Scoreboard,. NATIONAL Pittsburgh 7, LEAGUE MILWAUKEE 5 NEW YORK 9MILWAUKEE 5, Atlanta 2 Pittsburgh 2 ST. LOUIS 6, HOUSTON 4, San Diego 5 Cincinnati 1 MONTREAL 5, Colorado at Florida 3 ARIZONA, Inc. PHILADELPHIA 5, Los Angeles at Chicago 0 SAN FRANCISCO, Inc. AMERICAN LEAGUE Detroit 6. MINNESOTA 3 Boston 6, CHICAGO 2 New York at BALTIMORE, ppd. Toronto 6, TAMPA BAY 2 Ule ii u N Tracking 'M' charity work The Michigan Athletic Department and Ann Arbor Public Schools have joined to form "Partners for Excellence," a program that will send athletes to area schools to offer tutoring, perform community service Thursday September 30, 1999 9A 9A Blue may stkeggle to make Boilers add up By Rick Freeman Daily Sports Editor Something's not right here. On Saturday, two Big Ten teams that find more success through the air than on the ground face off. And the numbers don't add up. Michigan has two quarterbacks and one running back. Purdue has one quarterback and two running backs (or none). The Boilermakers' quarterback, Drew Brees, sometimes has five recievers to throw to; some- times throws 50 times a game. He takes a lot of three-step drops, and has only been sacked once. The only number that make sense is the number of winners - one. And the one that triumphs has the first leg up in the Big Ten race. Michigan might not face an opponent this fearsome until Penn State, two months from now - and that's assuming the second-ranked Nittany Lions are this scary. Oh, and one last thing. Purdue is an option team. But more on that later. Saturday's game will rest upon the shoulders of both teams' quarterbacks - all three of them. Carr gave the nod -literally - to his usual rota- tion of Tom Brady at quarterback in the first quar- ter, Drew Henson at quarterback in the second and whoever has the hot hand in the second half If Henson's hand is hot enough, Brees might not even be the most talented Drew in the game, let alone the country. But despite Lloyd Carr's expressed wishes to avoid throwing a signle pass, it seems almost inevitable that this game will hinge on the the play of the three quarterbacks. "Usually, as Drew Brees goes, so goes Purdue," Purdue coach Joe Tiller said. And he's gone to the moon for the Boilermakers so far. Brees' offensive numbers - 10 touchdowns, 1,315 yards - look good even next to these: 10 touchdowns, 1,366 yards. Those last figures belong to Michigan's entire offense this season. And Brees has only been sacked once - Michigan's two- headed quarterback monster, has been brought down six times. "What impresses me most is that they only have given up one sack," Carr said. What impresses Tiller the most is the diversity of Michigan's offense. Measuring u How Michigan's offense, run by two quarterbacks, measures up to the 8oilermakers' passing game alone: 1,315 Drew Brees' passing yards 1, 3 6 Michigan's total yards touchdowns scored by each Earlier this week, he cited tailback Anthony Thomas' versatility. "I've been impressed with how they put the ball in his hands," Tiller said. "Thomas is a strong guy that does everything for them." Which is precisely Michigan's problem. Purdue has outrushed Michigan, too, 563-471, and the Boilermakers second-leading rusher is a tailback, Montrell Lowe (189 yards), not a wide receiver, as Michigan's No. 2 man is. Take away David Terrell's 45-yard touchdown off a double-reverse last weekend, and Michigan's sec- ond-leading rusher is true freshman B.J. Askew, who gained 18 yards in mop-up time against Rice, or Henson, who has rushed for 38 yards but lost 21 on sacks. The scariest number of all for Michigan, though, is the number of people who will know where Purdue's receivers are going when the Boilermakers run the option. Two. Brees and the receiver. "It's.predicated on what the defense does, that's why it's called the option," Tiller said. "Really, it's unpredictable where the receiver is going to go. The quarterback has to read him." And Michigan's defenders looked as though they had vanquished their option nightmares last week when they stopped Ron Dayne for a loss after tak- ing a pitch from Wisconsin quarterback Brooks Bollinger on fourth down. That might not be right, either. LOUIS BROWN/Daily Quarterback Drew Henson's elusiveness is one of his strong points, and the sophomore could be a handful for the Purdue defense on Saturday. Stickers hit the road to face top ranked teams in the conference By Sarah Ensor For The Daily As the No. 10 Michigan field hockey team marches into the heart of the Big Ten season, things just keep getting tougher. This weekend is of utmost impor- tance for the Wolverines, who will face Big Ten powerhouses - No. 7 Ohio State and No. 5 Penn State - on the road. It is Michigan's chance to prove itself one of the conference's elite teams and will provide a chal- lenge the players and coaches are eager to face. "It's our time to prove that we're a top team," freshman forward Jessica Rose said. "We want to win the Big Ten, and you've got to beat everyone to get there." The weekend begins with tomor- row's game against Ohio State. The Buckeyes are 8-1 overall, with a 1-1 conference record. Michigan has won the last five meetings between the two teams, including a 2-0 victory in the semifinals of last year's Big Ten tournament. On Sunday, the Wolverines will face the Nittany Lions in one of the most important and most highly 1 anticipated games of the season. Penn State is 7-2 overall and 1-1 in the Big Ten. It is one of the most sto- ried programs in field hockey, having won the last four Big Ten champi- onships and having appeared in the NCAA Tournament every year since 1982. Although Michigan is motivated to win this game, history is not on its side. The Wolverines have lost 15 of 17 meetings with the Nittany Lions, including all three matchups last "Don't I t ou r s E i year. "There's always a revenge factor," Michigan coach Marcia Pankratz said. "They're our nemesis and an excellent team. We have to get through them to get to the top of the Big Ten." Because the Penn State game is the more emotional matchup, the Wolverines need to avoid overlook- ing the first contest of the weekend. "We need to stay focused on Ohio State and then move our focus to Penn State," Pankratz said. The players agree that the team must take the schedule one game at a time. "We're not looking ahead to Penn State," Rose said. "We're making sure we're ready for" the Buckeyes. Michigan enters the weekend with a 7-3 overall record, including a 1-0 mark in the Big Ten. The Wolverines opened conference play last Wednesday with a dramatic 1-0 win over then-No. II Michigan State in East Lansing. "We were happy to come out of our first Big Ten game with a win," Pankratz said. "Now we need to focus on Ohio State and Penn State. Every game is a challenge." There is no doubt that this week- end will be the stiffest challenge the Wolverines have faced thus far this season. Players and coaches alike, though, express confidence in the team's ability to succeed. "We just need to emphasize what we do well," Pankratz said. "If we use our strengths, we'll be fine." Rose agrees. "We're really excited for these games," she said. 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