The Michigan Daily - SPORTSMonday - Monday, October 31, 1994 - 5 I C H I 0 A N 19 SE Wolverines appear to be on way to repeat of last season GAME STATISTICS PASSING Player C-A Yds TD Collins 14-25172 1 J. Carr 1-3 8 0 Totals 15-28 180 1 Int 2 1 3 By RACHEL BACHMAN Daily Football Writer Walter Smith's exuberant entrance onto the Michigan Stadium turf was largely ironic. The injured captain pumped his fists and bobbed his head as he strutted under the "Go Blue" banner - the first time this year with- out crutches. Little did Smith, who scored the first touchdown in the 1992 Rose Bowl, know that Saturday's game would squelch any remaining hopes of his team returning to Pasadena. The Wolverines' 31-19 loss to Wisconsin still left them tied for sec- ond place in the Big Ten standings. However, with a 3-2 conference record, Michigan is out of the race for the Rose Bowl. But for a school whose fans used to make New Year's Day reservations at California hotels around St. Patrick's Day, Saturday's game was hauntingly familiar. It hearkened memories of last year, when the Wol- verines went 8-4, finished fourth in the Big Ten and ended up in the Hall of Fame Bowl. In 1993, Michigan rebounded from an early-season loss to Michigan State with an emotional victory at confer- ence newcomer Penn State. The next week, though, the Wol- verines were edged out by Illinois. A loss to Wisconsin sealed what would be remembered as the season to for- get. All that after beginning the season with national title aspirations. There were no such thoughts at the start of the 1994 campaign, just a desire to reclaim the conference title. But once again, early-season losses - to Penn State, and now to Wiscon- sin - have derailed Michigan's drive to recapture past dominance. It was apparent in the postgame press conference that the Wolverines knew the ramifications of this game, evident in defensive tackle Trent Zenkewicz's Freudian slip. "For us to be successful next year," he said, then corrected himself, "next week, we're going to have to look ourselves in the mirror and realize we didn't play the best." In reality, the season isn't over. Michigan still is almost certain to gotoabowlgame; it just won't be in the.Rose Bowl. If the Wolverines finish second in the conference, they'll head to the Citrus Bowl in Zenkewicz Orlando. A third- place result means a Holiday Bowl berth and a trip to San Diego. And fourth place? The Wolverines might even be headed back to Tampa and the Hall of Fame Bowl. Many Division I teams would jump at the chance to participate in any postseason game. But according to the players and coaches, Michigan is not like many teams. "It's disappointing right now, the way we've played," captain Steve DOUGLAS KANTER/Daily 'It's disappointing right now, the way we've played. We lost to Penn State, then we put it together and beat Illinois. Then we do this.' -- Steve Morrison Michigan linebacker Morrison said. "We lost to Penn State, then we put it together and beat Illi- nois. Then we do this. "You can't sit around and mope about it. You've gotta regroup." So, if the Wolverines are not play- ing for the Big Ten title, which coach Gary Moeller has repeatedly called the point of the season, what motiva- tion is there to play hard? "To not lose again," quarterback Todd Collins said. Tailback Tyrone Wheatley, who passed on the NFL to play for Michi- gan one last year, perhaps has lost the most in Michigan's season of medioc- rity. He declined invitations to sec- ond-guess his decision. "My goals are farther and bigger than for just this season," Wheatley said. "I want things for the whole team. If the younger guys don't get a ring ... that's where my cares are." For those surrounding the Michi- gan football team, that's where theirs are too. SAFRAN Continued from page 1 Therein lies the problem. In the past Michigan may have simply been able to intimidate whomever wore the light- colored jerseys just by being the home team. Those days have disappeared. The Wolverines' winning profi- ciency makes them a target for every opposition. A win over Michigan can equal success in a struggling team's season, such as it did for Illinois' last year, and now for the Badgers in 1994. At least the Wolverines can say they are gracious hosts. "It's tougher to play any place you lose," Wisconsin's Joe Rudolph said. Inexplicably that would be Michigan Stadium for the Wolverines. Michigan must be the only teamthat actually looks forward to road trips. The Wolverines must see "@ Ohio State, Nov. 22" on the schedule and celebrate with a big, "Yessss!" Michigan plays in the largest sta- dium in the United States. This is one case where bigger is certainly not better. "The Big House?" Big deal. RUSHING Player Aft Yds Avg Wheatley20 132 6.6 Davis 6 24 4.0 Collins 9 (-)1(-).1 Totals 35155 4.4 RECEIVING Player No. R'mersma8 Hayes 3 Toomer 2 Richards 1 Wheatley 1 Totals 15 Yds 79 59 27 12 3 180 Avg LgTD 9.9 21 1 19.7 40 0 13.5 18 0 12.0 12 0 3.0 3 0 12.0 40 1 PUNTING Player I Baker Totals No. Yds Avg Lg 4152 38.0 49 415238.049 Lg TD 24 1 100 11 0 24 1 tackles wide receiver Amani Toomer during Saturday's 31-19 Michigan loss passes for 27 yards, well below his per-game average of 103.7 yards which aturday's game. Toomer was not the only Michigan receiver to struggle; passes. is roar past Buckeyes; ai gives Perles a chance CONFERENCE OVERALL Purdue's 22-yard line until the fourth quarter and overcame a 13-0 deficit to take the lead on a 1-yard run by Kent Kahl, a 38-yard run by Jefferson Bates and a 39-yard run by Sedrick Shaw. The Boilermakers (2-1-2, 4-2-2) tided to go for the winning field goal in the closing seconds after tak- ing over on Iowa's 42-yard line. Mike Alstott, who rushed for 138 yards on 25 carries, had runs of 19 yards, six yards and one yard, bring- ing the ball to the Iowa 13. Purdue had a third-and-three with three timeouts remaining when it let the clock run down to set up Bobich's *mpt. Illinois 28, Northwestern 7 Johnny Johnson passed for two touchdowns and Simeon Rice domi- nated defensively as Illinois survived Northwestern's successful Hail Mary pass to beat the Wildcats, 28-7. Northwestern (2-3, 3-4-1) has hoped to use the game as a spring- board to its second-ever bowl bid but now needs to win its three remaining games, including its finale at No. 1 Penn State, to qualify. The Fighting Illini (3-2, 5-3) re- mained very much in the running for a major bowl game. They entered the game as Big Ten leaders in every defensive category. And except for Steve Schnur's 64-yard completion to Chris Gamble as the first half ended, they manhandled the Wildcats. Schnur replaced Tim Hughes just in time to throw the desperation pass that cut Northwestern's deficit to 14- 7 but couldn't lead a second-half come- back. Penn State Ohio State Michigan Illinois Purdue Wisconsin Indiana Northwestern Michigan State Iowa Minnesota W 4 3 3 3 2 3 2 2 2' 1 I. L 0 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4 T 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 w 7 6 5 5 4 4 5 3 3 3 3 L 0 3 3 3 2 3 3 4 5 5 5 T 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 1 0 Carr PUNT RETURNS Player No. Yds Avg Lg TD Toomer 2 (-)3(-)1.5 3 0 Totals 2 (-)3(-)1.5 3 0 KICKOFF RETURNS PlayerNo. Yds Smith 2 125 Hayes 2 28 Floyd 1 10 Totals 5 163 Avg Lg. 62.5100 14.0 16 10.0 10 32.6100 TD 1 0 0 1 Saturday's games Michigan at Purdue Michigan State at Northwestern Penn State at Indiana Wisconsin at Ohio State Illinois at Minnesota RIEMERSMA tinued from page 1. ith wideout Amani Toomer on a 14- yard touchdown pass. But 1993 saw him attempt just eight passes all year. And with Collins back as the top man this season, Riemersma's prospects for starting at quarterback for more than just his se- nior campaign were slim. Thus, after he injured the rotator cuff in his right shoulder early last son and coach Gary Moeller made an overture before 1994 spring prac- tice, the junior did not hesitate for long. Moeller, noticing a void at tight end following the departure of 1993 starter Marc Burkholder, asked Riemersma if he might like to make a change in positions. Riemersma mulled over the deci- sion for a few weeks, consulted his ents and gave a nod. "We all kind of laughed at first," says Riemersma's roommate, tight end Rob Vander Leest. "But everybody was kind of surprised (at how well he did)." It could not have been a simple through. His outstanding play at the new position has not only altered his status on the team, but also radically changed his relationship with one-time rival Collins. The older Collins already had the inside track at succeeding Grbac at quarterback. But that did not deter Riemersma from competing for the job when Grbac graduated after the 1992 season. Due to their combative relation- ship on the field, Collins and Riemersma rarely had spare words for each other away from practice. "Then I was just so conscious of getting enough snaps in practice to get a shot at Todd," Riemersma recalls. "We would make sure to keep one up on each other." It didn't help that the two had few shared experiences. "We never played in a game together," Collins is quick to point out. This season, though, Riemersma has emerged as one of Collins' most trustworthy set of hands. Instead of trying to outperform the starting quar- terback in practice, Riemersma now plays an active role in Michigan's Saturday game plan. sive secondary. Most importantly, Riemersma is constantly on the receiving end of clutch passes. On the winning drive at Notre Dame Sept. 10, he slipped into the secondary and caught a 26-yard strike up the middle of the field that kept Michigan marching. The game against the Irish was just his second at tight end. "The knowledge I'm able to carry over from the quarterback position has put me over the top," he says. "A lot of times I'll look up at the line and know what the coverage is and who should get the ball. At Notre Dame I knew the ball was coming to me." To be sure, Riemersma is leaps and bounds beyond where anyone would have predicted at the start of spring ball. "He's a step ahead, 10 steps ahead of where most people would be." Moeller said. "Everybody says, 'Well, he was a quarterback so he's a smart player, so he can go do that.' "No. He was a smart quarterback who came over there, and because of his smartness, he carried on." He has room to improve, though. Blocking, admittedly the toughest coaching staff to run the ball to his side of the line. With Michigan down 17-3 in the third quarter to Penn State, Wolverine tailback Tyrone Wheatley took a pitch to the right side of the field. A routine play became a 67-yard touchdown romp after Riemersma flattened his man and Wheatley ran past. After seeing physically pounding plays like that, it is difficult to imag- ine this tight end was once a step away from the starting quarterback job. But, in fact, Riemersma still has the most experience at quarterback behind Collins. It is clear, though, that his priorities have changed with the switch in positions. When asked what he values more. his one touchdown pass or the block that set Wheatley free, Riemersma stumbles. "That's a tough question," he muses. "They're comparable. You wouldn't think they would be, but they are. You always pride yourself with blocking being a lineman." Thank heaven for simple pleasures. It would be a mistake, though, to consider him one-dimensional. As is evinced on the basketball court, DEFENSE Player Morrison Sanders Dyson Irons Denson Johnson Law Thompson Horn Noble Zenkewicz Hankins W. Carr King Pryce Swett Waldroup Wheatley Winters Solo 7 7 7 6 4 5 5 3 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Ast 3 2 0 1 2 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Tot 10 9 7 7 6 5 5 4 3 3 3 3 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Riemersma MICHIGAN SCHEDULE His future, though, should prove to be basketball-free. A look at Riemersma's football career begs yet another question: How does a backup college quarterback become an NFL prospect at tight end in one short season? With another year under his belt at tight end, Riemersma should only improve. If he keeps on his current pace, he should be fighting for a spot on an NFL roster two years from now. S3 S10 S24 01 08 015 022 029 N5 N12 BOSTON COLL.34-26 Notre Dame 26-24 COLORADO 26-27 Iowa 29-14 MICHIGAN ST. 40-20 PENN ST. 24-31 Illinois 19-14 WISCONSIN 19-31 Purdue 1:00 MINNESOTA 1:00