_ SPORTS The Michigan Daily Wednesday, September 15, 1982 Page 7 1981 LEADING TACKLER Boren stars in mind and on field By RON POLLACK On any Friday night before a football Saturday, Michigan linebacker Mike Boren can be found peacefully lost in thought. He may look completely at ease, but in reality he is playing a violent, hard- hitting game. He is playing out the next day's game in his mind. On one play he'll make a bone-crunching tackle that will jar the ball loose from some hapless tailback who has dared trespass his area of responsibility. On another play, Boren will leap in- to the air, snare an errant enemy pass and ramble toward the endzone for six points and certain glory. "YOU HAVE TO play the game in your mind the night before," says Boren. "If you can't visualize a play in your mind, you can't make it." Boren must have visualized his making a lot of tackles last year, because he was a constant hin- derance to opposing team's offenses. The 6-3, 228- pound junior from Columbus, Ohio led all Wolverine defenders last season in tackles with 152. With last year's Honorable Mention All-Big Ten campaign under his belt, Boren is looking to main- tain the quantity of plays he is involved in and im- prove the quality. "I WANT TO get more big plays," he says. "Last year I led the team in tackling, but I wanted to get more big plays." Boren intercepted one pass and recovered one fumble last season. The big play so cherished and sought after by Boren came to pass this past weekend during Michigan's hard-fought 20-9 victory over a stub- born Wisconsin squad. With Michigan up 7-3, Badger quarterback Randy Wright nudged his way into the endzone from one-yard out. But be it Friday night in his mind or Saturday afternoon on the playing field, Boren could not have played the conversion attempt that followed any better. The Badger center snapped the ball, and Boren blasted through the line as though he'd been shot out of a cannon. A thud could be heard as the ball was kicked. A second thud quickly followed as Boren halted the flight of the kick. AS USUAL, Boren was in on a lot of tackles (14) last week, but it was the blocked kick that gave him an extra sense of satisfaction. "That extra point could have meant the game," says Boren proudly. As it was, Boren thought the blocked extra point was worth more than it really was. "On the quar- terback sneak, I thought I'd stopped him," says Boren. "I was so intense, that I thought it was a field goal (attempt)." INDEED, IT is intensity that epitomizes the play of Boren. The curly-haired inside linebacker likes to think of himself as a hell-bent, hit-it-if-it- moves type player. "It's how much you get to the ball," he says in describing makes so many tackles. "It's desire." want to why he That desire will be in abundance when Boren charges onto the playing field to do battle against Notre Dame Saturday evening. "It's going to be easy," says Boren. "It's on national television. It's easy to get up for national television." If Boren has a worry about the night game against the Fighting Irish, it is in his ability to keep his intensity from getting the best of. him Saturday afternoon. Instead of belting a tight end out of bounds as he is accustomed to on any given fall afternoon, Boren will be watching the second hand of a clock wind methodically toward game time. "I hate sitting around waiting for the game," says Boren. "It goes so slowly." And once the 9:00 (EST) game time rolls around, Boren will have yet another new situation to cope with. "Usually by nine or 10 o'clock at night I'm ready to go to bed, so I hope it doesn't hurt me," says Boren. If there is a positive side to the 9:00 starting time for Boren, it is that it will keep the Friday night football games in his mind from becoming redun- dant. He'll still make big plays in his mind games, only this Saturday they'll be realized under bright stadium lights instead of the midday sun. Mike Boren, the leading tackler for the 1981 Wolverines, stops Wisconsin quarterback Randy Wright in last Saturdays game which Michigan won 20-9. Noble to provide leadership this season for inexperienced spikers BIG TEN PREVIEW: Rugged schedule awaits Spartans By LARRY MISHKIN The bad news for the women's volleyball team is that only four star- ters return from last year's squad which placed eighth in the AIAW 'national tournament. The good news, however, is that Alison Noble is one of the four returning starters. NOBLE, A junior from Toronto, was one of the main factors in the volleyball team's successful season last year and coach Sandy Vong will be looking to her to lead this year's team. "Alison means everything to the team," said Vong. "She's like the quar- terback who calls the plays. She plays with talent and technique and is someone who the other players can look up to." Noble established herself as a team leader as a freshman when she was named to the AIAW All-Michigan team, a role she continued to hold last year when she was named to the AIAW All- Regional team. "SHE'S BEEN a leader since she was a freshman," Vong said. "Now that she is older, the other players look up to her. She's quiet, not vocal, and leads by example. The younger class has caught on and seen what she's done." On the court, Noble shares the position of team setter with teammate Jeanne Weckler, a position that requires her to always be on her toes, as it is her responsibility to set up the hit- ters with sets that they can hit for poin-' ts. She takes the responsibility in stride though. "I don't feel any pressure or respon- sibility," said Noble. "That's my job and I enjoy it. It's just a position." ONE ASPECT of the sport that Noble does find disappointing is the relative obscurity of the team that rarely draws large crowds to its matches in the Cen- tral Campus Recreational Building. But even the lack of school support does not diminish Noble's fondness for the game. "We (the team members) are con- stantly trying to recruit fans," said Noble. "It's an entertaining and fun game to watch. We all play though because we all love the game." It's the love of the game that keeps Noble going through the rough two-and- a-half-hour practices every night. "SHE'S VERY intelligent," said Vong. "She grasps the significance of the drills. She's a hard worker and never loafs in practice. She always gives 110%." Noble is no loaf in the classfoom either, where she is majoring in com- puter engineering while maintaining close to a 4.0 grade point average, and it's no trick that she manages to excel both on the court and in the classroom. "I have to budget my time," she said. "I live a completely different lifestyle in the fall than I do in the winter when the season is over." WHY THOUGH, if she wants to devote the time necessary to being a good athlete is she majoring in such a time-consuming field? "I'm at Michigan to go to school," she said. "I play because I love the game and I hope to always play and maybe coach, but there is no real future in volleyball." These feelings are best exemplified by her decision to turn down a tryout with the Canadien National Team because of the time commitment. "I FELT that my career was more important," she said. "Sacrificing my future is silly for something so shor- tlived." Vong offered high praise for his scholar athlete calling her a delight to have on the team. "In anything she wants to do, Alison will be excellent," he said. "She's a very intense person and very coachable. She's a challenge because when I get to practice I have to be prepared for her." AS FOR the team's chances this year, Noble looks at it as a rebuilding year because only four starters are retur- ning and the team will be playing in the NCAA for the first time. "We will be facing better competition this year," she said. "It will take a while for the freshmen on the team to gain experience, but we're all en- thusiastic and working hard and anyone's chances are great with that attitude." For her personal goals, Noble said she would like to play the best she can, be a good team leader, and see the team make the Big Ten finals, a goal she calls realistic. Considering her past track record, it wouldn't be a bit surprising if she achieves these goals. This is the second in a nine- part series previewing the Big Ten season. By RON POLLACK Even the most diehard Michigan fan must feel a slight twinge of sympathy for hated rival Michigan State, what with it playing its first five games of the season against Illinois, Ohio State, Miami-Florida, Notre Dame and Michigan. OK, so diehard Michigan fans get a sadistic sense of pleasure at the Spartans' dilemma, but if they were to feel sympathetic it would be understandable. "WHAT worries me most is the early part of our schedule," says Spartan head coach Muddy Waters. "If we can live through the first- five games of our schedule, we'll be a tough team." Of course the Spartans, already 0-1, could just as easily go 0-5. But Waters would rather not con- sider the rather considerable pounding his team may well take during the initial five games of the year. He'd rather think more pleasant thoughts instead. With the possible exceiption of a November 6 contest against Leisterb -...starting quarterback pitiful Northwestern, Waters greatest reason for optimism this year is his immensely talented receiving corps consisting of junior Daryl Turner and seniors Ted Jones and Otis Grant. That talented trio combined for an im- pressive 105 catches for 1,797 yards last season. "I DON'T think there's a corp of receivers that can compare to them," says Waters. Responsible for getting the ball to the Spartans' top-flight receivers is quarterback John Leister. "Two years ago, I felt he was as good a quarterback as there was," says Waters. "I still feel that. His greatest im- provement is that he now stays in the pocket, although he can still run when necessary." When Michigan State shuns the pass in favor of the run, it can turn to its top four rushers from a ground game that ranked seventh in the conference. Heading the list is sophomore Aaron Roberts who led the team with 461 yards. Terry Hawkins, James Hodo and Darrin McClelland - who ranked second through fourth for the Spartans in yards gained last season - will try to take some of the pressure off Roberts. Heading the offensive line which will block for these backs is All- Big Ten center Tom Piette. ON DEFENSE, the Spartans will be led by Carl Banks, one tough dude according to Waters and the team's leading tackler a year ago. "Carl Banks is one of the toughest young men I know," says Waters. "If he talks back to me in practice, I pretend I don't hear him." Joining Banks on the Michigan State line will be Joe Stevens, Howard McAdoo and Smiley Creswell. The Spartans two linebackers (they employ a 5-2 defense) will be Steve Maidlow and James Neely. Maidlow played a big role in the MSU defense last year as he was third in tackling on the team. IN THE secondary, Michigan Stae must replace 1981 starters James Burroughs and Thomas Morris. Returning at defensive back, however, are strong safety Tim Cunningham and corner- back Carter Kamana. Cun- ningham was the Spartans' four- th-ranked tackler a year ago. Looking at his defense as a whole, Waters speaks confiden- tly. "We are deeper with ex " perience on defense than at any time since we've been here," he says. "We feel we can effectively stop runners ... and yet continue. doing the job we have done ii stopping the pass." If MSU could have defensed they schedule makers as well as- Waters thinks it'll defend op- posing offenses, the Spartans- would have the makings of a pret;' ty good season. Banks ... anchors defense ). BILLBOARD There will be a "send-off" rally for the Michigan football team this Friday at 5:00 p.m. in front of South Quad. The team will be boarding the bus there and will leave directly for 'South Bend for Saturday's game against Notre Dame. Head coach Bo Schembechler and the E! team tri-captains-Anthony Carter, Robert Thompson and Paul Girgash- are expected to speak briefly. Members of the Michigan Marching Band and the cheerleaders will also be in attendance. The Michigan Lacrosse Club is going to have a fall organizational meeting for new and old members. The meeting will be held tomorrow at 6:30 p.m., 1250 CCRB. No lacrosse experience is necessary. For more information con- tact Howard Handler, 665-9611. Alison Noble goes up forsa spike in a Michigan volleyball match at the CCRB last year.Coach Sandy Vong said he will be looking for Noble, one of four re- turning starters, to provide the leadership for this year's young team. pik ers down WSU; avenge tourney losses. special to the Daily The Michigan women's volleyball team got revenge against Wayne State in straight games, 15-5, 15-2, and 15-13, yesterday at Wayne State. Michigan had lost twice to WSU twice at the b Wolverine Invitational Tournament Alison Noble. "Alison was all over the place. Setting, hitting,she really took command." Michigan opens the Big Ten season this weekend traveling to Purdue on Friday and then to Indiana on Satur- day. LSAT & GMAT LSAT Seminar beginning on Campus September 17 For information reaardina anv of our LSAT Not sure which HP right for you? is We are having a Hewlett-Packard Demonstration Thursday, Sept. 16, 10:30-12:30 and 1:30-4:00 I