Page 16-Saturday, September 8, 1979-The Michigan Daily this season is Mark Herrmann, the star quarterback of the Purdue Boiler- P review " 0 makers. Yet even bigger news is the group of players backing up the lean junior, and together, they may realize the team, Tom Stauss (485 yards), was the goal Purdue hasn't reached for the switched to a tailback position this past 12 years-the Rose Bowl. spring while Dave Mohapp got the call Last year, Purdue routed Georgia for replacement duty at fullback. Tech 41-21 in the Peach Bowl. The post- On defense, Wisconsin is led by 6-3, season victory culminated Purdue's 216-pound Dave Ahrens. At defensive first winning season since 1972, and end, Ahrens is an "All-American foot- repesented the most victories by a ball player," says McClain. Boilermaker team since 1969. Purdue AT THE HEART of this Purdue resurgence is Herrmann. He is the The big name around the Big Ten nucleus of the returning unit of 11 offen- The Michigan Daily-Saturday, Sep U ....... - I 'd To for.h U-Mf hc Football Join >m Hemingway nd Tom Slade )e most complete ootball coverage me and away. WUOM 91.7 FM AnnArbor ' sive starters. The 6-5, 194-pound marksman is already the number four career passer in Big Ten history after only 23 games. The rifle-armed Herrmann is another in the series of fine passing quarter- backs to come out of West Lafayette. The prestigious names of Bob Griese, Len Dawson, Mike Phipps and Gary Danielson preceded Herrmann. The explosive signal caller is currently within 1066 yards of becoming Purdue's all-time leader-and he's only a junior. Meanwhile, leading the potent Boilermaker defense is Keena Turner. Turner, a defensive end, was listed as one of the top six tacklers from the 1978 season with 68 stops. At 6-3, and a quick 212-pounds, he's not one to mess with. But linebacker Kevin Motts, at 6-2,. 230 may pose the biggest threat to op- ponents. No Boilermaker has ever made more tackles than Motts' 422-and he's only a three year regular. But when people mention Purdue, Herrmann is the man that is most talked about, and rightly so. Poised, mature, and threatening describes the Purdue QB. Backed by a much improved running attack and a tough defense, Herrmann and his teammates are the team to beat in the Big Ten, according to many pre-season polls. BUT PURDUE'S opponents might think otherwise, especially the Wolverines and coach Bo Schem- bechler. Three years ago, when Michigan was practically a unanimous choice nation-wide for "number one," it was the Boilermakers' who came up with the season's big upset down in West Lafayette. Then for the next two years, Herrmann's first two with Pur- due, Michigan easily defeated the Boilermakers. 'p- mwwmw% FEW THINGS IN 1 Last year, Herrmann was hurt in the first quarter against the Wolverines and could not return to the artificial carpet of Michigan Stadium as his team went down to a 24-6 defeat. However this year's match takes place in Ross-Ade Stadium on the Purdue campus. The natural turf there has not been very inviting to the Wolverines, and this fact alone should concern the Blue gridders. One more schedule item-Purdue does not play Ohio State this fall. This could be a distinct advantage for both the Boilermakers and the Buckeyes in what should be a Big Ten dogfight. Ohio State Earle Bruce inherits this year from Woody Hayes a team that is at the gridiron crossroads. The Buckeyes at times last season were awesome-the type of play we've become accustomed to have coming from down in Colum- bus, yet in other games they were alarmingly mediocre, a fact that drove coach Hayes finally to commit the act that ended his distinguished career. Bruce is thus faced with the challenge of resurrecting the Buckeye dynasty-a much more difficult task this year given the rise of MSU and Purdue, or letting the Bucks slip into the Big Ten doldrums along with the Wisconsins, Iowas, and Indianas that have festered there for so long. Obviously, the former Iowa State coach intends to do anything but the lat- ter, and to this end plans on using the passing talents of sophomore quarter- back Art Schlichter more than did his predecessor., THAT PROSPECT could only delight Schlichter, who nevertheless became a proficient option quarterback last season in his freshman year. "He's going to be a great quarter- back," Bruce declared. "Schlichter has all the tools." Still, in throwing to speedster end Ty Hicks and flanker Doug Donley, the hope in Columbus is that Schlichter won't gun 21 interceptions, as was the case for the Bucks' signal caller last year. To complement the burgeoning passing attack Ohio State returns -a tested and proven ground game. Paul Campbell was the leading rusher at tailback last year, but should face challenges from Ric Volley and flashy Ricky Johnson, who impressed Bruce greatly in spring drills. BRUCE'S WORRIES do not lie with the "skill" positions on offense however, but rather with the state of the interior line. Senior guard Ken Fritz (6-3, 238) is the lone standout on a team that used to turn out proficient offen- sive linemen with machinelike frequency. Meanwhile, the Buckeye defense must compensate for the loss of the number one, three, four, five and six tacklers from last year's unit. Gone are Montreal Alouette bonus baby Tom Cousineau, the all-time OSU tackling leader, and Kelton Dansler and Byron Cato, both of whom were All-Big Ten, while Cousineau was twice a consensus All-America. The Buckeye bright spot is in the defensive backfield, where Mike Guess and Vince Skillings are both experien- ced, aggressive, and very quick. Bruce has also inherited a great plus in punter Tom Orosz, who was number two in the nation last year with a 43.9 average. But perhaps the biggest thing in Bruce's favor is the Ohio State schedule. Buckeye opponents were 49- 67-7 last season, with only four teams compiling winning records. LIFE BECOME . . . . . . . . . . . . ........ . . . . . preview Believe it or not, it looks as if the old "Big Two, Little Eight" cliche, which has haunted the Big Ten conference so much of late; is now dead. Four teams appear to have a legitimate shot at the conference title, with Purdue on the top of many people's preseason list. In addition to a look at the Big Ten con- tenders, all of which the Wolverines must play this year, here's the lowdown on Michigan's other 1979 opponents, compiled by Daily Sports Editors Geoff Larcom and Billy Sahn. Northwestern The schedule maker really smiled upon Bo Schembechler in drawing up the opening week of Michigan's 1979 football slate, placing at the Wolverines' feet benevolent North- western, which has claimed just two victories in its last 39 appearances. Consider: -The 52-3, 55-7, 56-14, 59-14 and 63-20 punishments Rick Venturi's team en- dured his first year as coach. -The 440 points the Wildcats defense allowed last year. -The 464.4 yards per game opponen- ts ground out against Northwestern. WITH WOEFUL stats like these, a fine idea might be secession from the Big Ten. The Wildcats would make a fine midwest Ivy League represen- tative. Yet that's the last thing on the enthusiastic Venturi's mind. He knows you can't rebuild a program, par- ticularly one which has plummetted to the depths Northwestern's has, over- night. Venturi came to Northwestern promising wide-open football, and last year he produced, the Wildcats' strong- armed signal caller Kevin Strasser setting several school passing records in the process, while accounting for seven of the Wildcats' 12 touchdowns. Strasser now returns for his senior year, along with backfield troops Mike Cammon (FB) and '77 tailback starter Dave Michler, along with fleet-footed reserve tailback Tim Hill. But with just 747 yards rushing all last season, the Wildcats' ground attack must improve if they are to challenge anyone at all. IN ADDITION, the defense must avoid the injuries which riddled an already talent-thin ranks. By the fourth game of the season, seven regulars had been sidelined. The result-Ouch. Yet ever the optimist, Venturi forecasts less pain for his squad this year. His second recruiting class has given him, he feels, a good foundation to build upon. That and the fact that Venturi listed 15 freshman among his top 44 players last year convinces him that his team can go somewhere in the Big Ten this season. And that direction most certainly will be up. Things just can't get much worse in Evanston, can they? Notre Dame Irish head coach Dan Devine already has two strikes on him this year, and the first pass hasn't even been thrown. First off, that exciting last-second win over Houston in the Cotton Bowl marked the end of the eligibility line for a dozen Notre Dame starters, most notably Joe Montana, the Irish's an swer to Frink Merriwell; All-American linebacker Bob Golic, the Irish's leading career tackler; fullback See PREVIEW, Page 9 Curtis Greer (95) and Andy Cannavino (41) await the snap awash in concentration. Greer returns for his final year this season to anchor the Wolver- ine defense at tackle, while Cannavino, a 6-1, 220 pound junior, will figure prominently in the linebacking corps pic- ture. 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