14A - The Michigan Daily - Thursday, September 24, 1998
Past behind Colletto;
'M's Howard signs
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SOUTH BEND (AP) --- Notre Dame
offensive coordinator Jim Colletto says
he's forgotten all about the catcalls
thrown his way by Purdue fans after his
former team beat up on the Irish last
year.
Colletto's players haven't.
"Coach Colletto is a great coach, and
het's stuck by us through thick and thin,"
offensive tackle Mike Rosenthal said.
"He's taken a lot of abuse, and we just
want to go out and play really well."
Colletto is 0-7 in the series between
Notre Dame and Purdue that dates back
io1896, including an 0-6 mark as the
Boilermakers' head coach and 0-1 with
the Irish after last year's 28-17 Notre
Dame loss in West Lafayette.
But he said he's got more to worry
about than wounded pride when the No.
23 Irish take on Purdue on Saturday at
Notre Dame Stadium.
"Once that game was over, it was
gone and forgotten," Colletto said. "I
don't even think about that. I've had ups
and downs in this game, and the ups go
away and the downs go away."
Last year's loss to Purdue was one of
those lows for Colletto. It sparked a
four-game skid for the Irish and marked
the beginning of a troubled year for the
Notre Dame offense.
It finished the year ranked 36th in the
nation in rushing, the first time the Irish
finished out of the top 20 in that cate-
gory since the 1980s.
The offense is again the first thing on
Colletto's mind, especially since he's
,not sure which Irish squad will show up
- the one that ran for 280 yards against
Michigan to open the season, or the one
,that managed just three points in the
first half against Michigan State the fol-
lowing week.
"'The Michigan State game got out of
control so fast it was a tough game to
try and get anything going consistently,
and Michigan was your first time out
with a lot of new things, and once they
got settled with the things they were
doing, they did them pretty well,"
Colletto said. "'This game, you're going
to try and do the things you've been
working on all the time, nothing new or
tricky."
Colletto said he harbors no ill feel-
ings toward his former players, despite
the taunts they threw at him last year-
or the objects tossed his way by Purdue
fans.
Then-running back Edwin Watson
said before last year's game that his old
coach should be used to losing in Ross-
Ade Stadium.
"I'm just pleased for those kids,"
Colletto said. "Most of those kids still
playing are kids we recruited, and
they've done well.
"I think there was a lot that happened
that brought them to that, and I think
(current Purdue head coach) Joe Tiller
took it another step forward"
Colletto will again face a Purdue
squad made up mostly of players he
recruited, and Tiller said his coaches have
tried to downplay the significance of
playing against Colletto with many of his
old players, just like they did last year,
HOWARD sIGNs: Despite being draft-
ed, then cut by the Denver Broncos, for-
mer Michigan tailback Chris Howard is
back in the NFL, signing with
Jacksonville yesterday. Instead of play-
ing with former Wolverine Brian
Griese, Howard will suit up for the
Jaguars.
'M' voleybail
opens Big Ten
By Jason Emeott
Da% vsports Wrter
I he Michigan volleyball team will begin its quest tir
national recognition tomorrow when it opens the Big Ten
season against Purdue.
This weekend, it also hosts No. 22 Illinois on Saturd
Both games will be played at ClitT Keen Arena.
1 he 8-2 Wolverines, seek to exchange their label of con-
frrence up-and-comers for one of Big Ten contenders.
Victories this weekend are key if Michigan hopes to make
the transition this season.
"You never want to pin your season on one weekend, but
there is a really strong concentration on getting off to ti
uood start;" Michigan coach Greg GiovanaizI said.
Giovanazzi also noted that Purdue and Illinois will chal-
lenge the Wolverines, since both are veteran teams that
return five and six starters, respectively.
Giovanazzi said that he feels that "winning both gameW
essential to beginning the season on the right note."
He also added that there is a sense of urgency to get oiT
to a good start since his squad has a tendency to "peak late."
The past few seasons, the Wolverines have started off
slowly, but improved greatly as the season progressed.
In order to prevent another late start, the Wolverines have
been working on their biggest weakness: the serve-receive
game.
"Our strengths are hitting and blocking, but the serve-
receive game is a concern," Giovanazzi said. ,
Although it has improved nicely during practice this
week, Giovanazzi remarked that this weekends' keys to vic-
tory are seniors Jane Stevens and Jeanine Szczesniak.
He said that both are essential to the serve-receive game.
and "it's time for them to deliver."
Giovanazzi said his team will benefit from playing the
conference opener at home. Since six of the conference's
teams are ranked in the top 30 nationally, home-court
advantage is a bonus.
Additionally, the Big Ten conference season consists of
10 weeks of grueling physical play, and starting that rigor-
ous span at home is a psychological edge.
Even though Giovanazzi's Wolverines face a tough road
ahead, they're ready to go.
"My players are really excited to be starting at home for
the Big Ten season," said Giovanazzi.
FILE PHOTO
The Michigan volleyball team is trying to shed its label as a perennial up-and-coming team and replace i
with the winner mantra. With an 8-2 record the Wolverines are making progress toward changing that
perceptions
Soccer
faces test
at home
By Stephanie Offen
Daily Sports Writer
As the saying goes, "The third
time's the charm."
The Michigan women's so }r
team is hoping the saying rings tr it
its third Big Ten game tomorrow, at
home against Penn State.
The Wolverines went 5-0 in non-
conference play before losing their
first two Big Ten matchups against
Wisconsin and Northwestern.
Up until the Wolverines faced
Wisconsin and Northwestern "we had
not played the toughest competition,"
Michigan coach Debbie Belkin s*
Michigan, who has faced just one
ranked opponent this season, is trying
to get rid of the mistakes made
against the conference opponents.
"We were mentally ready against
Wisconsin and Northwestern, but we
needed to take the goal opportunities
we received. The other teams capital-
ized on our mistakes," Belkin said,
Those mistakes included a brie
mental lapse that led to a goal in.the
second overtime against Wiscon
break the 0-0 tie. The Wolverines as
surrendered two goals late in the
game against Northwestern, afte
tying it 2-2.
Michigan is hoping to eliminate
those lapses when the NittanyL
come into Ann Arbor.
Penn State is currently rankedt
enth in the nation, and started the s
son off 6-0, the best start in I
history. They've also won two s
in the Big Ten against Indiana and
Illinois.
The Wolverines are working on
both sides of the game for tomorrow's
game, but they are stressing offense.
The team is looking for big plays
from leading scorers Jessica Limauro,
Amber Berendowsky and Kacy
Beitel. Berendowsky and Beitel were
the only Michigan players to score all
weekend.
"We didn't score a goal in e
Wisconsin game, and we had opportu-
nities to score goals that we didn't
convert on;' Belkin said.
But Michigan does have the home
field advantage on its side, and tends
to play better at home.
The Wolverines are 3-0 at bow
this year - the two Big Ten oses
were both on the road. Belkin sat he
thinks that a home game couldp
the Wolverines get back on a "WIn-
ning track".
Penn State has its advantages as ll.
Along with being undefeated and la-
ing a very talented group of plays,
Belkin said that the Lions are physieal-
1r hionpr then the Wrlvrine and n a