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scores-
MAJOR LEAGUE Seattle 4,
BASEBALL KANSAS CITY 3
DETROIT 4 . CHICAGO (AL) 4,
Texas 0 Milwaukee 1
Ap
A.*
New York Yankees 8,
BOSTON 6
Baltimore 9,
CLEVELAND 3
TORONTO 2,
Anaheim 0
Oakland 5 ,
MINNESOTA 1
Philadelphia 1
New York Mets 0
MONTREAL 5,
Pittsburgh 4
CINCINNATI 5,
Chicago (NL) 2
Atlanta at
LOS ANGELES, Inc.
Florida at
SAN DIEGO, inc.
St. Louis at
SAN FRANCISCO, inc.
Houston at
Colorado, inc.
Wednesday
September 10, 1997
13
edulig
itses bad
or college
*botball
as that a rabbit punch coming
from John Cooper at the
Michigan football program?
The Ohio State coach had some
choice words about non-conference
schedules, which often make or break a
_eam'S season.
"I don't know a lot of people who
want to go out and play a real tough
non.conference schedule because of the
strength of the schedule in our con1er-
ence," Cooper said. "Some athletic
dire6tors want to
play tough non-
conference sched-
ules and some
don't."
Wonder what
(Ochool he had in
mind? Hmm.
What team plays a
non-conference ALAN
schedule year in GOLDENBACH
and year out that
is as tough as they TB oe
come by? Just
wlho is that little
devil Cooper is talking about?
Cooper, with all due respect, has
*radually improved the rigor of the
Buckeyes'non-conference schedule
over the years since he arrived in
Columbus in 1988. This year he has
respectable foes in Arizona and
Wyoming to compensate for patsies
Bowling Green and Missouri.
But Ohio State's first two games last
season were against Rice and
Pittsburgh, two teams - albeit, compa-
able to high school teams - that
nenehow got snubbed come bowl time.
fAgainst Rice, Cooper politely halted
tle bludgeoning at 70-7. The following
vek, however, the Panthers weren't so
Jacky, getting humikiated, 72-0, because
Cooper felt a larger margin of victory
was the only remedy for his team's
drop in the polls. The Buckeyes actual-
ly dropped a spot in the AP poll, from
No. 9 to 10, after the Rice game.
The victory over the Panthers con-
*luded a four-year series Cooper sched-
uled with Pittsburgh in which the
Buckeyes won at four games by an
average score of 57-11.
There are three kinds of approaches
athletic directors and football coaches
take when preparing their non-confer-
ence schedules: the bully, the crybaby
andthe wannabe .
The bully is the one popularized by
Cooper, and even more abused by the
likes of Florida, which just slaughtered
*entral Michigan, 82-6, last weekend.
This is the type of schedule where you
play teams on which your 5-foot-8
cousin is the starting left tackle and the
team nickname is something you'd find
in an aquarium. The bully is able to run
up ridicuious numbers in games like
these: 500 yards rushing, 15 sacks,
seven touchdown passes ... in the first
half.
Then there's the crybaby. This
approach is taken by teams like Rice
and Pittsburgh, which want the national
recognition, but are a couple of players
- like Peyton Manning and Charles
Woodson - away from getting to that
point. So the brilliant athletic directors
schedule opponents that can easily tear
limbs off your starting quarterback with
the hope of gaining national respect
when the score is kept to a lower mar-
gin than expected.
0 Not surprisingly, Rice and Pittsburgh
are still routinely the butt of all jokes
when they roll into opposing towns -
indicative of this approach not working.
Finally, there's the wannabe, the cate-
gory in which Michigan seems to fall
year after year. This only applies to
teams that are good, but not great. You
plan a schedule packed with tough
opponents. You may win some, you'll
robably lose one or two
Regardless, the intention here is to
show the national pollsters that you
have some chutzpah, that you're not
afraid to chance a 9-2 record by going
up against the nation's best. The goal,
ultimately, is to win sympathy points
with pollsters.
Does it work? Sometimes, but only
Griese will be
starter Saturday
against Buffs
By Danielle Rumore
Daily Sports Editor
Michigan football coach Lloyd Carr
announced yesterday that fifth-year
senior Brian Griese would start at quar-
terback against Colorado on Saturday.
"I have decided, and Brian Griese will
start at quarterback for Michigan on
Saturday,' Carr said.
The announcement puts an end to the
speculation and questions surrounding
whether Griese or junior Scott Dreisbach
would start at quarterback for the season
opener. The questions began to emerge
after the Wolverines', 17-14, loss to
Alabama in last year's Outback Bowl.
After the loss, Michigan coach Lloyd
Carr said that he did not want to start a
quarterback controversy for next season.
Although Dreisbach had started the
entire 1996 season, he struggled toward
the end and was replaced by Griese for
the Outback Bowl. Griese's numbers
were good against the Crimson Tide but
not stellar, and even though Carr wanted
to avoid a controversy, that's exactly
what he got.
Carr finally made the announcement
yesterday, three days after he said that he
had reached a decision but declined to
release the name of the starter.
Griese said that Dreisbach sprainec
his right wrist in practice and is wearing
a cast that will be removed tomorrow.
Griese said that Carr told him he
would start over the weekend.
"I kind of had a feeling that I wa.
going to be the guy," Griese said. "l'c
been taking some more snaps in prac-
tice, and I felt good about the way I vWas
playing.
"We (Scott and 1) talk everyday. He's
been kind of nicked up, so hopefully
he'll be all right for Saturday, if need be."
For the past two seasons, Griese and
Dreisbach had flip-flopped as the start-
ing quarterback.
Dreisbach went down with a thumb
injury in practice after leading the team
to a 4-0 start during the 1995 season.
Griese replaced him, and the Wolverines
went on to end the season with.a 9-4
record, including a 31-23 win over then-
No. 2 Ohio State.
But then Griese hit a plateau. In fact,
Carr said that he was displeased with
Griese's development from the end of
that season through the spring.
"Quite honestly, I wasn't very pleased
with Brian's progression from that point
to the end of the season,' Carr said. "I
See GRIESE, Page 16
FILE PHOTO
Michigan football coach Lloyd Carr announced yesterday that fifth-year senior Brian Griese will start at quarterback against
Colorado on Saturday, kicking off Michigan's first game of the 1997 season. Last season, Griese only started against
Alabama in the Outback Bowl.
Morrison signs multi-year NHL deal with Devils
By Pranay Reddy
Daily Sports Writer
Four years later, the New Jersey Devils finally
got their man.
After selecting former Michigan center
Brendan Morrison in the 1993 Entry Draft, the
Devils waited and watched as Morrison blos-
somed into one of college hockey's best players.
And now the Devils can call him one of their
own. Morrison inked a multi-year contract with
New Jersey yesterday in East Rutherford, N.J.
Devils President and General Manager Lou
Lamoriello made the announcement.
Terms were not disclosed by Morrison's agent,
Kurt Overhardt.
"The important things is that the negotiations
are done and both sides are happy," Overhardt
said.
Yesterday's announcement by Lamoriello sig-
naled the end of the Devils' four-year courtship
of the 5-foot-11 Morrison, which started when
New Jersey selected him 39th overall in the 1993
Draft.
The selection came after Morrison's strong sea-
son with the Penticton Panthers, his junior hockey
team in British Columbia. He tallied 94 points in
55 games, on the team that lists the NHL's Paul
Kariya and Brett Hull as former players.
The selection was followed by Morrison's
spectacular career at Michigan, where he left his
mark as one of Michigan's best players of all
time.
Morrison won the H obey Baker Award as the
nation's top collegiate player for 1996-97, tally-
ing 31 goals and 57 assists during his senior sea-
son.
Morrison capped off Michigan's NCAA cham-
pionship run during the 1995-96 season by being
named the NCAA tournament's most outstanding
player during his junior year. His career totals at
Michigan consist of 102 goals and 182 assists for
a total of 284 points. Both his assist and point
marks are all-time records at Michigan.
Overhardt, who had been entrenched in nego-
tiations for quite some time, was pleased with the
signing - especially since Morrison can now get
down to business.
"Now Brendan can focus on what he does best,
and what he enjoys the most," Overhardt said.
"He is primed to be an NHL player, and he's
determined to do that this season."
And Morrison appears to be right on schedule,
as his signing yesterday coincided with the open-
ing of Devil's training camp.
Morrison may be ready to go, but it is obvious
that he will have a number of adjustments to
make before he ever steps onto the ice in an NHL
arena. Nevertheless, Overhardt has confidence in
his young client.
"I think he needs to stay on the course he's
been on for 22 years," Overhardt added. "I'm
confident he'll work his way into the lineup at
some point in the year."
Morrison joins former Michigan teammate
John Madden with the Devils, who signed during
the summer as a free agent.
FILE PHOTO
Former Michigan hockey player Brendan Morrison signed a multi-year contract with the New Jersey
Devils yesterday. Terms of the deal were undisclosed.
Schedule
Today,
No events scheduled
Tomorrow
No events scheduled
Friday
Volleyball vs. Central Florida at Tiger Invitational, Baton Rouge, La., 5 p.m.
Soccer vs. Butler, Michigan Soccer Field, 4 p.m.
Field hockey vs. Kent State, Ocker Field, 3 p.m.
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