The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, September 4, 1996 - 25
Sony
Socrates,
Nebraska
7bz 't Purdue
So what exactly happened in
East Lansing last Saturday?
Michigan State's 52-14 win
over Purdue raised a lot of eyebrows,
but no one is really sure what to make
of it.
Are the Spartans that good, or is
rdue just really, really bad.
Purdue coach Jim Colletto, while
being careful to give Michigan State
credit, is leaning heavily toward the
latter.
"The lack of
focus to do the
things we prac-
ticed was very
disturbing to us
as coaches,"'
hlletto said. "1
Wink we did RYAN
some things that WHITE
helped them White on
move the ball." Target
Really, it was a
nice way of saying that, from the side-
lines, Colletto saw as many hits from
his defense as David Lee Roth did in
his solo days.
Colletto is still upset about the way.
I4is defense performed and, let's face
;was coach at Purdue, Colletto has
seen his fair share of bad games.
To still be mad about what hap-
pened Saturday must make it an
exceptionally awful outing.
That's not to say, though, that
Michigan State didn't perform well.
True freshman Sedrick Irvin dis-
played big-time talent in his first
career game. Irvin cut, slashed and
ed to four touchdowns and a team-
Uh 73 yards rushing.
Michigan State coach Nick Saban
said he wasn't surprised by the way
his offense played.
In fact he knew early on that things
were going well for the Spartans.
"The game changed in our favor
when we went ahead," Socrates, er,
Saban said.
Whichever it was, Purdue's apathy
or Michigan State's juggernaut
Wense, more will be known about the
partans after this weekend.
Michigan State has to go to
Lincoln, Neb., and once the Spartans
kickoff against Nebraska, the only
score that's liable to matter is 63-3, the
final score of last Saturday's game
between No. 2 Tennessee and UNLVJ
With the Vols dismemberment of
the Runnin' Rebels, Nebraska is going
t& want to prove that it belongsaop
e polls.
The only way to do that is to dis-
mantle the Spartans, and forget to put
them back together.
Which is what is most likely to hap-
pen.
THEY'RE BACK: Ohio State kicks
off its season Saturday eager to erase
the memories of last season's finish.
For those who don't remember, the
Buckeyes were 11-0 before coming
'o Ann Arbor and choking on an
I ject approximately as big as, oh,
Michigan Stadium.
Ohio State followed that perfor-
mance up by heading to Orlando to
face Tennessee in the Citrus Bowl,
only to choke on an object the approx-
imate size of, well, Neylon Stadium.
Ohio State opens the new season at
home against Rice with 15 players
lj ely to see their first collegiate
tion, including 11 true freshmen.
'same of them will help fill the holes
left by the departure of quarterback
Bobby Hoying, running back Eddie
George, wide receiver Terry Glenn
and tight end Rickey Dudley.
"We're going to start seven new
players on the offensive side of the
ball, and I don't think we've ever done
that at Ohio State," coach John Cooper
said.
In spite of the questions on offense,
*ooper is looking forward to finally
getting the season under way.
Especially since the start is much later
than last season, when the Buckeyes
played their' first game Aug. 27.
"We've had the maximum number
of practices the NCAA allows,"
Cooper said. "So we've beaten up our-
selves and are anxious to get started"
REVERSING FIELDS: It's not uncom-
on for a Mid-American Conference
am to face a Big Ten opponent.
What is odd is when the game occurs
in a MAC stadium - in fact, it's never
happened.
That, however, will change Saturday
when Indiana travels to Toledo.
"I grew un in the MAC as a player
FOOTBALL
Continued from Page 22
"This extra week will prove to be of
some advantage for us, even though I
think an extra week is a much greater
advantage later in the year," Carr said.
"The negative side is that Colorado
will get to play again this week."
If the Buffaloes didn't pose enough
problems on the field, the Wolverines
will be concerned about something
they normally can take for granted -
the air that they will breathe.
Folsom Field's high elevation could
make the Wolverines feel like they are
on the moon without oxygen masks.
"We've talked to a lot of teams that go
out to play Colorado," Carr said. "We've
researched (the oxygen problem) as well
as we can research it. I think that today,
the general consensus is to go out as late
as possible, play the game, and not
make a big deal out of it."
Boulder's thin air might snake it
tough for Michigan sophomore
Charles Woodson to double as corner-
back and wide receiver like he did
against Illinois.
The extra week
Carr saw the Dallas Cowboys'
Deion Sanders go both ways Monday
night against the Chicago Bears, and
wondered how Prime Time could keep
that up for an entire season. He has
similar concerns about his young
defensive back.
"I think about Woodson and he's
only 19-years old," Carr said.
But he quickly added that the sopho-
more's two-way days are far from over.
"You have to take guys who have
special talent and do things with
them," Carr said.
The Wolverines sustained no serious
injuries in last Saturday's win over
Illinois and welcome back two key
players for the Colorado game. Junior
linebacker Rob Swett will return from
a sprained ankle and tailback Chris
Howard is also slated to see action
next Saturday after sitting out against
the Illini because of incomplete
coursework.
Carr would not comment specifical-
ly on Howard's situation.
"We expect Chris to play," he said.
"I feel very strongly that any academ-
ic problem is to be kept confidential"
will prove to be of
some advantage to us, even though I
think an extra week is a much greater
advantage later in the year. The
negative side is that Colorado will get
to play again this week"
- Lloyd Carr
Michigan football coach
Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week
Michigan linebacker Jarrett Irons was named Big Ten Defensive Player of
the Week yesterday for his performance in Saturday's 20-8 Michigan victory
over Illinois. He recorded 15 tackles - 12 solo - and one sack.
EVAN PETRIE/Special to the Daily
Michigan strong safety Marcus Ray helps Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week Jarrett irons take out Illinois tailback Ty
Douthard on Saturday in the Wolverines' 20-8 victory at Michigan Stadium.
a
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