The Michigan Daily - SPORTSMonday - November 18, 1996 - 7B . . . . . . . . . . . .... ....... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ......... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... . .... . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... .... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... ... .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .......... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..... .. ..... ....... .... rs disappointed tome appearance GAME STATISTICS PASSING Player Dreisbach 1 Griese Totals I RUSHING Player A Howard 2 Dreisbach Anes ; C. Williams: Griese Totals 3 C-A 2-26 3-6 15-32 Yds 191 56 247 contest against Purdue. It had hardly been the senior season Irons had hoped for. He could have tered the NFL this year. He could have Mined tailback Tshimanga Biakabutuka and Jon Runyan in the early split for the bucks. He didn't. He wanted to win a Big Ten championship, and he wanted to go to the Rose Bowl. Irons was named a co-captain for the second year in a row. He is an All- America candidate and was a semi- finalist for the Butkus Award, given annually to the nation's best linebacker. Irons finished Saturday's game with seven tackles, but the game didn't end the way he wanted it to. The season has- n't ended the way he wanted it to. Center Rod Payne also played his final game in Michigan Stadium. He is the always vocal, often comical, other captain of this season's squad. He joked early in the year that he doesn't know what it's like to be healthy, and this year has been no exception. For the second straight season, Payne Ojured his right hand and has been forced to snap with his left hand. Every time Michigan goes to its two-minute offense, Payne has to snap the ball in the shotgun with the wrong hand. Rarely has there been a bad snap. William Carr, who said last week he wanted to be remembered as one of the greatest nose tackles ever to play at Michigan, recovered a fumble and had six tackles, four for a loss Saturday. Paul Peristeris, the walk-on turned starting punter, had one kick blocked and another tipped. The list goes on and on: Chuck Winters, Thomas Guynes, Steve King, Woodrow Hankins, Damon Denson ... All played their final games in the Big House, and all were disappointed when it was all over. Not because it had ended, but because of the outcome. Because Penn State won. There is still one more game to be played, however, and Irons, for one, isn't going to let any of his team- mates forget that. "It's tough to swallow," he said. "It really hurts, but as team captain, I have to put my personal feelings aside and help prepare this team for next week." Michigan plays Ohio State next Saturday, the final meeting between the two teams for sixteen Michigan players. They are all hoping they enjoy that outcome a lot more. tt 28 3 2 >2 1 36 Yds 120 28 5 -3 -7 143 Avg 4.3 9.3 2.5 -1.5 -7.0 3.9 RECEIVING Player No. Streets 6. Shaw 3 Tuman 3 Shea 1 C. Williams 1 Campbell 1 Totals 15 PUNTING Player h Peristeris Team (blocked) Totals TD 1 0 1 Lg 27 19 3 2 0 27 Lg9 30 17 23 2g- 20 15 30 Avg 33.0 0.0 26.4 Yds Avg 93 15.5 49 16.3 45 15.0 25 25.0 20 20.0 15 15.0 247 16.4 No. 4 1 5 Yds 132 0 132 Int 3 4 TD 1 0 0 0 0 ;1. TD 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 Lg 50 0 50 TD L0 30 30 gTD 30 30 30 Tot 14 11 10 9 7. 7 6 5 5 5 3 2 KICKOFF RETURNS Player No. Yds Butterfield 1 1 Woodson 3 65 Total 4 66 PUNT RETURNS Player No. Yds Avg 1.0 21.7 16.5 Avg 5.3 -.5 3.0 1 23 23 Lg9 15 3 15 JOE WESTRATE/Daily Penn State's David Macklin blocks Paul Peristeris' punt In the third quarter Saturday. Turnovers pivotal problem as Michigan drops second straight Woodson Winters Totals DEFENSE Player Ray Woodson Sword Taylor I rons Hankins Carr Copenhaver Huff Steele Bowens Feazel I 3 2 5 16 -1 15 Solo 11 8 6 5 6 5 5 3 3 4 1 0 Asst 3 3 4 4 1 2 1 2 2 1 2 2 By Barry Sollenberger Daily Sports Editor Every coach preaches it. Turnovers - you can't make them and still expect to win. The Michigan football team is a prime example. The Wolverines have lost two straight games pri-0 marily due to *0 turnovers. In their past two games Notebook against Purdue and Penn State, Michigan has turned the ball over a whopping 10 times, including six interceptions and four fumbles. Quarterback Scott Dreisbach is the primary culprit for Michigan's turnover woes. After having a career day against Michigan State on Nov. 2, he has been terrible, completing just 30 of 63 pass- es with no touchdown passes and five interceptions in the past two games. Surprisingly enough, against Minnesota and Michigan State - the two games preceding Purdue - Dreisbach did not throw an intercep- tion, and the Wolverines did not com- mit a single turnover. My, oh my, have things changed. "Our offense has turned the ball over more than we expected," Michigan defensive end Glen Steele said. "And our defense hasn't gotten the ball back. It evens out." The kicking game was also a disaster - for the Wolverines against Penn State. Michigan had one punt blocked that was returned for a touchdown and a second punt that was almost blocked. "We've got to look a the kicking game," Michigan center Rod Payne said. "I thought it was one of the tell- tale signs in the game." SCARY AREA: Like a lost ship, the Michigan football team is sailing into uncharted waters. The Wolverines are in danger of fin- ishing out of the Big Ten's upper divi- sion for only the second time since 1965. At 4-3 in conference play, Michigan is currently alone in sixth place in the league. Even if the Wolverines beat Ohio State next weekend, they can finish no higher than tied for fourth in the Big Ten. If they lose to the Buckeyes (and they are a heavy underdog), they will finish sixth. The Big Ten only has five guaranteed bowl slots, but Michigan will probably play in some bowl regardless if it loses to Ohio State, because of its national recognition. WOODSON, WOODSON EVERY- wHERE: Against Penn State, Michigan cornerback/wide receiver Charles Woodson added a couple of other titles to his name - punt and kick returner. After kick returner Tyrone Butterfield muffed the opening kickoff, Woodson replaced him and returned three kicks for 63 yards, including a career-high 23 yarder. Then after Chuck Winters failed to field a punt, allowing Penn State to down the ball deep in Michigan territo- ry, Woodson took over the punt-return duties for the first time in his career. He returned three punts for 16 yards, including a long of 15 yards. Defensively, Woodson had a career- high 11 tackles (eight solo, three assists) and one pass break up. Offensively, he did not catch a pass or carry the ball. BowL UPDATE: With the loss to Penn State and Iowa's victory over Wisconsin, 31-0, the Wolverines are probably going to either the Alamo or Sun Bowl, unless they upset Ohio State next weekend. The Buckeyes have the Rose Bowl bid clinched, and the Nittany Lions apparently have a good shot at securing an alliance bid to the Fiesta Bowl, if they beat Michigan State next weekend. Northwestern should end up in the Florida Citrus Bowl, and Iowa is prob- ably headed to the Outback Bowl, pro- vided the Hawkeyes beat Minnesota next weekend. That likely leaves the Alamo Bowl for Michigan and the Sun Bowl for Michigan State, or vice versa. BAD COIN: Saturday marked the first time this season that the Wolverines lost both the coin toss and the game. They are now 7-1 when they lose the toss and 0-2 when they win it. Eight players with one tackle a peice PASS DEFENSE Player Int Yds Woodson 0 0 Hankins 0 0 Lng 0 0 Brk-up 1 1 TD 0 0 MICHIGAN Aug. 31 ILLINOIS Sept. 14 Colorado Sept. 21 BC Sept. 28 UCLA Oct. 5 Northwestern Oct. 19 INDIANA Oct. 26 Minnesota, Nov. 2 MICHIGAN'St. Nov. 9 Purdue Nov. 16 PENN STATE Nov. 23 Ohio State W 20-8 W 20-13 W 20-14 W 3&9 L 16-17 W 27-20 W 44-10 W 45-29 L 3-9 L 17-29 Noon JOE wEmTRAiTEuaily lle day for Michigan quarterback Scott Dreisbach. He completed just 12 of 26 pass- down passes. He also committed a crucial fumble in the fourth quarter and has now igames. Big Ten Roundup: Ohio State finally smells roses At a giance a oly Por M ichigan, Chris Howard rushed ' for 120 yards and a touchdown. Cherles Woodson~ made II. taclde, retuned three punts and three Ik of fs, For Penn Stata, Curtis Eflis rushed for 114 yards and scred on a 38 yard touchdown run to put the game way for the Nittany Lens. ke Play With just under four minutes left in the third' arter, and Michigan up, u n , th W v s w e re fo r .. t David Mackin rushed .: untouched, 1~wveand olcke aI Persterns' kick. Ahmad Collns scooped the ball up at the Michigan thr'es and took it iin fOr the t0oufr down. Penn $tat.e never trailed after that, I tt estern: 74 .. . owa ....: 5-2 7.3 Mihian4.3 7-3 Pude2 5 3--7 Mnesota 1-.6 4.5 Ilnos1-6 2-8 Iniana,: : fl7 : 2-8 'ezes Kansas State; -IE~orida State roll on where, on fourth-and-four, Olson bolt- ed up the middle to sack Brian Kavanagh for an eight-yard loss. No. 3 FLORIDA ST. 54, No. 25 *OUTHERN MississiPPi 14 Warrick Dunn scored three touch- downs, one on a 77-yard pass play, as No. 3 Florida State rolled up 548 yards and claimed a 54-14 victory Saturday night over No. 25 Southern Mississippi. Dunn's touchdowns give him a school-rec~ord 47 at Floridai State~ (9-0). Thad Busby. Southern Mississippi (8-3) was held to seven first downs and 95 yards offense, including a minus-13 yards rushing. No. 5 NEBRASKA 49, IowA ST. 14 Ahman Green ran for a career-high 214 yards and Scott Frost passed for two touchdowns and ran for two as No. 5 Nebraska rolled past Iowa State, 49- 14, Saturday. Nebraska (9-1)' won its 30th straight BLOOMINGTON (AP) - At long last, another Rose Bowl for No. 2 Ohio State. Matt Finkes returned a fumble 45 yards for the tie-breaking touchdown with 6:18 left and the Buckeyes beat Indiana, 27-17, Saturday to clinch their first Rose Bowl berth in 12 years. With the game tied, 10-10, the Buckeyes' fortunes turned when the Hoosiers' Jay Rodgers, scrambling for a first down, was stripped of the ball by linebacker Andy Katzenmoyer. Finkes grabbed the ball in the air and ran untouched into the end zone, putting Ohio State ahead, 17-10. The Buckeyes (7-0 Big Ten, 10-0 overall) can complete a perfect season with a win next Saturday over Michigan. Then it's on to Pasadena, to play No. 4 Arizona State in a game that could have national championship the fourth-quarter passing of Rick Trefzger to Brian Alford. The Boilermakers (2-5, 3-7) were moving again, looking as if they were on their way to a winning score. But Eric Haddad fumbled with two minutes left and Barry Gardner recovered for the Wildcats at the Purdue 43. Two runs by Darnell Autry and Steve Schnur's pass to D'Wayne Bates for eight yards gave the Wildcats a first down at the 27. Autry gained 11 yards in two carries and Gowins made his game-winning kick on first down. Matt Stewart then intercepted a last- play desperation pass by Trefzger, and the Wildcats had yet another last-sec- ond victory. Northwestern (7-1, 9-2) won four conference home games this season by a combined nine points. The Wildcats; are headed to their second straight bowl since 1974 and hasn't beaten the Hawkeyes since 1976. Shaw, Iowa's career rushing leader, scored on runs of 29 and 33 yards in the first half and eight in the third quarter. His last touchdown run, which came on a lateral from quarterback Matt Sherman, gave Shaw 32 career touch- downs to tie Harmon (1982-85) with one Big Ten game and a possible bowl game remaining. MINNESOTA 23, ILLINOIS 21 Cory Sauter's one-yard quarterback sneak with 46 seconds left allowed Minnesota to overcome Robert Holcombe's spectacular 315-yard rush- ing performance with a 23-21 victory over Illinois on Saturday night. Not even the best game ever by an Illinois running back could keep the Golden Gophers from ending their 13- game Big Ten losing streak just four