The Michigan Daily - SportsThursday - September 6, 2001- 5B Navarre still looking for redemption By Jon Schwartz Daily Sports Editor The last time John Navarre stepped onto a Pac-10 team's field was a day that he'd rather forget. Following up two strong games against Bowling Green and Rice, Navarre was getting used to the role of start- FOOTBALL ing in the place of an injured Drew Henson. Notebook Then came the Bruins. Navarre completed eight of 28 passes with one interception - including a 1-11 mark in the second half - as Michigan blew a fourth quarter lead en r route to a 23-20 loss to UCLA. The interception came with just under a minute and a half remaining, with Michigan in field-goal range. The Wolverines needed only to stop the clock. Suddenly, the cheers that Navarre had drawnat Michigan Stadium were turning to shocked boos. Fans were desperate for Henson's return. This weekend, Navarre is going back out west, this time to Washington. "Personally, I have to study last year and take it as 1 a positive learning experience," Navarre said. After the UCLA game, Navarre would start the next game at Illinois, but when Henson returned for the second half, he was a backup again. Since then, he's had a year to dwell on the mis- takes that he made in the Rose.Bowl, and coach Lloyd Carr thinks that it's prepared him for this year. "There's no question that the UCLA game will help him in preparing for this week," Carr said. "I feel very confident that he has learned some things since then. He is a much better quarterback today that he was a year ago." ON THE SURFACE: On Saturday, Michigan will play its first game on a new field surface that Wash- ington has installed in Husky Stadium. FieldTurf is an innovative artificial turf that is widely considered the best substitute for grass. It is an extremely well-mixed conglomerate of grass and artificial turf. From the stands, it looks remarkably similar to grass, and even on the field, players say that it handles like a natural surface. "I like it," quarterback John Navarre said. "It's softer, and I like the fact that you can wear any type of shoe on it." The reason that Navarre and the rest of Michi- gan's squad know enough about the surface to draw an opinion is that FiedTurf has been installed in Oosterbaan Fieldhouse, Michigan's indoor practice facility. "I think the fact that we practice on it will help us a lot on Saturday," linebacker Victor Hobson said. "I actually started out wearing turf shoes, but I have now switched to cleats. It really doesn't make a dif- ference - each shoe gets the same amount of grip." ONE THAT GOT AWAY: This weekend, the Michigan coaching staff will get to see a blue-chip recruit that slipped away at the last minute. Reggie Williams, a wide receiver out of Tacoma, Wash. chose Washington at the last minute after mulling between the Huskies and Michigan. The 6-foot-4, 215 pound Williams was consid- ered among the top wide receiver recruits in the country. In the end, he decided to stay close to home. "Reggie will play this weekend," Washington coach Rick Neuheisel said. "How much, we will have to wait and see. But he has been what we expected, he is a talented young man who has learned quickly, so there's no reason to save him. "I wouldn't be shocked to see him play anywhere from 20 to 25 plays. I think he deserves that kind of time." DAVID ROCHKIND/Daily Sophomore John Navarre played well against Miami (Ohio) in the first game of the season, much like he did against Bowling Green and Rice last season. Davie has a plan for quarterback surplus Will Michigan benefit from its first game? NOTRE DAME (U-WIRE) - Bob Davie opened his lunch bag Tuesday and found a few surprises: A peanut } butter and jelly sandwich, a Pop Tart, some Gummi Bears and a banana. Apparently his wife had switched her husband and son Clay's lunches. Just after lunch, Davie hinted that he might have his own surprise to spring on Frank Solich and the Cornhuskers Saturday. When asked how he planned on using his quarterbacks in the first game of the year, Davie smiled and gave away little. "We certainly have a plan right now," Davie said about his quarterback plans for Saturday. "Our players know the plan. But I don't think it's in my best interests or the team's best interests to disclose that right now. I think you'll know how it unfolds in the first game." After watching Solich tip his hand a bit in the Cornhuskers' first two games, Davie was in no hurry to give away his quarterback surprise. "I want to give our football team every advantage we have to win," he said. Sophomore incumbent starter Matt LoVecchio seems to have a solid grip on the starting job but beyond the first snap things get interesting. Davie could bring in fellow sophomores Jared Clark or Carlyle Holiday to spell LoVecchio at any time. - All three quarterbacks play similar styles but Holiday seems to be the most athletic while Clark has the strongest arm. LoVecchio, however, is the proven leader. Beyond the three current quarter- backs, Arnaz Battle could somehow mix in the Davie's quarterback surprise. Battle started the first two games in 2000 before breaking his hand and switching to wide receiver this year. Battle, however, only smiled when asked if he could be used in any passing situations this year. David Givens adds another multi- purpose threat to the Irish attack. The senior wide receiver ran, passed and caught a touchdown in 2000. Last year, it was Notre Dame's spe- cial teams that surprised Nebraska by scoring 14 points. Nebraska quarter- back Eric Crouch said they are better prepared for the Irish special teams this year. "What hurt us last year was special teams," he said. "That has been our emphasis this week because we felt that we lost that part of the game last year." Davie knows he must create a new surprise for the Irish this year because special teams can't be counted on for 14 points. Not only will the Corn- huskers be better prepared, but the Irish lost punt returner Joey Getherall to graduation. Getherall returned a punt for a touchdown last year. EDGE Continued from Page 1B But Washington will be analyzing the same game film. The Huskies can review the various offensive and defensive sets that Michigan employed against Miami (Ohio) and get a sense for the Wolverines' per- sonnel this season. Since Washington hasn't played a game, the Wolverines don't have any current videotape to go off of. Michigan will have to rely on tapes of last season's Washington team, but with so many changes on the Huskies' roster, it will be difficult for the Wolverines to get a good impression of what they will be going up against. "The main thing we will focus on is the formations," Michigan safety Julius Curry said. "Hopefully, we will have some film on them, but if not then we will have to go out there and play them the best that we can." In the end, all of the perceived advantages and disadvantages don't mean much if one of the teams does- n't come out and give a maximum effort. The Huskies' boss is well aware of this. "The fact of the matter is that this is a great game for both teams," Neuheisel said. "As a player and an assistant, I have been across the field from Michigan a number of times and it is always the same - you are going to get into a fist-fight with one of the top programs in the country." L _ _ Check out U of M's newest Fraternity! Check out U of M's newest Fraternity! 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