6- The Michigan Daiy -SPORTSMonday - Monday, October11, 1993 GAME STATISTICS PASING M I C H I 0 A N S T A T E 1 .A r FOOTBALL NOTEBOOK Uncharacteristic offensive mistakes lead to Blue demise Playor Miller Tot. C-A Yds TD lt 18-24187 1 0 18-24187 1 0 RUSHING Player Att' Goulboume 24 C. Thomas 18 Abrams 2, Miller 4 Yds 99 43 3 -14 , M Totals 41 RECEIVIN~ Player Abrams Organ S. Greene Goulbourne Carter Coleman Outlaw C. Thomas Totals PUNTING 48131 No. Yds 5 39 3 26 3 16 2 46 2 26 1 20 1 9 1 5 18187 Avg 4.1 2.4 1.5 -3.5 2.7 Avg 7.8 8.6 5.3 23.0 13.0 20.0 9.0 5.0 10.4 Lg 18 7 3 -2 18 Lg 14 10 10 40 18 20 9 5 40 By ANDY DE KORTE and KEN SUGIURA DAILY FOOTBALL WRINTRS The Michigan receiving corp suf- fered from amalady extremelyharm- ful to offensive production - the dropsies. Time after time, Michigan receiv- ers could notcome up with passes that they had easily caught in previous games. "It's hard to explain," Michigan quarterback Todd Collins said. "The offense as a whole played bad today. We have no one to blame but our- selves." While the players probably don't want to hear their coaches' assess- ment of the problem, they are certain to get an earful at practice today. "A big part of the problem was that we weren't physically or men- tally tough on offense all day," coach Gary Moeller said. "We had no one come up with the big play or a spark." Wide receiverDerrick Alexander caught seven passes for 99 yards, but he also missed his chance to catch a fourth-down pass.. NOT Too TOUGH: Before the game the Wolverine players renewed their outrage at an alleged quote by Michi- gan State coach George Perles about a lack of Michigan toughness. After the game, Perles refused to rankle Michigan by attacking its toughness. However, he did respond to the alle- gations. "I had never said, 'The tougher team won,"'Perles said. "If I had, you all would have had the quote. It was fabricated and used. If that's the way some people use to motivate, I can't do anything about it. I think it's chicken, not salad, but the opposite." THIRTY MINUTES OF NOTHING: Blanking an offense as potent as the Wolverines' for even a half has not been easy for Big Ten teams. When the Spartans accomplished it Satur- day, they became the first Big Ten team to blank Michigan through in- termission since Illinois in 1985. The 1993 Spartans matched the 17-0 halftime score that their ances- tors recorded in 1978. 'O' woE FOR Mo: The 33 net rushing yards represented the small- est number of yards ever gained un- der a Moeller-coached Wolverine team. The last time Michigan re- corded fewer than 50 rushing yards in a game was in 1982 against Notre Dame. Seven points also registered a new low for Moeller. Last season's 13-13 tie against Ohio State was Moeller's previous low at Michigan. Moeller's mark in the Wolver- ine-Spartan battle fell to 2-2. WHEATLEY HALTED: After sprint- ing out of the gates in the first four games, Tyrone Wheatley was fi- nally kept under wraps. Wheatley ran for a season-low 33 yards on 11 carries, with a long of seven yards. With 26 receiving and 21 kick re- turning yards, Wheatley compiled 80 all-purpose yards, also a season low and 149 yards below his season average. He was also held scoreless for the first time this season and lost the handle when receiving MIchigan's opening kickoff. "We shut him down," boasted Spartan linebacker Rob Frederickson. "We didn't game- plan anything special to stop him, it's just that that's the way it hap- pened. He was ineffective against us." STILL INFERIOR: Despite upset- ting Michigan, the Spartans still .) Player Salani Team Totals No. 3 1 4 Yds Avg Lg 8628.734 0 0.0 0 8621.534 EVAN PETRUIDaiiy Ricky Powers struggles to break through a wall of Michigan State tacklers during Saturday's action. The normally potent Michigan running attack was grounded, yielding a total of 33 yards. Tyrone Wheatley had them all. PUNT RETURNS Player Coleman Totals No. Yds 3 0 3 0 Avg 0.0 0.0 Lg 0 0 owned up to their feelings of iniquity towards Michigan. "For some reason, our university, our Spartans, we heeded (this vic- tory). We needed something to rally around. We're 60 miles away (from Ann Arbor), and we have acomplex," Perles said. "There's no doubt about it." WAYNE AT STATE: Detroit Lions head coach Wayne Fontes accompa- nied Perles into the interview room following the game. Fontes and Perles were football teammates at Michigan State. Fontes' Lions had Sunday off with a bye week. "I hope this one rubs off," quipped Fontes as he bussed Perles on th cheek. Detroit plays Seattle next week. BY THE BYE: Speaking of byes Michigan State receivedone last week, while Michigan was busy playing Iowa. "It must have helped," Perles ad-, mitted. "Y KICKOFF RETURNS Player Wright Totals DEFENSE Player Bell Callender Garnett Wasylk Fredrickson Allen Christensen Glover Hammonds S. Greene Triplett Manson A. Jackson Shurelds Person TEAM No.Yds 1 19 1 19 Tac 5 5 2 4 5 3 3 3 4 2 1 1 1 1 0 2 Avg 19.0 19.0 Ast ' 1 13 3 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 Lg 19 19 Tot 6 6 5 5 5 4 4 3 4 2 2 1 1 1 1 2 Season of hope turns into one of struggle TEAM STATISTICS First Downs Rushing Passing Total Offense Turnovers Penalties Time MICH 14 33 212 245 1 429 25:44 MSU 16 131 187 318 0 6-54 34:16 By KEN SUGIURA DAILY FOOTBALL WRITER BAST LANSING -Whenr Michigan played one gionutago, not only was a national title in range, but' Michigan football players were voic-' ing their opinions on the topic. "The national championship has got to be your overall goal," said cornerback Alfie Burch in the pre- season.M his statement seemed to echo the mindset of the entire football team- with hordes of Big Ten titles already won, it was time to look to the next plateau. But something happened on the way to the national championship. Namely, Notre Dame. One 27-23 loss to the Fighting Irish changed everything. Title hopes were dashed, and now it was time to revert to the old standby of aiming fora trip out to the Rose Bowl. But something happened on the way to Pasadena, too. Namely, Michigan State. The Spartans shocked Michigan, 17-7, Saturday, and now things are going haywirein thisseasononce fullof so much promise. The experts who called a Michigan Rose Bowl ap- pearance a sure thing are switching allegiances, climbing on the band- wagons of Ohio State and Penn State, which have been clobbering oppo- nents in convincing fashion. The Nittany Lions can boast of blowouts over Maryland and Rutgers, while the Buckeyes have rolled over Washington and Northwestern, among others. Saturday's happenings began to put things in an entirely different light. "We gotbeat up front,"Michigan coach Gary Moeller said. "Ofur of- fensive line didn't match up well with their defensive line." Whereas last year's Michigan win over Michigan State produced 294 rushing yards, Saturday's leadingU ground gainer for Michigan was Tyrone Wheatley with 33.yards. e And there.was talk that the Wo-, verines were not matching the Spar-, tans in intensity and emotion in this. intense and emotional rivalry. "When things are going bad, you$ tend to let it get you down," Michigan. StatequarterbackJimMiller said. "Wei flat out, I thought, dominated for fourt quarters." "I think they were (frustrated)," linebacker Rob Frederickson said. "When we shut down their running. attack and they were somewhat inef-. fective in the passing game, you could: see signs of frustration in their faces.". To perhaps most accurately de- scribe the mayhem Michigan State's. win caused, consider that Spartan run- ning back Craig Thomas was pushing, his club as a Big Ten title contende; following the game. 'We flat out, I thought, dominated for four quarters.' - Jim Miller' Michigan State The loss changes the complexion of the Big Ten. Four teams are unde." feated in conference play: Penn State' (2-0), Wisconsin (2-0), Ohio State (2-0) and Michigan State (1-0). Michigan's 22-game Big Ten un- beaten streak has been snapped. A third outright title is still possible, but given the impressive starts of Penn" State and Ohio State, not likely. The remainder of the season will provide insight into Moeller's coach-, ing capabilities. The challenge which'! lies ahead for him will be to rally the' team after a sluggish start and finish g strongly a season whose primary goal is unattainable and whose secondary goal has become a struggle. Stae Sreet 4 prs - .TOP 10 REASONS To Purchase a New Reverse-Weave * "Sweatshirt 10. You left your old one in the bar last night. 9. Great gift for your little brother. 8. Dozens of MICHIGAN prints. 7. Your EX never gave you back your favorite one. 6. Dozens of Colors; 11 oz., 100% cotton DOUGLASKANTERPly Despite a constant onslaught of State linemen, Todd Collins did manage to pass for over 200 yards, including a touchdown to Derrick Alexander. It was the fourth time this year Collins has thrown for over 200 yards in a game. Department of Recreational Sports INTRAMURAL SPORTS PROGRAM I Ole L vs. I I I