The Michigan Daily - Friday, November 15, 1996 -11
The matchups:
After Purdue, Blue can only get better
Pollyanna Johns and the Wolverines will try to rebound from last season's 7-20
record. The Wolverines start off the season against the Slovak Republic tonight in
an exhibition game at Criser Arena.
Changes for women
cagerS begin tonight
By Ryan White
Daily Sports Writer
If Michigan holds true to form this
weekend, the Wolverines will take
care of Penn State.
After all, in big games against
Colorado and Michigan State,
Michigan came up with big victories.
Before their fourth-quarter collapse
against Northwestern, the
Wolverines were also beating a very
good team.
It's not the big boys the Wolverines
have trouble against.
It's those little guys like Purdue
that cause problems.
So with its Rose Bowl and Big Ten
championship hopes still sitting in a
West Lafayette gutter, Michigan will
attempt to begin a salvage operation
on the rest of its season tomorrow
against the Nittany Lions.
Penn State had last week off (some
would say Michigan did as well), but
this should be another good game in
a young rivalry.
MICHIGAN RUSHING OFFENSE VS.
PENN STATE RUSHING DEFENSE:
The good news for Michigan is
that its rushing attack can't possibly
be as bad as it was last week.
The Wolverines managed just 56
yards against the Boilermakers, who
had the 10th-ranked defense in the
conference entering the game.
Michigan's longest run was for
only 10 yards, and Purdue's defen-
sive linemen and linebackers spent
as much time in Michigan's back-
field as- Chris Howard or Clarence
Williams.
Penn State enters the game ranked
sixth in the Big Ten against the run,
and inside linebacker Gerald Filardi
leads the Nittany Lions with 77 tack-
les.
This is gut-check time for
Michigan's offensive line and backs,
and that is when the Wolverines
seem to respond best.
ADVANTAGE:
MICHIGAN PASSING OFFENSE VS.
PENN STATE PASSING DEFENSE:
Again, things can't get much
worse than last week for the
Wolverines. Quarterback Scott
Dreisbach was 18-of-37 for 233
yards and two interceptions.
But as with Michigan's running
backs, Dreisbach had very little time
to get anything done, and the offen-
sive line looked in disarray at times.
That's good news for Penn State.
Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said the
Nittany Lions probably blitzed
Northwestern 30 times two weeks
ago.
If Purdue was able to get to
Dreisbach regularly, Penn State will
probably be able to as well.
Plus, Penn State ranks second in
the conference in passing defense.
That's not very good news for
Michigan's passing attack.
ADVANTAGE:
PENN STATE RUSHING OFFENSE VS.
MICHIGAN RUSHING DEFENSE:
Carr had mixed emotions about his
defense after last weekend.
On one hand, Michigan held the
Boilermakers to just 98 yards rush-
ing.
On the other hand, however,
Purdue held on to the ball nearly 13
minutes more than the Wolverines.
Michigan will be helped by a
healthy Jarrett Irons, who was
slowed by the flu last week.
He'll be needed to stop the Nittany
Lions' two-back attack.
Curtis Enis is averaging 103.4
yards per game, and fullback Aaron
Harris is grinding out six yards per
carry.
Michigan is ranked 13th in the
country against the run and is behind
only Ohio State in the conference.
Still, to be successful, Michigan
cannot let Penn State possess the ball
the way Purdue did.
ADVANTAGE:
EVEN
PENN STATE PASSING OFFENSE VS.
MICHIGAN PASSING DEFENSE:
For a guy named Wally, who plays
half his games in Beaver Stadium,
Penn State quarterback Wally
Richardson hasn't always made
Ward, or Penn State coach Joe
Paterno, proud this season.
Richardson is completing just
48.6 percent of his passes and has
thrown more interceptions than
touchdowns.
He also hasn't been helped much
by the Nittany Lions' young offen-
sive line.
But if Richardson gets hot, as he
did against Northwestern, the
Nittany Lions will be tough to beat.
Michigan defensive end David
Bowens is still looking to break the
single-season sack mark he tied Oct.
26 against Minnesota.
He should break the record tomor-
row.
ADVANTAGE:
If this game were played on paper,
Michigan would seem to have, it in
the bag.
But the Wolverines also would
have beaten Purdue by about 30
points.
Michigan will win this game, how-
ever, because it will leave all its fans
sitting around Sunday asking, "Why
couldn't the Wolverines have done
that against Purdue?"
Michigan 24, Penn State 17
staff
Picks
- all picks made
against the
spread.
NICE
{ame (QMIE TIAM INCQAM)
MICHIGAN (-11/2) VS. Penn State h
NORTHWESTERN (10) vs. Purdue r N
INDIANA (+34 1/2) vs. Ohio State
MINNESOTA (-3) vs. IllinolsM
IOWA (-2 1/2) vs. Wisconsin
FLORIDA (-37) vs. South C rolin a
FLORIDA STATE (-28) vs. S. Miss.
COLORADO (-4 1/2) vs. 9nsas StateC
IOWA STATE (+40 1/2) vs. Nebraska o
.T. ISSSSIPPI STATE'(+12) vs, Alabama
TSONIKA
Michigan
arthwestern
Indiana
Minnesota
Iowa
Florida
S. Miss.
Colorado
wa State
SOLLENBERGER
Michigan
Notthwestern
Indiana
RYAN
WHITE
Michigan
Northwestern
_ Ohio State -
SPECIAL TEAMS:
Penn State kicker Brett Conway
hasn't missed a point-after attempt
all year, and he has hit 14 of 20 field
goal attempts.
Remy Hamilton, however, broke
Michigan's all-time field goal record
last weekend.
Penn State has two more yards on
punting average, but Hamilton gets
Michigan the nod.
ADVANTAGE:
Iltinois Minnesota
Wisconsin Iowa
Florid Florida
Florida State Florida State
Colorado Cvlorado
Nebraska Iowa State
ississippi State Alabama
Michigan Iowa
48-51-2 44-55-2
5-5 ;4-6
Mi
ly Richard Shin
Daily Sports Writer
Transition.
For the Michigan women's basket-
ball team, the word has many impli-
cations.
Against the Slovak Republic
tonight at 7:30 at Crisler Arena, the
Solverines will try to stop the tran-
tion game of the VSS Kosice team
in Michigan's first public exhibition
this season.
Michigan itself is going through a
transition period,
with a new
coach, Sue
Guevara, and a
new approach to
the game.
* Last season,
Michigan faced a
storm of contro-
versy all season
as the
Wolverines
stumbled their
way to a 10th-
Tonight
Who: Michigan
vs. Slova..
Republic
Where: Crisler
Arena
When:7 p.m.
What:
Michigan's first
exhibition
game of the
season
Guevara will approach the rest of the
season.
Guevara will use the game as a
measuring stick of how well the
Wolverines are playing and where
they can improve.
"The team has talent," Guevara
said. "We've been evaluating our
performance, and I think you'll see
the team play with more emotion and
enthusiasm."
And added emotion could only
help a Michigan team that saw many
leads slip away in the closing min-
utes of games last season. .
Guevara seems less concerned
with simply wins and losses than
with the actual performance of the
team in those wins and losses.
Whether or not the Wolverines adopt
the philosophy will reflect in
tonight's game.
"I don't want the players to focus
on records," Guevara said. "I want
them to focus on performance and
improvements in play.
"I want the team believing they
can win."
Michigan finished last season with
a 6-5 non-conference record, but
stumbled Big Ten, finishing with a 1-
15 conference mark.
Best Bet
Last Week
Overall
Overall Best Bet
Colorado
47-52-2
7-3
place finish in the Big Ten.
Gone from last year's squad are a
senior, the head coach, and hopeful-
,all of the problems that surround-
the team.
Although four starters return from
last season's 7-20 team, the coaches
in the conference picked Michigan to
finish 10th in the Big Ten, ahead of
Minnesota.
"I suspect the team is better than
10th," Guevara said. "We will make
improvements this year."
With the leadership of four seniors
ith extensive playing experience
nd 13 total players, the Wolverines
are one of the deepest teams in the
conference. Under the guidance of
Guevara, the Wolverines will try to
make the transition from a 10th=
place team to an upper-division
squad.
Against the Slovak Republic, the
key to the game will be stopping the
fast-break offense that the Slovak
Republic will attempt to utilize.
"(The Slovak Republic) likes to
run," Guevara said. "Defensively, we
have to stop them from penetrating
and dishing outside.
"They have some good outside
shooters."
Michigan's own transition game
will be important to the Wolverines'
success. The Wolverines have a trio
of players that can hit from the
erimeter with consistency.
~Michigan senior guard Amy
Johnson is the all-time 3-point leader
with 93 treys. Fellow senior Jennifer
Kiefer is the career 3-point percent-
age leader, connecting on 41.1 per-
cent of her shots. Rounding out the
__..._._..__- -3
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Monday November 18
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