The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, January 7, 1987 -Page 13 lJarttin (1Jbwnit-des By Adam Martin Insecticide needed for ASU fans PASADENA,Calif. « SU! ASU! ASU!" The roar was deafening. It sounded like a swarm of locusts. It even looked like a swarm of locusts, only bigger and brighter. And when the clock read 0:00 on New Year's Day, 1987 in Pasadena's Rose Bowl, the insects with gold pom- pons from a school somewhere out west had eaten everything in their path. Well, maybe not everything. The Michigan Wolverines and about 20,000 maize and blue maniacs left the Rose Bowl with all bodily parts intact. They did not leave unscathed, however. It can be safely said Arizona State man - handled the Wolverines for almost three quarters, during which time Michigan held the ball for just 15:14. More telling was Michigan's time of possession in the second half - 9:56. That's approximately 33 percent of the half. Still, the numbers aren't that significant. It's the numbers' explanation which matters. Why couldn't Michigan move the ball from midway through the second quarter until the end of the game? How could Michigan run 26 plays from scrimmage in the second half and score diddley-squat? Why, oh why, did the Wolverines lose yet another Rose Bowl with the winningest active coach in Division 1-A football, Bo Schembechler, at their helm? Michigan was outrun, outpassed, outquicked, outhustled and simply outplayed by the Sun Devils, who clinched the Pac-10 championship before their final regular season game. But that's only part of the answer. ASU upset the formerly fourth-ranked Wolverines by just one touchdown, 22-15. Michigan had several (read: five) scoring opportunites in the second half, and the Wolverine faithful wholeheartedly expected ,their team to do something with the ball... anything, at least. In fact, the Michigan fans who trekked to Los Angeles for the Granddad of 'em all deserve an ovation for their support, which got louder as the game slipped away. The 'problem was the swarm on the sunny side of the stadium. Each time Michigan fans reddened their throats with cheers, the swarm shrieked. It was like a gargantuan buzz. Behind every gold pom- pon was an insect hoping, planning to sting Michigan quarterback Jim Harbaugh when he tried to call signals. Harbaugh swatted the swarm on two occasions, most notably on Michigan's final drive when he stopped play in the waning moments by turning around and telling the referee he could not hear. But the little buggers wouldn't go away. They were reminiscent of summertime gnats. The more you sweat, the more the gnats annoy you. So you flail away at your head and face hoping to kill them, but the swarm around your brain grows. The gold swarm in the Rose Bowl didn't really grow as the Wolverines perspired; the ASU insects just got louder and more annoying. The swarm sensed Michigan's inability to cope with the noise and its accompanied pressure, so the gold daycrawlers multiplied their deafening hum on each successive Michigan possession. As a result, each time the Wolverines got the ball as the contest progressed, the situation seemed more desperate. And it didn't have to be. According to published figures, 21,000 tickets were sold to Michigan fans while ASU fans purchased 41,000. This roughly two-to- one ratio seemed more like three-to-one in the stadium. And on the field it must have sounded more like five-to-one. "The noise factor was amazing," said Schembechler. "Maybe someday we'll get as many tickets as (the Pac-10)." Don't hold your breath, Bo. Maybe someday the number of Big Ten fans journeying to Pasadena will equal that of the Pac-10, but proximity to California almost guarantees a home-field advantage for the Pac-10. But Michigan beat Ohio State before before thousands of bovine idiots breathing in their face, you're saying, right? Well, yes, Michigan dumped OSU in Ohio Stadium. But Michigan was the better team (AP and UPI final polls notwithstanding). Arizona State was the (gulp) superior team on Jan. 1, 1987, swarm or no swarm. And yes, Michigan could have won the game, or maybe should have. But what the Wolverines needed was an offensive line and some more quickness on defense, not to mention a huge flyswatter and about 70,000 cans of Raid. Daily 'photo by SCOTT LITUCHY Wolverine quarterback Jim Harbaugh contends with the Sun Devils and their fans as he asks an official to stop play to silence the crowd. The Sun Devils md e i cig an o it (Continued from Page 1) The Sun Devils used their superior speed completed 16 of 30 passes for 193 yards and on, defense to ground Harbaugh on the pass two touchdowns, one which slid through the rush and neutralize Wolverine tailback Jamie hands of Wolverine safety Doug Mallory. Morris. Michigan's line blocking was VAN RAAPHORST was able to particularly offensive to Schembechler. v Ah MhA p as effete "If you want to be critical, be critical of evade the Michigan pass rush and effectively the offensive line," Schembechler said, his long the Wolvenes with shortpasses; "hywere lousy." hi ogst pass was only 22 yards. He was "The wer louy."named the game's Most Valuable Player. "We really tried hard," said offensive g lineman John Elliot, "but it was just one of Obviously, everyone is a little nervous sa Jat the start," Van Raaphorst said, referring to those days." Michigan's early lead. "We weren't very IT CERTAINLY wasn't a good time successful at first, but we adjusted and that's to wake up on the wrong side of the bed. In what won the game for us." addition to allowing six tackles for losses, The Sun evgame vous heW vriscod nymsr53yrs TeSnDevils' nervousness translated The Wolverines could only muster 53 yards into a 15-3 second quarter Michigan lead. rAshing, including negative five in the The Wolverines took the lead on a 18-yard second half. Arizona State, meanwhile, touchdown run by Morris followed by a two- rushed for 188 yards while playing turnover- point conversion pass by kicker Mike free football. Gillette to fullback Gerald White. " We were fundamentally sound," said After Arizona State's Kent Bostrom Arizona State head coach John Cooper. "The booted a 37-yard field goal to make the score team that makes the fewest mistakes wins 8-3, Michigan marched 58 yards in nine the game. We didn't make any mistakes." plays and scored on a Harbaugh two-yard "I don't think any one phase of the team quarterback sneak. The conversion made the is to blame," said Harbaugh. "I didn't play score 15-3. wall, the offensive line didn't play well, the defense didn't play well." IT WOULD be the high point of the " The last aspect - the Michigan defense game for the Wolverines. Arizona State . helped make a hero of Arizona State scored 19 unanswered points from then on quarterback Jeff Van Raaphorst. He and shut down the Michigan offense. Michigan had its opportunities in the fourth quarter, but Arizona State stifled Michigan every time. The Wolverines had a last-gasp chance at the end, but Harbaugh's fourth-down pass to Gerald White was intercepted by safety Robby Boyd with 1:01 left in the game. The entire second half was that way for Michigan. Michigan had excelled all season in the second half, but in the Rose Bowl they were dominated. Arizona State held the ball for over 20 minutes in the final two quarters, and outgained Michigan 166 to 76 yards. "We just never had the ball in the second half," Schembechler said. "Then the first couple of times we didn't do anything with it." For that, the Wolverines have no one to blame but themselves. From the players' perspective, the worst part may have been the fact they did not - or so they felt- play up to their capability. "If you play as well as you can, you know you've been beaten by a better team," Harbaugh said, having finished his career in a Michigan uniform. "But there's not another chance. At least not for me." lo preaches gridgospel (Continued from Page 22) He compared the Big Ten's record in the Rose Bowl with the American League's in the Major League Baseball All-Star game. A matter of luck, he said. The Big Ten is just as tough. "We're not Little Sammy Milktoast that can only win at home," he said. "If we don't win, then damn it to hell, we'll all be mad." THE CROWD howled and Schembechler was only getting started. He was asked about his thoughts on a playoff system for a national championship. He listed academic pursuits, conference R g'&g u ASU, not USC or UCLA, head Pac-10: Sun Devils earn respec By PHIL NUSSEL Special to the Daily PASADENA, Calif. - It was not Stanford, UCLA, Washington, or USC. It was Arizona State. John Cooper's Sun Devils (10- 1-1), in their first trip to the Rose Bowl, continued the efforts of their Pac-10 counterparts by defeating a Big Ten champion. The victim was Michigan, a three-point favorite to bring home Bo Schembechler's second Rose Bowl victory in seven attempts. "I'm on cloud nine," said Cooper before he sat down for the post- game press conference. "This is the greatest win I've been associated with as a coach." COOPER learned the Rose Bowl secret to winning at UCLA in 1965 under Tommy Prothro when the Bruins defeated Michigan State 14-12 in the 1966 Rose Bowl. However, it was his offensive coordinator, Jim Colletto, who brought in the secret to beating the season since Notre Dame rolled up 455 yards. But unlike the Irish, ASU did not commit a turnover. It held the ball for over ten minutes longer than Michigan and made 10 of 19 third down conversions. "IT WAS a typical Arizona State football game," Cooper said. "We made very few mistakes. We had a sound kicking game. And we were able to beat a very very good Michigan football team." Quarterback Jeff Van Raaphorst, the Rose Bowl Most Valuable Player, took charge of the ASU offensive attack, which took advantage of an obvious quickness edge. He hit 16 of 30 passes for 193 yards and two touchdowns. He was the sixth-straight Pac-10 player to be named MVP. "Today Jeff Van Raaphorst deserves a lot of credit," Cooper said. "He played under pressure. I've said many times that he is the best arterhack on the West Coast We THE SENIOR fro Cajon, Calif. brought his back from a 15-3 deficit earl' second quarter. The mom building score came wi seconds left in the first hal Van Raaphorst hit Bruce Hill back of the endzone for a fo touchdown pass. "Jeff was under a, pressure," Hill said. "I don' if he threw the ball to me, threw the ball and I was there He then hit Hill for a or touchdown pass on the o drive of the second half to pt up for good. "Obviously, everyone little nervous at the start Raaphorst said. "We weren successful at first, but we a and that's what won the ga us. "Once we worked o adjustments we made in t quarter, it seemed to settle down a lot more. Our pass b Lot better our run blockin rivalries, and weak regular-season schedules in explaining his opposition to playoffs. "I voted myself national champion time and again, but nobody listened to me," Schembechler said. "Your independent teams will win it because they'll play the greatest mismatches. They don't give, a damn that they've played Little Sisters of the Poor." More laughter. The Michigan mentor continued with his list of cons for prolonging the season. "If I lose again, it's going to be a hell of a poor year." Chuckles from the back. "And if you can show me a college president who is pounding the table for a national championship, then I'll listen." He went on to laud the Rose Bowl, which promotes the conference rivalry between the Big m El Ten and Pac-10 by hosting the team champions of the two leagues each Y in the New Year's Day. That comment entum- was met by applause from the th 29 Tournament of Roses officials, who f when wear white jackets and red neckties l in the and arrange trips to Disneyland in ur-yard hopes of such praise. lot of Schembechler was putting on t know quite a show, and the writers were but we loving every minute of it. He said he" nothing new or radical - nothing ne-yard he hasn't talked about before. But pening the Detroit and Ann Arbor media ut ASU have heard it all. In Pasadena, the local and national media appreciated was a Schembechler as a coaching legend ," Van and hung on every word. No matter ,' Bo was 1-6 (now 1-7) in the i't very Granddaddy of Bowls. djusted ime for But on New Year's Day, it was Cooper's turn to take the floor and ut the the limelight. As soon as he first Schembechler exited the press things room, the beaming Arizona State locking coach entered and praised everyone i' aot a errn -r.rhnl aff Unn :, ... ,.... v.. ,. .,: