aeaidj#gmaug SPORTS WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 19 , 2001 12 Webb, reemits showcased By Mike Heonsch Daily Sports Writer The Michigan's men's cross- country team will travel to Char- lotte, N.C. this weekend to participate in the Great American Cross Country Festival. Although the race is primarily a high school invitational, the trip will prove to ,. be very ben- eficial for CHARLOTTE, N.C. the Wolver- Who:Michiganat Great ines. With American Cross Country several top Shootout high school when:9:00a.m. .e i Latest: Freshman sensa- athletes in tion Alan Webbtook first attendance, overall at the Michigan M i c h i g a n Open on Sept, 4, finishing will be able the8000-meterracein to start its 25:21. recruiting process early. Secondly, the team will get the chance to practice on the course that will host the NCAA National Championships, which is located nearby. "We are going to be only an hour and a half away from Furman Uni- versity where the National Champi- onship is going to be run, so they talked to the (Furman) coach and arranged for our team to drive down on Sunday at 5:30 in the morning and run the golf course where the championship is going to be," Michigan coach Ron Warhurst said. "We're doing two things for one purpose. "We are getting a raceto open up, we get to look at some recruits and they get to look at us and we get to get on the National Championship course." Freshman standout Alan Webb will take part in his first official collegiate race for the Wolverines after opening the season with a vic- tory at the Michigan Open. Webb finished ahead of Michigan senior Back Coaches discuss safety, recovery By Arun Gopal Daily Sports Writer to the grind As Division I-A college football teams return to the grid- iron this weekend, the tragic terrorist attacks of last Tuesday were the hot topic during yesterday's Big Ten Football tele- conference. To a man, the 11I coaches in the Big Ten expressed how difficult it was for them to maintain their focus on football with everything that was going on in New York and Washington. The attacks led to the cancellation of last weekend's games and threw many teams' routines into a state of flux. As a result, the coaches expressed a universal eagerness to resume the season. "I think everyone's anxious to get back on the field and just try to get on with as much normalcy as possible," Illinois coach Ron Turner said. "We're still thinking a lot about the events that just happened, but I think everyone's anxious to get out and play." As is the case with any sport, travel plays a big role in col- lege football. Michigan State can bus to its game at No. 23 Notre Dame since South Bend and East Lansing are reason- ably close to each other, which is "a relief' in the words of Michigan State coach Bobby Williams. But other conference schools aren't so lucky. No. 21 Ohio State must journey to Los Angeles this weekend to face No.12 UCLA. It will be understandable if the Buckeyes have some trepidation about flying, especially considering that all four hijacked planes last Tuesday were flying to the West Coast. "I think individually, it will be different," Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said. "I think some of us will have a genuine concern, while others will look at it as business as usual. We're looking at it as traveling just as if we always have. That doesn't mean there won'tbe a bitof queasiness with all of us." The Buckeyes will have to shake off any sickness once they walk into the Rose Bowl, as the Bruins have looked like a legitimate Pac-10 contender in their first two games. After stunning Alabama, 20-17, in Tuscaloosa, UCLA went to Kansas and pummeled the Jayhawks, 41-17. The Bruins "are ranked very highly, and deservedly so," Tressel said. "We're going to need to make sure we step up as quickly as we can and play like it's our third game of the season even though we've played only one. It's going to be a MARJORIE MARSHALL/Daily With college football taking a week off due to the tragedy of last week, Michigan running back Chris Perry (23) and the rest of the Wolverines should have fresh legs going into this weekend's game against Western Michigan. tremendous challenge to us." The dean of Big Ten coaches -- Penn State's venerable Joe Paterno - has some unique perspective on the recent events. While numerous national figures refer to the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon as "Pearl Har- bor II," Paterno can actually speak from experience. "I was a kid listening to the radio, the New York Giants- Washington Redskins football game on Sun., Dec. 7 when it was interrupted to make the announcement," said Paterno, who will try to tie Bear Bryant's Division I-A record for career wins when the Nittany Lions tangle with Wisconsin. See PATERNO, Page 13 See WEBB, Page 14 'M' faces Big Ten top and bottom After a week layoff, volleyball team hits road to start conference slate By Charles Paradis For the Daily This weekend should be a good indicator of how well the Michigan volleyball team will fair throughout the rest of this season. With non-con- ference play over, the Wolverines will face only Big Ten opponents from now until the NCAA Tournament in November. Michigan will play two teams who were on the opposite ends of Big Ten volleyball last year. The Wolverines will play at North- western (3-3) on Friday night. The Wildcats finished with a dismal record of 2-18 in conference play last year as they proved to be the weakest team in the conference. Everything will change Saturday night as Michi- gan travels to Madison to take on the Badgers. Last season, Wisconsin fin- ished first in the Big Ten with an 18-2 record in conference play and a 33-5 record overall. How the Wolverines perform this weekend should preview their stand- ing amongst Big Ten teams. Playing last year's first and worst teams should demonstrate the team's strength relative to the conference. In Northwestern, Michigan faces an opponent that is desperately trying to turn its program around. The Wildcats are currently sitting at .500, but know that they must play harder than they have before if they want to stay at this level against Big Ten opponents. Despite this adversity, the team is anxious to begin their Big Ten season. "Everyone is looking forward to it. We are really excited," Northwestern coach Keylor Chan said. While in just his second year at Northwestern and third year coaching college volleyball, Chan has set high BRANDON SEDLOFF/Daily Michigan's Carrie Ritchie (13) and Chantel Reedus (15) will have to be in sync to hang with their Big Ten foes this weekend. m i.I EVANSTON, IL; MADISON, WI What: Michigan (3-3) at Northwestem(3-3) and No. 9 Wisconsin (6-2) When: 7 p.m. both Friday and Saturday Latest: Volleyball opens its Big Ten Season on the road, with a pair of matches at Northwest- ern and Wisconsin. goals for his squad. He expects the best out of his team. "We want to make the NCAA Tournament and be competitive in the Big Ten," Chan said. This is a lofty goal for a team that put up almost no competition against opponents last year, with only two conference wins and five wins over- all. This season though, Chan's team hopes to improve dramatically over last years' performance. "We look to finish in the top six in the Big Ten this year." The Wildcats are looking to junior Kelli Meyer to have a major impact this year. In her first two years at North- western, Meyer played as a setter - which limited her offensive abilities. This season though, she was beaten out for the job by freshman Drew Robert- son. A fantastic athlete, Meyer moved her 6-foot-2 frame to the right side position. In the Wildcats last match - a 0-3 rout at the hands of No. 8 Pacific during the Nike Pacific Invitational Tournament - Meyer had nine kills and six digs which earned her a spot on the All-Tournament Team. All of Meyer's extensive talents will be needed when the Wildcats take on Michigan, a team that Chan character- ized as young, athletic and quick. The Wolverines' performance against Wisconsin will prove if they can continue their recent success under head coach Mark Rosen. In his first year at Michigan, Rosen finished tied for eighth in the confer- E X P E R I E N CE Responding to Terrorism A faculty panel discussion of U.S. policy SPAIN Speakers include: Be a global citizen at GW's Madrid Study Center located at Spain's prestigious Universidad Autonoma. Complement your classroom learning with field trips, excursions and other rich cultural experiences in one of Spain's most exciting cities - Madrid. SPRING SEMESTER 2002 Application Deadline is October 1, 2001 COURSEWORK IN SPANISH Language, Culture and Literature Robert Axelrod - Political Science and Public Policy Kenneth Lieberthal -Political Science and Business Administration David Thacher - Public Policy and Urban Planning Wednesday, September 29, 2001 4:00 - 5:00 p.m. Room #1636, International Institute School of Social Work Building Sponsored by the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy IAre you lr'okinL, fora p lace toI