Friday September 19, 2003 www.michigandaily.com sports@michigandaily. com P fRTiSgatt DUN 7 FOR MEN'S CROS COUNTRY COVERAGE, ....WWW.MICffGANDAILY.COM PROCRASTINATION STATION M ICH IG AN 14 OR EGON 35 Before every football game this season, two of the Daily football writers will take the weekend's matchup to the PlayStation 2 (OR GAMECUBE!) For this week's matchup, coach Kyle O'Neill led the Ducks and J. Brady McCol- lough took the helm of the Wolverines. Play of the game - Michigan WR No. 27 has been "making big plays his whole life" - at least according to Kirk Herbstreit. WR No. 27 went deep for the first time in his career on a play-action pass to bring Michigan within 28-14. Player of the game - Oregon CB No. 2. As Lee Corso put it, this kid was a sack master. He had five tackles - all of them for a loss on the play. He'll be showing up in Michigan QB No. 16's nightmares as well with his three sacks and one interception. The kid even had a forced fumble in the second quarter. Though Michigan recovered it, it was a third down stop allowing his offense to get the ball back. P RE SS C ON FE RE NC E QU OT ES: MIchigan coach J. Brady McCollough: 0-4. 0-4 in the last four years on the road in nonconference. I thought thi team was different. I thought the were focused after last week's drilling of O'Neill's Irish. I've never been so disappoint.- ed in a group of men - I'm always this disappointed with a group of women - in my life. Drops. Injuries. Fumbles. Cryi ag gam e. Whining. Stop whining! aainst Indiana. Gah Gah Gooh$ Go. Question ts? dlnsnx ek Yes, that first drive of the game was a MICHIGAN drive. Meaning ... we didn't throw the bal oncand an rthe ball seven times for about 70 yard for th I got tired of watching QB No. 16 get sacked, so I went to the big guns and bcoursehe was injured after hs first (fwha should have been'vmany) 20yard runs. CGB No. 33 just didn't cut it as a quarterback. an mos imoranly 'an odstyle of coachin g for me Iwent bac to my udneahm rotsoff the no-huddle that I avoided for some reason in last week's game, and it paid off. Also, defensivelyIplayed a "dog, cover three" for most of the game, which I believe gave us our two of ortree picks. Just like last week, I am not here to mention any names - even in victory I will not do that - as this was a total team effort. And I'm proud of the way this group of outstand- wsh Icould stick wit them or the rest of te season. Qestionsii.I ely No, I don't believe coach Mc~ollough had his "A" game today. I'm not going to downplay what we did today, but McCollough a far from hsbest. Ducks fly together, but 'M' ffies higher By Naweed Sikora Daily Sports Editor Tradition vs. image. That will be the theme in this week- end's matchup between No. 3 Michigan and No. 22 Oregon. The Ducks have done everything from putting up bill- boards in New York City to adopting blinding yellow uniforms to attract attention and build an image as a young, exciting and brash group of guys. With the exception of last season, Oregon has backed up that image. Enter the college football power- house. Michigan could be the most tra- dition-rich team in college football - a far cry from the high-flying Ducks. The energy level should be at an all-time high in Eugene when these two teams lock up this weekend. MICHIGAN PASSING OFFENSE VS. ORE- GON PASSING DEFENSE: John Navarre will probably leave Michigan as the most prolific passer in school history, but leading the team to a win this weekend in Oregon will probably do more good for his legacy than breaking a couple more records. After a poor showing against Hous- ton, the Wolverines' passing game was on-point against Notre Dame. Navarre, who threw for 199 yards and one touch- down, spread the ball well amongst his targets, even finding Chris Perry in the endzone one time. Braylon Edwards is still waiting for that superstar catch and that breakout game this season. In the meantime, the gameplan with Edwards seems to be focused on getting him the ball on out-routes and passes underneath, then allow him to work after the catch. Oregon's secondary is led by senior free safety Keith Lewis, who has two picks on the season. But outside of Lewis, the Oregon secondary is young and inexperienced. Both Mississippi State and Nevada took advantage of the Ducks' youth to mount near comebacks. Advantage: Michigan MICHIGAN RUSHING OFFENSE VS. ORE- GON RUSHING DEFENSE: This one should- n't be too difficult to figure out. With the nation's leading rusher in Chris Perry (183 yards per game) and one of the most powerful and experienced offensive lines in the nation, the Wolverines will win this matchup against most teams in the country. "I don't know if you can ever keep someone like him under wraps," Ore- gon linebacker Kevin Mitchell said of Perry. "He's got all the tools you want out of a back. He's quick, he's powerful, he's fast, he's got great vision and good feet. We've seen him stiff arm people and keep running like he didn't even stiff arm them." Oregon has done well against the rush this season, allowing just 71.7 yards per game. But even with the likes of Mitchell leading the linebacker corps, it is unlikely Oregon will be able to shut down the nation's leading rusher. Advantage: Michigan AP PHOTO Oregon wide receiver Samie Parker darts through the Arizona defense. just under 50 a game. But it's clear that the rushing game is not Oregon's main attack because the three have combined for just one touchdown so far this sea- son. Michigan's front four should have no problems shutting down these three amigos. Advantage: Michigan OREGON RUSHING OFFENSE VS. MICHI- GAN RUSHING DEFENSE: The Michigan front four has been nothing less than ferocious so far this season. After allowing Central Michigan to run wild - a performance that Michigan defen- sive end Larry Stevens said made him sick - the defensive line has dominat- ed opponents. They have allowed the Wolverine linebackers maximum free- dom to put pressure on the opposing quarterback and fill gaps. Overall, Michigan has allowed 113.7 rushing yards per game, but just 74 against Houston and 49 against Notre Dame. Oregon uses a combination of three running backs in its offensive attack. Both Terrence Whitehead and Chris Vincent are averaging just over 60 yards per game, and Ryan Shaw is gaining OREGON PASSING OFFENSE VS. MICHIGAN PASSING DEFENSE: Everyone knows that Ducks fly together - and these Ducks are no exception. Kellen Clemens and Jason Fife share the role as quarterback and have led Oregon to the best passing attack in the Pac-10. The Ducks are aver- aging 284 yards per game in the air, and their quarterback tandem has combined for 11 touchdowns. The Ducks also boast two of the nation's best receivers in Samie Parker and Demetrius Williams. Parker, who is well known for his speed, had seven catches for 162 yards and two touch- downs against Nevada, while Williams had three touchdowns against Arizona. "Everybody knows about Samie's speed," Clemens said. "He's one of the fastest college football players in the country right now." "Demetrius has really stepped into that number two role and made big plays. A lot of people didn't know about him, but are learning about him the hard way." Parker injured himself in the first quarter against Arizona and was forced to leave the game. He will not be 100- percent when these teams meet tomor- row afternoon. Thus far, the Wolverines' secondary has gone untested. It has allowed oppo- nents an average of 101.7 yards in the air, but this is mainly because no team has even tried to stretch the field. Advantage: Even SPECIAL TEAMS: If you caught Steve Breaston's performance against Notre Dame, this one should be another no- brainer. The field-goal kicking and punting have also drastically improved from last season. Michigan has been winning the field position battle and will again this weekend. Advantage: Michigan Michigan 35, Oregon 21 STAFF PICKS Predictions against the spread for 9/20/03 No. 3 MichIgan (-8) at No. 22 OREGON North Carolina at WISCONSIN (-14.5) Arizona at No. 25 PURDUE (-25.5) Northwestern at DUKE (-3) Bowling Green at No. 5 OHIO STATE (-14) Michigan State at NOTRE DAME (-11.5) No. 16 Arizona State at No. 18 IOwA (-8) Kentucky (-8.5) at INDIANA California at iwNOiS (-4) Kent State at PENN STATE (-24.5) West Virginia at MARYLAND (-9) No. 12 Tennessee at No. 17 FLORIDA (-3.5) No.7 Georgia at No.11 LOUISIANA STATE (-1) Colorado at No. 10 FLORIDA STATE (-19) Clemson at GEORGIATEcH (4.5) Marshall at No. 6 KANSAS STATE (-18) UCLA at No.1 OKLAHOMA (-19) Texas Tech at NORTH CAROLINA STATE (-6) Best bet. Last week's record (best bets) Total season record (best bets) Courtney Lewis J. Brady McCollough Kyle O'Neill Naweed Sikora Michigan Wisconsin Purdue Northwestern Bowling Green Notre Dame Iowa Kentucky Illinois Kent State Maryland Tennessee Georgia Colorado Georgia Tech Marshall Oklahoma N.C. State Michigan 10-8 (1-0) 17-19 (2-0) Michigan North Carolina Purdue Northwestern Bowling Green Notre Dame Arizona State Kentucky Illinois Kent State West Virginia Florida Louisiana State Colorado Georgia Tech Kansas State UCLA N.C. State Michigan 9-9 (1-0) 19-17(1-1) Michigan Wisconsin Arizona Northwestern Bowling Green Notre Dame Iowa Kentucky California Kent State West Virginia Florida Georgia Florida State Georgia Tech Marshall UCLA N.C. State Bowling Green 11-7 (1-0) 19-17 (2-0) Michigan Wisconsin Purdue Northwestern Ohio State Michigan State Iowa Indiana Illinois Kent State West Virginia Florida Georgia Florida State Georgia Tech Kansas State UCLA N.C. State Iowa 9-9 (0-1) 18-18 (0-2) Barry from "Beiner's Weiners" - outside 'M' Book and Supply Michigan Wisconsin Arizona Northwestern Ohio State Notre Dame Iowa Kentucky Illinois Penn State Maryland Tennessee Georgia Florida State Georgia Tech Kansas State Oklahoma N.C. State Michigan 9-9 (1-0) 14-22 (1-1) We'll have our picks with relish and onion Sticking with the food theme we began last week, this week's Ann Arbor celebrity is Barry from "Bein- er's Weiners" who's been manning the hot-dog stand outside Michigan Book and Supply for the past 22 years. That's a lot of hot dogs, folks. Barry remembers the day when Book and Supply was a soda shop and sodas only cost 25 cents. Those were the days. Barry also remembers the days when Penn State was a respectable football team, and it appears he let his memories make his picks for him. Sorry, Barry. It's all in good fun. As you can see, no Daily football writer has distinguished himself or herself, and this week has a big chance to separate O'Neill and McCollough, as they disagree on seven games. O'Neill is confident that Ohio State will continue to poop through its schedule, so confident that he made it his best best for the week. O'Neill seems to have a good eye for best bets. Pete Poulos from Frank's Restaurant got the celebrities going last week, so hopefully for the celebrities' efforts, Barry will come up with a 13- 5 week to at least get them up to .500 for the year. the michigan daily UP TO $300/HR., male models wanted for LOOKING TO HIRE someone to do 10 - 12 amateur photo/video work. Must be in shape hours of child care weekly for 2 boys (4 and and eager to show off. No exp. nec. E-mail 6) late afternoon/early evenings and some sat- models@themalebox.com for information. urdays. car necessary. occasional overnights as well. $124ir. Call Bridget: 763.0577. WANT TO BE A STAR? 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