ft£dau OMDat1 Scoreboard Atlanta at Sacramento. inc. COLLEGE FOOTBALL NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE San Diego State 28. (16) Wyoming 24 New Jersey 4. CHICAGO 2 IOPhiladelphia 5. BUFFALO 2 NATIONAL BA SKETBALL A SSGCIATION FLORIDA 4, Washington 2 Orlando 108, NEW JERSEY 95 OTTAWA 6, Toronto 2 Houston 110, DENVER 108 Edmonton 6, BOSTON 0 Seattle 103, Phoenix 98 Montreal at Los Angeles, inc. Minnesota at Portland, inc.1 New York at Golden State. inc, HOME TEAMS IN CAPS Friday .November 8, 1996 10 I The matchups: Michigan looks for momentum to boil over By Barry Sollenberger D~aly Sports Editor For a couple of reasons, Michigan fans already have sweaty armpits about tomorrow's game against Purdue in West Lafayette. For one, Purdue coach Jim Colletto announced his resigna- tion Monday, and they are afraid this will give the Boilermakers an emotional advantage. Secondly, they are afraid that the Wolverines will be flat after last weekend's victory over Michigan State and with next week's Penn State game looming. They could be right on both accounts. But in the end, they probably have nothing to be worried about, because tomorrow's Michigan opponent is ... well, Purdue. MICHIGAN RUSHING OFFENSE VS. PURDUE RUSHING DEFENSE: Last weekend, the Wolverines rushed for 206 yards against a Michigan State team that had been surrendering only 100 yards per game on the ground. Expect to see similar numbers from Michigan against the Boilermakers. Purdue allows 180 yards rushing per game, which brings smiles to the faces of Michigan running backs Chris Howard and Clarence Williams. The most difficult part of tomorrow's game for them will be the exchange on handoffs with Michigan quarterback Scott Dreisbach. Once they receive the ball, they should run wild against the Boilermakers. ADVANTAGE: MICHIGAN PASSING OFFENSE N'S. PURDUE PASSING DEFENSE: Dreisbach is as excited about tomorrow's game as his run- ning backs are. A week after passing for a career-high four touchdowns against the Spartans, Dreisbach faces the Boilermakers' cream-cheese secondary. Purdue gives up over 216 yards through the air each game. That's good news, indeed, for the improving Dreisbach, who is now 11-1 in his career as a starter. See MATCHUPS, Page 11 Spollermakers.? Blue hopes not 0 By Ryan White Daily Sports Writer Call it cliched call it the company line, but this week you can also call it the truth. All season, Michigan players and coaches have been saying, "This week is the most important game of the year." When it was said before games against Indiana and Minnesota, it sound- ed like a line. It would sound like the same old line this week as well if it weren't for the fact that tomorrow's game against Purdue is the biggest game these Wolverines have played all year. When No. 9 Michigan (4-1 Big Ten, 7-1 overall) faces Purdue (1-4, 2-6) tomorrow at 12:30 p.m. in Ross-Ade Stadium, the Wolverines will face much more than a mediocre football team. Michigan will have to guard against a letdown after last weekend's emotional victory over Michigan State. The Wolverines need to be careful not to look past the Boilermakers to next week's matchup against Penn State. And to top things off, Michigan is facing a team which just lost its leader. Monday, Purdue coach Jim Colletto announced that he was resigning after five years in West Lafayette. "You get to the point where the wear and tear ... you just get fatigued," Colletto said. "It's just a matter of going through the grind everyday, and not get- ting the results that you wanted." Looking at his record, it is obvious Colletto didn't get the results he had hoped for since coming to Purdue from Cal State-Fullerton. The Boilermakers have compiled just a 19-41-3 record under Colletto. "I think as coaches, we all know that performance in the win-loss column is the main consideration," Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said. While Carr understands the pressure, he has had much better results. Ie took Michigan to a 9-4 record in his first year last season. aindlie has the Wolverine sitting position Jbr a Rose 1Bo\\ lbert this season. If Michigan w\ins its final three games, it is off to Pasadena. another rea- son tomorrow's game is so crucial. "The most important thing is this race is still out there to be won by us," Carr said. One thing Carr may not hav e to worry about, however, is Michigan's offense. The group struggled for a large part og the season but has come to life lately scoring 99 points in the last two games combined. As for Purdue, it is ninth in the Big Ten in rushing defense and dead last in total defense, giving up 401 yards a game. "We feel we have to hold up our end of the bargain," Michigan tight end Jerame Tuman said of the team's offense. "We can't leave it up to the defense every time. "If we can keep our offense consis- tent, I think we'll be tough to beat." Things seem to be just as mismatched on the other side of the ball, where Michigan ranks second in the Big Ten in defense, and Purdue sits at ninth in offense. The Boilermakers have been rotating quarterbacks Rick Trefzger and John Reeves and have relied on fullback Edwin Watson to replace last year's si Mike Alstott, who is now playing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Still, Carr is worried by Purdue's offense and the possible playing condi- tions. "As the head coach at Purdue, (Colletto) has consistently had good offensive teams," Carr said. "They're the kind of team that can possess the ball on you. Anytime you're playing in this kind of weather, that scares you. Chris Howard and the Wolverines are chugging along toward their ultimate goal - a trip to Pasadena. Games against Penn State and Ohio State may be looming, but Michigan must contend with Purdue first at West Lafayette tomorrow at 12:30 p.m. The Boilermakers could be fired up for the Wolverines, however. Purdue coach Jim Colletto announced during the week that he would resign at the end of this season after coaching the Boilermakers for five years. Colletto was the second Big Ten coach in one week to resign. Indiana's Bill Mallory called it quits a few days earlier. 1'. ._ i 3 cr:''i K.. .... .. '.t:.:.>: ,i,,s., i. ?, r: k a''-,.s-,t--s1 i:. .nti, ., a : Lo. ,. , .".. : . _.- .1..: _ . .i -,c ., ... _ .: ., _ ,- ".: "ti s =.i i i; I S ." 'S S -.' 1 t j Y t sy } s r ' it ll -fit ,. r r til' t r r rr .. _ p . z ti ti s( * I F 1 ? 1' . " i s . ,et ; 1.: ; c.- ..:xl:..,. ,.ka.. - .., ;t... ..5«.s. n, 1. . _..... t, t t'. i ,,.tii r , r .f". inn .i i Hi:_+v i .: 1-i.",_ ti ,a iq". u i ti - c i1 , iii. 1 ' ii. .. i y , t ,_'' F. t i ... of the SARA STILLMAN/Dy leading scorer heading into this weekend's homestand at Yost Ice Arena. Michigan center JohnI Madden is the Wolverines' .1 rr i ' . , L i.. . CL5 T r G ttRE , 1 S e t ' M' hockey breaks ice at Yostr By Jim Rose Daily Sports Writer Yes, the season is underway. Yes, the Michigan hockey team has already played seven games. Yes, last season's national championship is over and done with. Yes, yes, yes. No, no, no. Even though the Wolverines are 3-1 in the CCHA and 6- 1 overall, tonight is the real beginning of the season - for the fans, anyway. After a seven-game road trip to start the campaign, Michigan will finally play at newly renovated Yost Ice Arena tonight against Ohio State at 7:10 Saturday, the Wolverines host Bowling Green at 7 p.m. Tonight, if the Buckeyes (1-2, 1-6) don't have enough to worry about, there's this business of The Banner. The flag commemorating the Wolverines' 1995-96 championship season will be raised to the roof prior to the faceoff. Of course, the Buckeyes will be invited onto the ice to take part in the ceremonies. That is, they get to watch. Just like the fans. And probably the only people more excited than the fans about the home opener are the players. "We're all jacked up," Michigan winger Mike Legg said. "With the new building, raising the banner - we're real excited." As are the fans. But if there's one thing~ the Wolverines know, it's that the raising of The Banner - while an intim- idating greeting for the Buckeyes - does not automatical- ly translate into a victory. This is the same Ohio State team that tied Michigan twice last season. See OPENER, Page 11 s * i :°' 5