poten- l starters at tailback. But he wouldn't be the only name on e list. Stanley Edwards (48 carries, 6 yards, 4.7 per), who started in the se Bowl loss to Washington, will see ot of time in the backfield. Lawrence ,id (8, 57, 7.1) and Roosevelt Smith 0, 300, 5.0), are also vying for playing ots. These are all quality backs - See TRIPLE, Page 36 bbard ool a fifth year and using all four gibility before going pro. This way, 'll be ble to participate in the 1980 )scow. "Nobody's ever won two gold etball," he says. Hubbard is concentrating on getting season, and he says: "The team V good." ii Tx .4 y A NI'4 s ' E 4x Nov.20 Nov.30 Dec. 2 Dec. 6 Dec. 9 Dec. 13 Dec. 28-29 Dec. 31 Jan. 4 Jan.6 Jan.11 Jan. 13 Jan. 18 Jan.20 Jan. 25 Jan.27 Feb.1 1978-79 SCHEDULE WINDSOR (exhibition) Central Michigan ALABAMA at Louisville At Dayton WESTERN MICHIGAN at Sun Carnival (vs. Clemson, Texas-El Paso, Texas Tech) EASTERN MICHIGAN MINNESOTA IOWA at Purdue at Wisconsin at Northwestern OHIO STATE MICHIGAN STATE at Illinois at Indiana