MEN'S COLLEGE TEMPLE 76.
BASKETBALL
WISCONSIN 73,
Toledo 68
NO. ILLINOIS 84,
lowa 78,
INDIANA 85,
Evansville 73
MIAMI (Ohio) 80,
Xavier 72
Fresno State 61
ST. JOHN'S 69,
Colgate 53
TEXAS 85,
Florida 82
Georgia 84,
COLORADO 73
MONTANA 86,
Whitman 46
WOMEN'S COLL
BASKETBALL
Texas Tech 82.
UTEP 48
Washington 77,
Gonzanga 67
COLLEGE
HOCKEY
Boston College 3,
BOSTON UNIV.
Brown 5,
HARVARD 2
Wednesday
December 10, 1997
17
THE HESMAN TROPHY
Could
Woodson
be the bestif
By Nicholas J. Cotsonika
Daily Sports Writer
few more seconds, and he would've done it.
Right leg up. Right arm extended stiffly to ward
off pursuers. Left arm tucking in its treasure
ghtly, as if the ball were the Heisman Trophy he
hopes to receive when the winner is announced
Saturday.
After his 78-yard punt return for a touchdown that
sparked No. I Michigan to victory over Ohio State on
Nov. 22, however, Charles Woodson couldn't strike the
pose made famous by thex
Heisman's statue. "I was Satu
going to do it," he said, "but
my teammates mobbed meath
o fast" in the end,zone, and Trophy wl1 be present-
.ad by work ity's
e moment was gone. d t w kAthlety$
Had he been able to,Ib A
Woodson would have looked Whem8 p.mnx
strikingly similar to the most .Te is om CBs, ESPN
recent Wolverine to win the 'FnalstsWahgoton
Heisman, wide receiver Stat quarterback
Desmond Howard. In 1991, Ryan teaf, Tennessee
Howard punctuated his bid q'rtrak Peyton
for the award by returning a Manning , MrshalsK
punt 93 yards for a touch- wide r0c0iver andy
'own against the Buckeyes - M0SS ndMchiga"
nd celebrated by pretending cOrnebtalk hatr1es
he was frozen in bronze. But WOodSOn
Woodson has had a harder Note: Michlgf n has
time associating himself with ;hd tw ei sman wm u
the Heisman than Howard . _ - Tomrm' ;
did, even though he is the (40) and m
self-proclaimed "best player w. )
in the country."
A two-time All-America cornerback and the recipi-
ent of this year's Walter Camp player of the year award,
oodson might be Charles Would-son in Heisman
rms, if you listen to what people have been saying all
season: He would win it, but even his talent as a cor-
nerback-wide receiver-punt returner hasn't produced
enough impressive statistics. He would win it, but
Tennessee quarterback Peyton Manning has.it locked
up. He would win it, but the award never has been
voted to a primarily defen-
sive player.
"There are so
many people
See WOODSON,
page 19
06 .
Charles Woodson could
become the first primarily
defensive player to win the
Heisman Trophy.
MARGARET MYERS/D0ily
THE NATIONAL TITLE
First since
1948 looms
large for'M
By Danielle Rumore
Daily Sports Editor
Redshirt freshman Steve Hutchinson has only been a
member of the Michigan football team for two seasons,
but he understands the importance of the Wolverines'
first trip to the Rose Bowl since the 1992 season.
Four straight four-loss seasons have kept the
Wolverines out of the Rose Bowl since 1993. This sea-
son's trip to Pasadena, where the top-ranked Wolverines
(8-0 Big Ten, 11-0 overall) will face No. 7 Washington
State (7-1 Pac-10, 10-1 overall), carries more weight
than usual with a national title
hanging in the balance. It Jy
would be Michigan's first
since 1948.
"Right now, we're worried m
about the Rose Bowl,"
Hutchinson said. "We don't W .
want to send another senior W r
class out without rings."
The Wolverines have mmh t
enjoyed a dream season with MichiOtn1thih wo
the nation's top-ranked erstR x;9,6
defense paving the way to wt pla t
their first perfect regular sea-
son since 1971. A victory in
Pasadena would give the
Wolverines their first perfectW
season since 1948 and at least 1 t r
a share of the national title.
The Rose Bowl this season <Tuir
has much more riding on it h t n t '
than Big Ten pride; it's a
chance "to go out and do %
something that hasn't been
done in 50 years' linebacker Sam Sword said.
The national title race has also been a breeding ground
for controversy.
As it stands, Michigan sits atop both the AP and USA
Today/ESPN top 25 Polls with its 11-0 record. Nebraka
sits in second place in both polls with a 12-0 record. The
Wolverines and Cornhuskers are the only two undefea
ed teams in the country, so what happens if both teams
win their games in the Rose and Orange Bowls, respec-
tively?
"If we beat Washington State, yes, we do" (deserve the
title), Michigan senior co-captain Eric Mayes said.
The Cornhuskers have been saying that they deserveAt
least a share, leading up to their game against Tennessee
in what was supposed to be this season's national title
game. The Huskers are undoubtedly having a flashback
to the 1993 season, when an undefeated Penn State team,
ranked No. 2, lost all of the title to No. I and undefeat-
ed Nebraska.
This season, the Cornhuskers will find themselves
playing the Lions' role if they and the Wolverines win
their games.
"Washington State is on our schedule. We can care less
what Nebraska is doing. We know we just have to win
this game," Sword said. "When we went to those bowl
games (in the past), nothing was at stake. Here, every
thing is at stake."
Washington State showcases the nation's second-
See COUGARS, Page 18
WARREN ZINN/Daily
For making plays like this one against Iowa this season, Michigan cornerback Charles Woodson won the Walter Camp player
of the year award and earned All-America honors for the second time. But can he win the Heisman Trophy?
NOW ON SALE: THE VICTORS!
Commemorate the Wolverines' 11-0 regular season and their impending trip to the Rose Bowl
with your very own poster, printed by The Michigan Daily. Each poster is $5 and can be pur-
chased at the Daily's offices at 420 Maynard Street or leading campus retail outlets.
READ ALL ABOUT. IT!
When you return from Pasadena, check out The Michigan Daily for complete
coverage of the bowl game and the bowl week. From the Tournament of
Roses Parade to the final play, we'll tell you all about it.
Have your diploma copied
LONG TIME...NO SEA!
GLA9 MJN E'S
LA'S PLACE AT THE BEACH
4 FISH & FUN
1Aglnmc All
onto a brass & walnut nlacine!