4B - The Michigan Daily - SPORTSMonday - Monday, September 16, 1996 44 GAME STATISTICS Unsung 'M' individuals PASSING Player C-A Dreisbach 13-23 Totals 13-23 Yds 108 108 I RUSHING Player Att Williams 25 Howard 13 Floyd 3 Woodson 1 Dreisbach 8 Totals 50 RECEIVING Player No. Streets 5 C. Williams 2 Shaw 2 Howard 1 Floyd 1 Tuman 1 Campbell 1 Totals 13 PUNTING Player Peristeris Griese Yds 79 54 10 5 -9 139 Yds 65 15 9 9 6 3 1 108 No. 4 1 Avg 3.2 4.2. 3.3 5.0 -1. t2.9 Avg 13 7.5 4.5 9 6 3 1 6.3 Yds 190 4 37 TO 1 1 Ai 47, D 1- 1. Int make up team effort Lg TD 1 1 L2 0 7 0 5 0 2 0 12 1 Lg TD 17 0 8 0 8 0 9 0 6 0 3 1 1 0 17 1 Ng Lg '.5 56 37 37 Lg TD 25 0 Tot 8 8 7 7 7 6 6 6 4 3 2 1 1 By Nicholas J. Cotsonika Daily Sports Editor BOULDER, Colo. - In a game where nearly everything seemed to go right for Michigan as a team, several players hit their highs in the Rocky Mountains. On special teams, punter Paul Peristeris stood out. He punted for 43, 45, 46 and 53 yards, racking up a 47.5- yard average. Brian Griese, who han- dles pooch punting, also performed well, kicking his one punt 37 yards. And with Remy Hamilton hitting two field goals from over 35 yards out, Michigan coach Lloyd Carr had to be happy. He considered his kicking game the Wolverines' biggest problem enter- ing the season. "I was very pleased with our special teams today," Carr said. "Those hidden yards can win or lose football games, as we found out last year, and that's becoming less of a concern." At running back, Chris Howard came off of his one-game suspension for aca- demic trouble with a solid performance. Showing Tyrone Wheatley and Tshimanga Biakabutuka flashes, Howard was powerful up the middle and quick laterally. He rushed for 54 yards on 13 carries. Clarence Williams also put in a good day, gaining 79 yards on 25 carries. He also scored a touchdown. Both Williams and Howard fumbled, however. "They are going to be a good tandem this year," Carr said. "I'm glad to have Howard back, because he's going to be a big part of our offense." Tai Streets showed some panache as wide receiver, catching five passes for 65 yards. His catch in the fourth quarter, however, earned him a lot of attention. Michigan quarterback Scott Dreisbach threw to Streets over the middle, and Streets, mired in tight cov- erage, tipped the ball several times until he could grab it. "Instincts, all instincts," Street said. "Oh, and a little luck. You need luck to play this game." Sam Sword, Daydrion Taylor, Clint Copenhaver and Woodrow Hankins didn't use luck, they used muscle to help Michigan's dominant defense. As the more obscure defensive players, they don't get a lot of attention. But they were there Saturday. Sword had eight tackles total. Taylor had eight, too. Hankins had seven, and so did Copenhaver. "It's a team effort," said Michigan linebacker Jarrett Irons, who had six tackles himself. "You can't have one guy doing it all. You've got to have everybody contributing, and we did." Marcus Ray chipped in a bit, too. He had seven tackles, and almost picked off a Koy Detmer pass early in the first quarter that he probably would have turned into a touchdown and a 10-0 Michigan lead. Did the impressive showing help Michigan keep its claim as a bastion of talent and a national power? It probably helped. "There's no greater football tradition in the nation than Michigan," Carr said. "Look at the wins. Look at the records. We have some good football players here, and they've been criticized lately, because we've had trouble winning." KICKOFF RETURNS Player No. Yds Butterfield 1 25 DEFENSE Player Sword Taylor Copenhaver Ray Hankins Bowens Carr Irons Feazel I Swett Woodson Weathers Winters Solo 6 6 7 6 5 4 2 1 1 1 1 0 0 Avg 25 Asst 2 2 0 1 2 4 5 3 2 1 1 1 Michigan tailback Chris Howard gained 54 yards on 13 carries Saturday in Boulder. He and fellow running back Clarence Williams looked quick and powerfu against the Buffaloes. Shaky in the beginning, Dreisbach grows under pressure, gains confidence in Michigan's victory 6 Team Stats First Downs Rushes/Yards5 Passing Yards Offensive Plays Total Offense Return Yards Mich 18 50/139 108 73 247 1 Colo 15 22/70 287 61 357 21 Comp/Att/Int 13/23/0 23/39/1 Punts/Avg 5/45.4 5/38.2 Fumbles/Lost 3/1 3/1 Penalties/Yards 3/25 14/99 Time of Poss 34:30 25:30 MICHIGAN SCHEDULE Aug. 31 ILLINOIS W 20-8 Sept. 14 Colorado W 20-13 Sept. 21 BOSTON COLLEGE Sept. 28 UCLA Oct. 5 Northwestern Oct. 19 INDIANA Oct. 26 Minnesota Nov. 2 MICHIGAN STATE Nov. 9 Purdue Nov. 16 PENN STATE Nov. 23 Ohio State HOME GAMES IN CAPS Scoring summary Mih- Ham itw 37-yrd FG, 4;27 Second Quarter Coo- Henry, 8-yardi run (Lesley kick), 3:29 Mich - C. Willams, 7-yard run (Hamilton 'kick), 11:39 Coo-Savoy, 5-yaird pas$ Irom Oetmer (ktc$ blocl'ed), 14:09 third Qunrter Mich - Hamilton, 42-yard FG, 8:58 Mich - Tman 3-yard pas from Oreisbach (Hamilton kick), 14:01 Poirth Quarter No scoring Michigan 3. 7~ 10 0 - 20 Colorado 0 13 0 0 -13 0t Fohsom Field, Soulder, Cob., A - 53, 788 Continued from Page lB knows that the clock stops on every change of possession. But by whatever means, the Wolverines won the ballgame. They beat the No. 5 team in the nation on its home turf. They stuffed one of the most potent offenses in the nation. And they exorcised at least some of the ... ... ... . .. .. .. . ... ... ... .. ... . .. ... . .. .. . .. .. n.. . .. By Barry Sollenberger Daily Sports Editor BOULDER, Colo. - Statistically, Colorado quarterback Koy Detmer out- shone his Michigan counterpart Saturday. Detmer, a preseason Heisman candi- date, completed 23 of 39 passes for 287 yards and a touchdown. He was inter- cepted once. By comparison, Dreisbach was 13- of-23 for 108 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions. Detmer equaled almost half of Dreisbach's yardage on one play - a 52-yard completion to Rae Carruth. And yet, one could argue that Dreisbach outplayed Detmer. Or at least, made fewer mistakes. Because after Saturday, Michigan (2- 0) still hasn't lost this season, and the sophomore Dreisbach still hasn't lost a game as Michigan's quarterback (6-0). "Our passing game was good, and our play calling was excellent," Dreisbach said. "Our main goal as a team was just to play together as a team." Michigan's passing game was any- thing but good at the onset Saturday. Dreisbach was just 1-of-5 in the first quarter, and his only completion came on a screen pass. But when a quarterback is struggling, he can normally find solace in the fact that his coach remains confident in him. With Dreisbach, even that wasn't the case early Saturday. Michigan coach Lloyd Carr called two running plays on third-and-long during his team's first two possessions, including a third-and-II1 and a third- and-seven, respectively. On their next possession, the Wolverines were in business again in Colorado territory. They had taken advantage of a poor punt to move the ball to the Colorado 28, where they faced third-and-six with the score still 13-13. As the Colorado sideline urged the partisan crowd to its feet, Dreisbach stood over center. And once again he looked to Streets. In perhaps the play of the day, Dreisbach threw high to Streets. But the receiver was able to tip the ball with his left hand over a defender to make the catch for 14-yard gain to the Colorado 14. First down, Michigan. Silence at Folsom Field. The Wolverines scored their winnin touchdown four plays later. "That was a huge play" Colorado coach Rick Neuheisel said. "It looked like it was going to be an interception. That's what happens in games like this." While Streets caught five passes for 65 yards, he and Dreisbach were hardly the only Michigan heroes Saturday. Much credit must go to the offensive line, which gave Dreisbach ample time all day, allowing only one sack. "They have one of the best offensi lines I've seen since I've been here, Colorado linebacker Matt Russell said. "They did everything they had to do, kept their mouths shut, and I have a lot of respect for them." The Buffaloes must certainly have a lot of respect for Dreisbach, too. In just his third career start away from Michigan stadium, Dreisbach helped deal Colorado its first nonconference home loss since the 1993 season. He was stopped here, but Michigan quarterback Scott Dreisbach wasn't stopped for long. The sophomore signal-caller said he gained confidence as the game against the Buffaloes went on in Boulder. Both times, the Wolverines were stuffed short of the first down. But as the game wore on and Michigan remained in contention, Dreisbach gained confidence in his play, and so did Carr. In the third quarter, Carr allowed Dreisbach to go to the air on third' down, and the quarterback responded by completing two huge passes to wide receiver Tai Streets for first downs. The first came early in the third quar- ter. With the Buffaloes leading, 13-10, the Wolverines faced a third-and-five from the Colorado 26. Under pressure, Dreisbach stepped up in the pocket and lobbed the ball over the middle to Streets, who made a juggling catch for a 10-yard gain and a first down to the Colorado 16. Michigan eventually kicked a field goal on the drive to tie the score at 13. "Everybody became confident as the game went on when things happened like that," Dreisbach said. Streets' heroics had only begun, how- ever. i i the Illini in Champaign, 55-3, last weekend. Many thought the Wolverines were headed for blowout city in Colorado. The Buffaloes appeared likely to go 11-0 or 10-1, depending on their game at Nebraska. Now the Wolverines will hear the national championship chatter again. The win vaulted them into The Associated Press top 10 and, with a glance at the schedule, optimistic Michigan fans have the Wolverines at 9-0 when Penn State comes to town Nov. 16. But if you are Carr, that's looking way too far ahead. "We have a long way to go, and a lot of improving to do," he said. "This is a big win, and now everybody's going to tell us how good we are." Carr is right. to be cautious. Just because they beat an excellent team on the road, doesn't mean the Wolverines deserve to be mentioned in the same breath with the Nebraskas and Tennessees of collese football. ing losses. Two years ago, the Wolverines beat Notre Dame and then lost to Colorado. Last season, they beat Ohio State and then fell to Texas A&M. And while Boston College should pose few problems next weekend, UCLA should be all Michigan can handle Sept. 28. Then the Big Ten sea- son starts for real at Northwestern on Oct. 5. But the Wolverines aren't worried about any of that right now. They are more concerned with enjoying this victory. A victory that earned them some new-found respect. Respect that was lost with three straight four-loss seasons. A victory that was two years in the waiting. "This was definitely one of the biggest wins we will have all year," Michigan tailback Clarence Williams said. "We redeemed ourselves today. I hope when we play Colorado next year, they will show today's play (on television)." COLORADO Continued from Page 1B Neuheisel said. "So it shows you how close things can happen. It shows you how easily things could've happened the other way in 1994." Things might have gone the same way as 1994, however, if Colorado hadn't committed so many penalties. In fact, Michigan's first and second scoring drives were sustained by Colorado penalties. On third-and-eight in the first quar- ter, Dreisbach overthrew his receiver, but the Buffaloes were called for roughing the passer. The resulting first down allowed the Wolverines to march on and kick a field goal. On second-and-13 in the second, Dreisbach threw incomplete to Tai Streets, but Streets was interfered with. Michigan went on to score a touchdown. But the fatal mistake came in the fourth quarter. On third-and-seven, Detmer found James Kidd down the Colorado- off the scoreboard for two quarters or more since Nebraska did in 1994. It was only the 14th time in Colorado's last 135 games that the Buffaloes didn't score more than 14 points. And while Colorado ran 61 plays, 26 went for no yardage or less. "I'm glad it came down to the defense," Michigan linebacker Jarrett Irons said. "Any time a big game like this can come down to you, you want it to." Colorado scored two touchdowns, both in the second quarter. One came on an eight-yard run by Lendon Henry with 11:31 left, and the other came on a five-yard pass from Detmer to Phil Savoy with 51 seconds left. Michigan's David Bowens blocked the extra point attempt on the second Colorado touch- down. Remy Hamilton kicked 37-yard and That was as low as Pve ever felt on a football field. - James Kid Colorado football player 42-yard field goals for the Wolverines, and Clarence Williams (seven-yard run) and Jerame Tuman (three-yard reception) scored touchdowns. Colorado outgained Michigan. in total offense, 357-247, and passing, 287-108. The Wolverines won t rushing battle, 139-70. Up next Who: Boston College (0-1.Big East, 1-1 overall) is