Tuesday September 17, 2002 michigandaily.com sportsdesk@umich.edu c~be f#ii~mIaluI PORTS 1O, 6 Players don't blame loss on Navarre By J. Brady McCollough Daily Sports Writer Overthrows, batted balls and passes thrown behind receivers. These are the things most Michigan fans will remember about John Navarre's performance in the Wolverines' 25-23 loss at Notre Dame. But Navarre, who completed just 19-of-42 passes for 230 yards, could have completed many more with a little help from his receivers. In Michigan's final drive with less than two minutes to play, both Navarre and the Michigan receivers failed to make a play to win the game. After a nine-yard completion to fullback B. J. Askew, Navarre overthrew a wide-open Ronald Bellamy. The junior quarterback then ran for a first down to keep the drive alive. On the ensuing play, receiver Tyrece Butler found a hole in the Notre Dame zone, and Navarre put it right on the numbers at the Irish 35-yard line. But Butler couldn't hold onto the football, keeping the Wolverines out of field goal range. "As a receiver, I'm supposed to make big plays, and I didn't make big plays," Butler said. "That's what I'm here to do." Players were adamant that Navarre shouldn't receive the lion's share of the blame for the loss. "If we had won the game, everyone would be talking about how great John Navarre is," Joppru said. "The fact we lost, everyone will look for someone to blame, and that's who they're going to blame. It's too bad for Johnny that he has to take a lot of heat. "I think he played a good game." Those are refreshing words for Navarre, the greatly scrutinized quarterback who was nearly run out of town last season after throwing nine interceptions in the last five games. Fans and media clamored for a coup by junior transfer Spencer Brinton, or even highly-touted true freshman Matt Gutierrez. But Navarre was unfazed by all of it. He just worked with new quarterbacks coach Scot Loef- fler to learn everything possible about offensive coordinator Terry Malone's new scheme. "John's come a long way from last year, taking all the criticism," receiver Braylon Edwards said. "He's played well this year, and even (Saturday) he played pretty well. If his teammates catch the ball; he'll be alright." Navarre, known for taking sacks too often last season and not being able to get rid of the ball, didn't take one sack Saturday. "I thought he moved particularly well in the pocket and made some great throws," Michigan JEFF PHILLIPS M Field rush uncalled for Saturday in South Bend, Ind., I was shocked to see Notre Dame's stu- dent section, donning bright green "Return to Glory" t-shirts, rush- ing the field at the end of the game. What does this say about the way Fight- ing Irish fans view their team? It could be interpreted in a number of ways, none of which are very flattering for Notre Dame. Michigan has seen its fair share of fans rushing the field or basketball floor against them, almost all of which were justified. But last Saturday's dis- play was ludicrous. I believe that fans should rush the field/floor only on very special occa- sions. I may have been trained by Michigan fans, who only try to reach the field very rarely and even then are met with extreme force. For example, if Purdue beats Michigan for a Rose Bowl berth, Duke beats East Carolina for its first win in the modern era or if Col- orado clobbers Nebraska, 62-36, go ahead. Tear down the goal posts while you are at it. But Notre Dame's ugly 25-23 win over Michigan was not a special occa- sion - it was a rivalry game, and quite an even rivalry at that (The Wolverines lead the all-time series 17-12-1 after Saturday). This is much better than Michigan and Minnesota's "rivalry." Notre Dame did not earn a BCS berth (yet?), win the national title or notch a major upset. The game wasn't No. 1 vs. No. 2; it was No. 7 vs. No. 20 in the third game of the season. Rush- ing the field proved how little respect the fans have for their own team and how much respect they have for Michi- gan - which, while flattering to the Wolverines, is a bit misplaced at this point in the season. Though they have fallen on hard times a bit over the past few years, the Fighting Irish defeated Michigan four years ago and are two seasons removed from a BCS bowl. If Notre Dame's win was an upset, it was mild one. There is a sports cliche for this situation: "Act ivalr ame like you've been there." It may have been a few years, but Notre Dame has been there. The Notre Dame football team did not view the win as an upset. After- wards, the players talked about Fiesta Bowl possibilities - which, while extremely premature, show their confi- dence in the young season. They were not surprised by the outcome. The fans conduct also contrasts the way new coach Tyrone Willingham holds himself: With dignity and class. He expects to win and expected to defeat Michigan. He was reserved at the press conference, joking with reporters and while he enjoyed the win, he knew that it was just another win. When Willingham was he was thinking when he saw the students coming onto the field, he jokingly replied, "Help." He later clarified that he, in fact, was being serious. . "How many times have you seen the crowd like that on the field, jumping around and somebody gets hurt?" Will- ingham said. "That is my concern. That is why the word 'help' jumped to mind." And why shouldn't he be? Not only should he be worried about his own safety, but also his players.' As I walked off the field Saturday, police escorted a fan whose head was bleeding out of the stadium. I'm not saying that Carlyle Holiday was at risk for a closed-head injury, but it is a risk. Above all risks, Notre Dame fans should have more respect for them- selves, their team and their coach. While the fans' intention mayhave been to support their team - and they have done a great job - the Fighting Irish still deserve better for their sur- prise start. If Notre Dame is in fact in the middle of a "Return to Glory" fans should not disgrace it by overreacting. a DANNYIOSHOKU~U~/Daily Michigan quarterback may not have led the Wolverines to victory Saturday in South Bend, but he's not the only one to blame this time. Several dropped passes and fumbles contributed to Michigan's downfall. coach Lloyd Carr said. "I thought he made very good decisions. I thought he threw the ball to the right people with a couple of exceptions." Notre Dame defensive tackle Cedric Hilliard talked after the game about how he didn't expect Navarre, who hit 19-of-42 passes for 230 yards, to be so tough to sack. "He was a big guy and he was able to move up into the pocket," Hilliard said. "I think we rattled him some." It's rare that anyone wishes the 6-foot-6, 228- pounder to run, but down 16-7 in the third quar- ter with his team inside the 10-yard line, Navvare could have made a play to bring his team within two. He rolled left on third-and-goal, and for an instant, had a touchdown staring him in the face. But he waited for a receiver to break open instead of making a break for the goalline, giving the Irish defenders a chance to bring him down. The Wolverines were forced to settle for a field goal. "There were some plays that we would expect him to make that he did not make," Carr said. With the extra time given by his line and improved pocket presence, Navarre was able to go through his reads and pick out his receivers accordingly - something fans didn't see last season with Navarre looking for Marquise Walk- er in most situations. Notre Dame was giving Michigan the pass to the tight end, and to Joppru's delight, Navarre See NAVARRE, Page 11 0 0 Jeff Phillips can be reached at jpphilli@umich.edu. Utah's leading rusher done for the season By Joe Smith Daily Sports Editor Just when Utah coach Ron McBride thought things couldn't get any worse, they did. Two days after McBride fumed over a disputed call which led to a controver- sial loss to Arizona, the Utes announced yesterday that starting tailback and lead- ing rusher, Marty Johnson, will miss the remainder of the season with a torn medial collateral ligament and lateral meniscus in his right knee. Johnson suf- fered the injury in Utah's win over Indi- ana on Sept. 7. Johnson, who led the nation in rush- ing with a 202.5 yards per game aver- age in the first two games, hoped the injury was repairable so he could con- tinue the season. 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