Ee £IidIi~tan&ilg
PORTS
(:)l*; DAY
UM = II 'll' II, I im, 1
op
fr offinse
t Homecoming on Saturday, in
front of "the largest crowd
wthing a football game in
America," Tom Brady was eager to
make a positive impression.
And, as everyone in the stadium
knew, that meant throwing to Tai
Streets. So, after Justin Fargas got
stuffed on the game's opening play,
Brady drew Streets into the air with a
bullet and hit him in the hands.
0 Unfortunately
for all involved,
a jarring
Hoosier hit
popped the ball
from Streets't
hands and
groans over-7
came the MARK
crowd.S
The disap- SNYDER
intment Mark My
ed from Words
the hopes of
what might have been and the possi-
bility of a dominant offense on the
perfect day.
After dropping the first pass -just
to show he's human - Streets gave us
a Rose Bowl flashback catching any-
thing and everything in his vicinity.
He hauled in eight passes for 117
ards and two touchdowns, but most
mportant, became the money player
Michigan has waited for on offense.
"I thought Tai Streets was the differ-
ence," Indiana coach Cam Cameron
said. "The thing that's impressive
about it is you know that it's coming,
and they out-execute you."
All season long, the offense has
struggled. Much of that can be attrib-
uted to Brady's first-year inexperience,
but now those concerns can be put to
st. He was obviously just waiting to
id his connection.
Every quarterback needs to have a
go-to guy. The one receiver who can
run an 11-yard out and catch the ball
t 0n
Lion
Michigan
bottles up
Randle El
in victory
By Sharat Raju
Daily Sports Editor
For Michigan this past Saturday, the
only thing more elusive than Indiana
quarterback Antwaan Randle El was a
victory.
The Wolverines can feel fortunate
that they pinned down both.
"We missed some passes and we had
some penalties," Michigan coach Lloyd
Carr said. "So we're a long way from
being the kind of football team we want
to be and that we're capable of being"
Despite early offensive problems, the
Wolverines
(4-0 Big 4,( MichIgan 21
Ten, 5-2
overall) Indiana 10
fended off
playmaking sensation Randle El and the
Hoosiers (1-3, 3-4) to come away with a
21-10 victory in front of 110,863 spec-
tators in Michigan Stadium.
After winning the past two games on
the road, it was almost fitting that this
past weekend was Homecoming week-
end at Michigan. The Wolverines were
finally able to compete in dry condi-
tions after two sloppy, rain-covered
games.
"It was actually a nice day so every-
one was so excited to go out there and
play," Michigan quarterback Tom Brady
said. "When you're that excited and that
emotional, you get out of your game
plan, You're not as relaxed in there."
Although the conditions were ripe for
a thrashing, the Wolverines had troubles
early in the game, trailing for nearly the
entire first half. Running the dreaded
option offense, Randle El marched the
Hoosiers down the field on their first
See HOOSIERS, Page 4B
Uppe'f":"MAR" ""RET '"f'd"' """uY" """"v: ,
When Tal Streets (above) snagged this fade pass, Michigan grabbed a 21-10 lead, closing out Antwaan Randle El (upper left) and the Hoosiers In the process.
just past the down marker.
Last year, Brian Griese called on
Jerame Tuman often. Their connection
- unstoppable and deadly effective
- became a hallmark of the Griese
game as the duo executed with preci-
sion.
The Brady-Streets connection
emerged on Saturday as the most con-
sistent, and dramatic, offensive option.
And on a perfect day when one of
Michigan's greatest receivers, Anthony
Carter, was recognized for past heroics
against the Hoosiers, Streets tried to
etch his own legacy.
After a first half in which he caught
three passes for 33 yards, Streets
turned the second half into his person-
al playground.
Facing a third-and-18 in a 7-7
game, Michigan deviated from the
expected off-tackle run. Instead, Brady
launched a perfect 51-yard bomb to
Streets, who coasted in for the go-
ahead score.
Streets - touchdown No. 1.
"Tai ran by the guy, so I tried to
throw it up there," Brady said, refer-
ring to the bomb.
Early in the fourth, with Michigan
nursing a four-point lead, Indiana
quarterback Antwaan Randle El eyed
another late-game comeback. Even
worse, on third and goal, every
Michigan fan knew the jump ball to
Streets was coming, yet Indiana was
helpless.
"He just jumps up and catches it,"
Cameron said. "You know it's com-
ing."
It came and went as Streets faded
back, snagged the ball and padded the
lead.
Streets - touchdown No. 2.
"As a receiver you feel you can get
any ball," Streets said.
With the ground game struggling
sans mud, first downs for Michigan
were hard to come by. So when it
came time to keep a drive alive late in
the third, Brady found Streets again,
this time for a 20-yard gain.
The effectiveness of the play was in
its familiarity. The two established a
rapport and Streets served his purpose,
bailing out Brady whenever necessary.
Streets - possession receiver.
There was one instance, just after
the half, when Brady tried to give
Streets another option. The quarter-
back underthrew the end zone pass
and, of course, was picked off, as
Streets attempted to "defend" it.
Streets - defensive back.
Well, Lloyd Carr can't expect him
to do everything.
- Mark Snyder can be reached via
e-mail at msnyder@umich.edu.
Lack of big men is
hew fad in Big Ten
'M' hockey escapes
Alaska with sweep
By Rick Freeman
Daily Sports Writer
CHICAGO - Maybe the new name
for the Big Ten could be the Big Donut
Conference. For basketball, at least, it
works. No centers, plenty of dunking,
and a lack of that Einstein Bros. appeal
that conferences like the ACC and the
M-10 seem to have.
This season, nearly every Big Ten
team is staying away from playing a
true center. Instead, coaches usually
have two players who play interchange-
able roles down low.
On the lineup cards, of course, one
will be listed at center and one will be
listed at power forward. But that's in
name only. Even last season, when
R bert Traylor blotted out the rafters in
sler Arena, his role was usually the
same as the listed power forward's.
This season, only Northwestern, and
to some extent, Penn State, have the
personnel to play with a traditional
frontcourt. Northwestern's Evan
Eschmeyer, who in his sixth year in the
rnfaramen ceem mre Twink ie than
shelf life, is one of two traditional cen-
ters left in the conference.
"I'm having fun, but I'd rather play
against one big guy than a double- or
triple-team," Eschmeyer said.
His one chance to do that will come
when the Wildcats play Penn State.
Calvin Booth, although not a true cen-
ter, is as close as any returning starter in
the conference. Booth said that he and
Eschmeyer are "two of the best players
in the country" at their position. His
praise is a bit less impressive than it
once might have been, considering the
recent shortage of pivot men.
"Maybe there are a few less centers,"
Eschmeyer said, "but a lot of big guys
leave (college) early."
Which leaves college basketball -
and the Big Ten in general - with more
guards. Four of the five preseason all-
Big Ten selections are guards, with the
fifth being Eschmeyer.
Not that coaches are abandoning the
guard position altogether. Most under-
stand that despite the game's evolution,
hig men are nice to have around - ist
By T. Berka
Daily Sports Writer
After giving Niagara its first-ever
Division I victory last weekend, one
could say that the Michigan hockey team
was pretty ticked.
Alaska-Fairbanks had the unfortu-
nate duty of being the opponent after the
disappointing loss. The Nanooks were in
the wrong place at the wrong time this
weekend, and they were swept by the
Wolverines. Michigan (3-0 CCHA, 4-1
overall) bombed the Nanooks, 6-1,
Friday night and edged them, 2-1,
Saturday.
After getting schooled by the
Wolverines on Friday, it looked as if the
Nanooks (0-2, 1-3) were headed back to
the classroom in the first period
Saturday. Dale Rominski, capitalizing
on a power play, took a Bubba
Berenzweig pass and beat Alaska-
Fairbanks goalie Ian Perkins to draw
The goal, Rominski's third of the
season, was his second on the weekend.
In Friday's victory, he also provided the
first goal of the game.
"The second game was much clos-
er," Michigan coach Red Berenson
said. "Rominski's power-play goal was
the only difference between the two
teams."
Mike Van Ryn also experienced a bit
of deja vu this weekend, as he scored
Michigan's second goal in both games.
On Saturday, Van Ryn took advantage
of another power-play scenario, scoring
his third goal of the season with four
minutes left in the second period to give
the Wolverines all the goals they would
need.
Van Ryn, who scored four goals all
of last season, is now tied with Mike
Comrie and Rominski for the team goal-
scoring lead.
The power play, which has had a hard
WARREN ZINN/Daily
Freshman goaftAnder Josh RIackhurn stoned 20 of 21 shots in the first game and
i
I