Men's Swimming and Diving vs. Eastern Michigan Tonight, 7 p.m. Canham Natatorium SPORTS Football vs. Minnesota Tomorrow, 1 p.m. Michigan Stadium wit The Michigan Daily Friday, October 23, 1992 Page 1: .a - .. 'M' icers face Ferris in first CCHA series by Tim Rardin Daily Hockey Writer This weekend's series in Big Rapids between Michigan and Ferris State - the first league games for both - features two teams that are similar in that their strengths lie in their defenses. Both teams lost only one contributing defenseman from last year, and both return proven goaltending. However, the similarity ends there. The Wolverines are the No. 1 team in the nation for a reason. One of their other strengths - by the way - lies in their offense. While the Bulldogs will need to rely on their defense, Michigan can look confidently to its balanced and very potent scoring attack. "Michigan is very explosive offensively," Ferris as- sistant coach Mark Kaufman said. "They play a power game, so we hope that our defense and goaltending will keep us close." Leading that defensive stance will be junior co-cap- tain John Gruden, who finished third in scoring for the Bulldogs last year, as well as seniors Daniel Chaput and Daryl Filipek. In goal for Ferris are two equally experi- en~ed net-minders. Juniors Craig Lisko and Pat Mazzoli return, with Lisko likely to get the nod after posting a 3;19 goals-against average, and the second-best save percentage in the CCHA at .896. Despite the Wolverines' clear advantage up front, Michigan coach Red Berenson said he still sees thepo- tential for a defensive struggle. "I see the game as being how far the two teams are gping to bend before they break defensively," Berenson said. "I think it's going to be a weekend where we can't give them much, and we've got to make our chances count." Last year, the Bulldogs failed to make their chances count, managing only one victory - a 6-5 upset at Ewigleben Ice Arena - in four tries against the Wolverines. But under new head coach Bob Daniels, Ferris State is looking to turn things around, particularly in regards to its offense, which averaged only 3.1 goals per game last season. "My philosophy is definitely built around a strong defense," Daniels said. "But we're going to shift our emphasis and allow the players to be creative offen- sively." While Michigan presents a multi-dimensional attack with countless weapons, the Bulldogs do not have such a luxury up front. Sophomore Tim Christian leads the way, having chalked up 29 points to lead the team in scoring his first year. The next two top returning scorers after Christian are both defensemen. Both teams are coming off decisive victories last weekend. The Wolverines dismantled Notre Dame, 6-1, while the Bulldogs exploded against Laurentian, 11-2. Berenson said he expects his team to be ready against what will certainly be a fired-up Ferris squad. "We fully expect to have a good weekend," Berenson said. "We have to be just as ready or more ready than we were against Notre Dame, and I think we will be." Another weekend,'5 another blowout? ,x W . .a by Jeni Durst D ily Fnntb ll Writa 0 0 Lai y ' . aiu vvrner On any given weekend, any Big;- Ten team can come in and defeat' any other Big Ten team. In the paste, the thought expressed in this cliche; made the Big Ten great and exciting, The key here is the past. Now, x given weekend leads to another;; mediocre squad coming to Ann _ Arbor to lose big to the cream of the, conference. We're on the verge of another weekend and, once again, Michigan (3-0 in the Big Ten, 5-0-1 overall) is an enormous point favorite (31) over its opponent, this time the Minnesota Golden Gophers (1-5, 1-2). Even ABC-TV has given up on any 6 ii. * .6e 3-0 Big Ten, 1st place i 5-0 - - vrl Ed Davis eluded many Hoosier tacklers en route to 59 yards last weekend. Davis will look for similar results against Minnesota. Battle for th by John Niyo Daily Football Writer QUARTERBACK: There won't be any mis- taking which quarterback is which Saturday afternoon when Michigan hosts Minnesota. In the backfield for Michigan is Elvis Grbac, a fifth-year senior who rarely leaves the pocket. In the backfield for Minnesota is Marquel Fleetwood, a fifth-year senior who would just as soon be a running back. Both suit their respective offenses well. Fleetwood is the league's leader in total offense with 1834 yards from scrimmage (312 rushing, 1522 passing), and is second in passing yardage behind Iowa's Jim Hartlieb, who separated his shoulder last week against Illinois. He causes many problems for op- posing defenses in the Gophers new wide- open attack. Grbac rebounded from poor showings against Iowa and Michigan State with a solid game against Indiana, throwing for two touch- downs and no interceptions. And with the running game as successful as it has been, the pressure on Grbac has been minimal. Advantage: Michigan RUNNING BACKS: Michigan's Tyrone Wheatley has blitzed Big Ten defenses this season. He has racked up 608 yards on just 78 e Jug a hug carries this season, tops in the Big Ten and ninth nationally. The other three tailbacks in coach Gary Moeller's stable - Ed Davis, Ricky Pow- ers and Jesse Johnson - all see plenty of action as well, and all have shown the ability to rack up big numbers. Powers is listed as probable this week- end, after sitting out with an ankle sprain. Fullback Burnie Legette is also expected to play. Minnesota's Antonio Carter, at6-foot-1 and 222 pounds, is a tough inside runner. The junior is fourth among the conference's rush- ing leaders with 415 yards on 93 carries. mismatch Freshman Amani Toomer and sopho- more Felman Malveaux also turned in good performances against Indiana. Advantage: Michigan OFFENSIVE LINE: Michigan's offensive line has regained its traditional form after a slow start this season. Minnesota's line is big and experienced, and is anchored by guard Ted Harrison, a second-team all-Big Ten selection last year. Advantage: Michigan DEFENSIVE LINE: Michigan's defensive line has been nearly unstoppable of late. The switch of Chris Hutchinson to linebacker seems to have sparked a ferocious pass rush. The Wolverines had 9 sacks against Indiana. Minnesota was last in the league in rush- ing defense and total defense last season. That, coupled with Michigan's dominating line, does not bode well for the Gophers. Advantage: Michigan See MATCHUPS, Page 11 Advantage: Michigan WIDE RECEIVER: Minnesota's new coach Jim Wacker has installed a new pass-ori- ented offensive scheme, and a major benefi- ciary has been junior wide receiver Omar Douglas. He leads the Big Ten with 40 catches already this season and averages nearly 80 yards receiving per game. Senior John Lewis is a speedster with good hands. Michigan is led by redshirt junior Der- rick Alexander. For the second week in a row, Alexander returned a punt back for a touchdown. He also caught one pass for a touchdown and had another called back. chance for some excitement; the 1 p.m. game is not televised. Yet Wolverine coach Gary Moeller is not one to buy into all the," point spreads and predictions. "Over the long haul of the season there is a down period," Moeller said. "Coming out of the middle of: the season when you can't yet seed; the end there is a tendency to let up" by both players and coaches. "Academics and tests start com ing in and the mental concentration starts to let up and the hunger is not. always what it should be. Every one wants to beat Michigan. We have to guard against that." In addition, the Gophers motiva- tion may be bolstered by a heart- breaking defeat last weekend at the hands of Michigan State. Minnesota lost in the waning seconds on a3 touchdown set up by a bomb from; See GOPHERS, Page 11 $ d } Stickers try by Sharon Lundy Daily Sports Writer The Michigan field hockey team will be out to prove that it has what it takes to win this weekend in Columbus. The Wolverines face Ohio State and Northwestern today and tomorrow, respectively. Earlier this season, Michigan de- feated Ohio State, 2-1, but lost to Northwestern, 4-0. Both teams are very strong, but since the Wolver- to regroup a ines have already lost to the Wild- cats, that game will- be tougher emotionally. "It is really a mental thing," Michigan defender Nancy Irvine said. "If we play well we can beat both teams." Ohio State has several players at sweeper and corner that may pose a threat to Michigan. "They have a good corner which we will have to defend against," de- it Ohio State. fender Keely Libby said. "The de. fense will have to work very hari within the circle to do what they" can do, and our attack has to do what they were taught and keep at their plays." The Buckeyes recently lost to Michigan State, a team which the Wolverines defeated, 5-0, earlier- this season. Ata t gradu choos4 iewhen college es have less to SEI has mre O ur clients challenge us to deliver new and different investment solutions everyday! Come join us and learn how you can creatively contribute to client solutions. The Wolverines are looking: forward to avenging their loss to' Northwestern. Most of the probl lems had to do with their confidence: and concentration. "For the whole 70 minutes of the game we have to stay focused,"' Libby said. On paper, the game against the' Wildcats was very even. Nordlh western, however, converted more- of its shots into goals and ended up with the win. 0 The Wolverines will try to stop" the Wildcat attack and launch theif own aggressive offense. "We have to concentrate .on short corners and scoring," Irvine said. "We also have to play hard be- tween the 25's." From the last game against Northwestern, Michigan knows, where it went wrong and will try to correct it for this weekend's matchup. L "We're really working on get ting our shots in the goal, instead a foot or two outside," Irvine saidr "Last time we played Northwest- ern they just had all the lucky breaks, but we outplayed them and, probably shot more than they did."'. 0- F ... c