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If Blue loses to Buckeyes because of
your apathy, you should be ashamed
i
ANN ARBOR
640 PACKARD ROAD
734-622-0000
MON-SUN 6AM-12AM
BAKERY
CAFE
CATERING
COLUMBUS. Nov. 18, 2000. We were surrounded
by thousands of rabid Bucknuts. Just measly
freshmen at the time, my friend and I were the
only Michigan supporters in our section of the Horse-
shoe.
With a light snow falling<
around us, the Wolverines fell
behind 9-0 early in the game. We
were edgy. The Bucks around us
were letting us hear it.
Then it happened. Quarter-
back Drew Henson hit running
back Anthony Thomas on a J. BRADY
screen for a 70-yard touchdown MCCOLLOUGH
pass. As Thomas rumbled down The SportsMonday
the field, I was jumping up and CIolumn
down hysterically, and in the
process, my hands were apparently coming a little too close
to the crazy Buckeye fan sitting in front of me.
In his 60s, decked out in scarlet and gray, his hatred of
all things maize and blue was embedded in his wrinkly
face. After the run, he turned around to me, grabbed my
jacket and threatened me.
"If your hand hits my head one more time, you're f*****
going down," he scowled.
Welcome to Columbus, where old men drop the F-bomb
on college students who are supporting their school.
Fast-forward three years. The Buckeyes, after years of
futility against Michigan, are trying to take control of this
historic rivalry with their third straight win.
And with thousands of Bucknuts coming to town this
weekend, the onus is on you to make them, as well as their
players, feel as unwelcome as I felt three years ago in
Columbus.
I'm not advocating threatening their lives. But stu-
dents of this University, if there was ever a time for you
to turn the Big House from a symphony into a rock con-
cert, it's now.
There will be a lot of pressure on you Saturday, because
at the Big House - unlike the Shoe - either the students
make noise or no one does. In other words, there aren't
many 60-year-old alumni in Ann Arbor that are willing to
come to blows with an 18-year-old.
It's on you. If you can't get up for this game and make
noise before and during every single Ohio State offensive
play, I'm finally going to give up on you.
The players will, too. They've got to be wondering how
their stadium is so quiet compared to 59,000-seat Autzen
Stadium in Oregon. During games such as Indiana and Illi-
nois, the atmosphere feels more like a practice than a game.
The Big House is seen as a joke by the rest of the coun-
try, and I guarantee the Buckeyes don't respect you. Why
would they? That crowd in 2001 was one of the most apa-
thetic Michigan crowds I've seen, and your team was play-
ing for the Big Ten title. There was no excuse then, and
there's no excuse now.
I know, I know, it's a noon start. You won't be able to
sleep in. You won't have time to get as drunk as you'd
like. Cry me a river. Real fans don't need alcohol to
make noise; they do it because they will do anything to
help their team win.
The bottom line is that whether you want to make noise
or not, this team deserves your best. Shaking your keys
isn't going to be enough to help your team beat Ohio State
for the first time since 2000.
Do it for Chris Perry, who's been running his ass off all
season. Do it for John Navarre - make up for three years
of boos and will him to Pasadena with your enthusiasm. Do
it for these 2003 Wolverines, who've turned their season
around by winning five straight games. Do it for your fel-
low students, who will get to cherish Michigan's first out-
right Big Ten title since 1997 and celebrate it together.
We all want Michigan to go to the Rose Bowl. But will
you give something in order to get what you want?
The player-fan relationship is similar to our romantic
endeavors. Reciprocation is the key. Lend the Wolverines
your voices for three-and-a-half hours, and they'll give you
your trip to Pasadena.
Still not convinced you should make more noise Satur-
day? You're a tough sell.
Try this. Each night before you go to bed this week,
think about what it was like to watch Ohio State celebrate
its 26-20 win over Michigan in 2001. Think about that huge
scarlet flag waving in the far endzone. Think about the real-
ization that your team was headed to Central Florida. Think
about the Michigan seniors with their heads down, tears
rolling down their cheeks after their last game at Michigan
Stadium.
Then think about it happening again.
J Brady McCollough used to be quite the fan and wishes he
could be in the stands with you Saturday to prove it (he'll be in
the press box). He can be reached at bradymcc@umich.edu.
1 OM - -VTI
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'M' cagers cruise in final tuneup
By Bob Hunt
Daily Sports Writer
Hitting his second 3-pointer of the
game and cutting the Michigan lead to
9-8, guard Junie Sanders turned to the
Maize Rage with his finger to his
mouth telling them to be quiet.
Little did he know that it would soon
be his squad that would go quiet -real
quiet.
The Wolverines would go on a 25-2
run en route to a 90-57 thrashing of the
Fayetteville Patriots from the National
Basketball Development League, the
NBA's minor league.
After a sub-par first half against
Michigan Tech a week ago, Michigan
was on a mis-
sion, creating 22
turnovers and -
fighting for rebounds against a more
physically imposing professional team.
The Wolverines swatted numerous
Fayetteville passes, leading to easy bas-
kets, highlighted by freshman Brent
Petway's electrifying windmill dunk off
a telegraphed backcourt pass, his first
of five dunks on the evening.
"We had some glimpses of this up in
Toronto," coach Tommy Amaker said.
"Certainly it was nice to see us regain
that form and that energy level to make
into the kind of game we want to play,
which is full court, 94-feet and using
our athleticism."
By the end of the first half, the Patri-
ots who had played significant minutes,
including former Georgia Tech star
Jason Collier, looked befuddled by the
Michigan 2-3 and 2-1-2 zones. At
times, the Wolverines were showing
more intensity just standing in the zone
waiting for a pass to be made than the
Patriots had in their offense all together.
During Michigan's first-half run, Fayet-
teville went nine minutes and 23 sec-
onds without a field goal.
"We were disappointed by the way
we played team defense (against Michi-
gan Tech)," said freshman forward
Courtney Sims, who finished with 10
points and six rebounds. "We focused
on that at practice this whole week."
Leading the charge was senior for-
ward Bernard Robinson, who had a
stellar evening on both sides of the
floor with 18 points, five rebounds, five
assists and five steals.
"I thought tonight (Bernard Robin-
son) played as good as any player can
play," Amaker said.
Robinson had his mid-range jumper
in mid-season form as he finished 8-
for-13 from the field. In addition to his
shooting and play on defense, he assist-
ed Petway from almost the half court
line for an alley-oop slam.
"I felt good out there," Robinson said.
"The team did a good job getting every-
one in the flow early in the game, and that
really opened up some things for us."
Unlike the Michigan Tech game,
which starred guards Daniel Horton
and Dion Harris, the Wolverines' front-
court blossomed against a team that had
four seven-footers. While Michigan
shot a poor 2-for-10 from behind the
arc, the frontline held strong despite
playing without Graham Brown for the
second straight game. Sophomore for-
ward Chris Hunter narrowly missed a
double-double with nine points and
nine rebounds, and the Wolverines out-
rebounded the Patriots 40-34.
"I think we came out with more
intensity," Hunter said. "We were more
focused. I think we executed our game-
plan well, trying to keep those guys off
the glass and keep balls alive on the
offensive glass."
The game finishes off the Wolver-
ines' long preseason which started with
two weeks of extra practice before a
three-game exhibition tour in Toronto in
addition to a regular pre season sched-
ule. The regular season begins Friday at
Crisler Arena against Oakland.
Monday, November 17-Sunday, November 23
Celebrating all week at the Ann Arbor Atlanta Bread Company"!
Monday
* Buy one 1/2 & 1/2 combo and get a free 1/2 & 1/2c
" Ribbon Cutting Ceremony at 5pm
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Tuesday *"Buy one full sandwich and get a second full sandwicl
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
*Free bowl of soup with any full sandwich purchase
*Free half house salad with any full sandwich purchas
* Free cookie with any full sandwich purchase
*VIP Cards to ist 100 customers
*Michigan vs. Ohio State-
Atlanta Bread Company giveaways all day long!
BRETT MOUNTAIN/Daily
Freshman Brent Petway became known
to all Michigan faithul with five dunks.
Sunday * Free kid's meal with purchase of any full salad
or full sandwich
* Pastry tasting from 7am-10am
* Bread tasting from 3pm-5pm
*Register to win drawing
-~~~~~~~ ~ ~ ~~~~~~--~~~~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~- ~
Petway ignites crowd in debut
By Dan Rosen
Daily Sports Writer
Fifty-five seconds.
That's all the time it took Brent Pet-
way to get the crowd into a frenzy. Less
than a minute into his first appearance
on the Crisler Arena floor, the 6-foot-9
freshman was already a fan favorite.
Petway sat out last weekend's exhibi-
tion game against Michigan Tech with a
shoulder injury. So Friday night's con-
test with the Fayetteville Patriots of the
National Basketball Development
League was his first chance to play in
front of the home fans. He didn't waste
any time before making an impression.
Midway through the first half on one
of his first possessions on defense, Pet-
way stepped into the passing lane at the
top of the key and knocked an errant
Fayetteville pass up court. He glided
ahead and picked up the ball in the open
floor, all alone. Once he got into the
paint, Petway did his best impression of
a Dominique Wilkins windmill dunk -
one he watched a lot growing up. The
Michigan faithful went nuts.
"That was something else;' forward
TI' Mathie csa "H-e QinrnrikA me with
the same count in the Georgia state
semifinals at the end of last season.
Michigan coach Tommy Amaker
doesn't want Petway to lose sight of
how he got those opportunities. After
the game on Friday, he emphasized the
freshman's intelligence on the floor,
including reading the play on defense
and finding seams to grab offensive
rebounds, as the most promising sign of
what is to come.
"You get blinded a bit by the extraordi-
nary leaping ability that he displays all
the time,"Amaker said. "But frankly, he's
going to be a good basketball player."
That doesn't mean Amaker's going to
stop Petway from letting loose when he
does get open, though.
"We want our kids to go for it; obvi-
ously with intelligence (and) in the
right way," Amaker said.
Petway also grabbed three offensive
rebounds Friday, the most spectacular of
APARTMENT HOMES
which came on a missed shot by J.C.
Mathis. Petway caught the ball high
above the rim and slammed it home with
both hands before returning back to earth.
"Coach tells me to be active," Petway
said. "He wants me to be the best offen-
sive rebounder on this team. When the
ball goes up, I know I've got to get to
the offensive glass."
Petway ignited the crowd again at the
end of first half, when Bernard Robin-
son lobbed the ball to him from half
court for a two-handed stuff. So far
those two have developed good com-
munication on the floor, which should
lead to more alley-oops in the future.
"When we make eye contact, he'll
see me," Petway said.
On his first night at Crisler, everyone
saw him.
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