4B - The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday - November 22, 2004
OHIO STATE 37, MICHIGAN 21
B-g Ten changes afoot:
Bucks' Smith runs wild
GAME STATISTICS
Team Stats
First Downs
Rush/Yds
Passing Yards
Offensive Plays
Total Offense
Return Yards
Comp/Att/Int
Punts/Avg
Fumbles/Lost
Penalties/Yards
Time of Poss
MICH
20
22/7 1
328
76
399
74
27/54/2
7/47.3
1/0
1/5
25:44
osu
18
47/205
241
70
446
161
13/23/0
6/42.2
2/0
34;16
By Sharad Mattu
Daily Sports Editor
COLUMBUS - After a mobile quarterback
gave Michigan's defense fits for the second time
in three games, Pierre Woods couldn't help but
question what he signed up for when he chose to
come to Ann Arbor.
"I just don't know what the Big Ten is coming
to," the junior linebacker said. "I thought it was
all power - now we're going to finesse.
"Recruit, get the guys you need, and let's play
some ball - go get it, running attack power foot-
ball. That's what the Big Ten is all about. Now it's
like the Pac-10 or SEC."
Two games ago, Michigan State quarterback
Drew Stanton totaled 189 yards - including 84
on the ground - in just one half. Had he not
injured his shoulder and sat out the second half,
the Wolverines may not have rallied to win.
On Saturday, Ohio State quarterback Troy
Smith exploited Michigan for the full 60 minutes
with his legs and arm. Starting in just his fifth
career game, Smith threw for 241 yards and two
touchdowns and ran for 145 yards and a touch-
down. He was the first Buckeye quarterback to
pass for 200 yards and run for 100 yards in a
game. He also was never sacked and didn't com-
mit a turnover.
The Buckeyes - ranked 101st in the nation
in total offense heading into Saturday - scored
a season-high 37 points and gained more yards
than in any other conference game this season.
Defenses often put a linebacker or safety
assigned solely to a mobile quarterback to contain
him. Linebacker Prescott Burgess was in on third
downs to spy Smith, but it made little difference.
The Buckeyes converted 8-of-17 third downs in
the game.
"(Smith) came out and killed us throwing the
ball and especially running the ball," cornerback
Marlin Jackson said. "Man coverage, you turn
around and the ball's being ran all the way down
the field. It's hard to stop that. He's a guy we knew
could break tackles and make people miss, and he
did a good job of that today."
Smith showed from the very beginning that
Ohio State's offense wouldn't be easy to defend.
On the fifth play from scrimmage, Smith calmly
eluded Michigan's three-man pass rush and gave
his receivers seemingly unlimited time to get
open. He saw receiver Anthony Gonzalez slip
past safety Ernest Shazor and hit him in stride for
a 68-yard touchdown pass.
In the third quarter, on third-and-eight, Smith
spun away from Woods and sprinted down the
left sideline for a 46-yard run. Three plays later,
he threw a touchdown pass to Santonio Holmes to
give the Buckeyes an overwhelming 34-14 lead.
Michigan's defense, which once led the nation
in forced turnovers, has struggled to defend
against big plays. The Wolverines have allowed
more than 40 yards on a play at least 17 times
this season.
"We gave up too many big plays," Michigan
coach Lloyd Carr said. "I think the big difference
is Ohio State ran the football very effectively.
Troy Smith created some big plays (and) kept
some drives alive."
And Ohio State's big plays were part of even
bigger drives. The Buckeyes had touchdown
drives of 99 and 97 yards, part of 27 unanswered
points by the Buckeyes. On those two drives, they
threw just four passes and ran the ball 18 times,
and Smith threw for 63 yards and a touchdown
and ran for 89 yards and a touchdown.
"That's why I say you have to give Ohio State
credit," Carr said. "If you have that kind of field
position, the odds are you're going to stop them.
We couldn't stop them. I think Ohio State played
great today."
There was one good stretch the defense can
look back on and be proud of. On back-to-back
possessions in the second quarter, the Buckeyes
faced a first-and-goal at Michigan's two- and one-
yard line, but settled for just one field goal.
But that was when the Buckeyes had little room
to operate and had to play what Woods would call
"Big Ten football." In the open field, when Smith
had room to maneuver, it was a different story.
"There's a couple schools that keep running the
same plays like power football the way it's sup-
posed to be run in the Big Ten, and you got other
teams that run spread offenses," Woods said. "It
helps them out a lot. We've just got to adjust to it
and keep doing it."
M I C H I G A N
PASSING
Player
Henne
Totals
RUSHING
Player
Hart
Breaston
Team
Henne
Totals
RECEIVING
Player
Edwards
Avant
Ecker
Breaston
Gonzales
Hart
Massaquoi
Totals
C-A
27-54
27-54
Yds TO
328 2
328 2
I nt
2
2
t
Att
18
2
1
22
No.
11
4
4
4
2
1
1
27
PUNTING
PlayerI
Finley
Totals
KICKOFF RETURNS
Player No.
Breaston 4
Totals 4
PUNT RETURNS
Player No.
Breaston 1
Totals 1
DEFENSE
Player
Woodley
Reid
Mundy
Harrison
McClintock
Shazor
Woods
Hall
Jackson
Van Alstyne
Massey
Watson
Burgess
Hood
Bees
Meson
Spencer
Thompson
Graham
Jackson
Adams
Yds
61
22
-1
-11
71
Yds
172
40
24
17
27
39
9
328
No.
7
7
Yds
69
69
Yds
5
5
Solo
7
4
4
1
3
4
1
1
3
2
1
1
1
O
O
0
Avg
3.4
11.0
-1.0
-11.0
3.2
Avg
15.6
10.0
6.0
4.3
13.5
39.0
9.0
12.1
Lg
11
13
-1
O
13
Lg
46
13
7
6
19
39
9
20
TD
1
0
0
0
1
TD
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
2
Yds Avg Lg
331 47.3 59
331 47.3 59
Avg Lg TD
17.3 20 0
17.3 20 0
Avg Lg TD
5.0 5 0
5.0 5 0
Asst Tot
5 12
6 10
3 7
6 7
3 6
1 5
4 5
4 5
1 4
2 4
3 4
2 3
1 2
0 1
0 1
0 1
0 1
0 1
1 1
1 1
1 1
TONY DING/Daily
Troy Smith became the first Ohio State quarterback to pass for 200 yards and rush for 100 yards.
In Buckeyes, Hart finally meets his match
By Sharad Mattu
and Gennaro Filice
Daily Sports Editors
COLUMBUS - Entering Satur-
day's game, Mike Hart was averaging
just under 160 yards
per game in the eight
games he had played as
Michigan's feature back
(starting with a 121-
yard effort in the Wol-
verines' 24-21 win over
San Diego State).
4V -
(Hart)," Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said.
"When the game started, we hit some
plays, but that's a big, physical front.
Their linebackers are very good - most
of the time, they were bringing eight
guys into the box until it was third and
long and that's what happens when you
can't run the football."
As Carr hinted, the Wolverines
enjoyed relative success on the ground
in the first half. Hart carried the ball 10
times for 45 yards and his lone touch-
down in the game's first 30 minutes.
After the break, though, Hart amassed
just 16 yards on eight carries.
"They were just getting off blocks bet-
ter," Hart said. "They didn't let me get in
the open field. They were clogging up the
holes real tight. They just did a great job
defensively."
The limited playing time of Michi-
gan fullback Kevin Dudley could have
played a big factor in Hart's abnormal-
ly snug holes. By incorporating many
schemes with three and four wide receiv-
ers throughout the game, Carr kept Dud-
ley - one of the Big Ten's best blocking
fullbacks - on the sidelines for many of
Hart's runs.
The Buckeyes' aggressive defensive
attack disoriented Michigan's offensive
line.
"They're a great defensive team," cen-
ter David Baas said. "They bring a lot of
stunts and blitzes. We just made mental
mistakes, didn't get our assignments
But, against the Buckeyes, Hart man-
aged just 61 yards and a touchdown on 18
carries.
"I think they did a very good job on
down and didn't execute."
Ohio State boasts one of the nation's
finest linebacking corps, and the unit
didn't disappoint with its performance
against the Wolverines. Linebackers
A.J. Hawk and Bobby Carpenter paced
the Buckeyes with 11 and nine tackles,
respectively.
"We were able to come in and stop the
run," Carpenter said. "Michigan's offen-
sive line has always been historically
good. We just went out there and played
as hard as we could to see who came out
as the better team."
GINN DOES BLUE IN: Michigan was down
just 20-14 when its punt unit trotted onto
the field less than five minutes into the
third quarter.
But as the football left senior Adam
Finley's foot, so did the Wolverines'
chances at a comeback.
Freshman Ted Ginn Jr. caught the ball
at the Ohio State 18-yard line, broke away
from Anton Campbell to his right and then
easily evaded receiver Braylon Edwards,
who rarely plays on special teams, to his
left. With tacklers to his right, he changed
course, beat Finley near midfield and eas-
ily sprinted into the endzone.
It was Ginn's fourth punt-return touch-
down of the season, tying the NCAA sin-
gle-season record. Ginn also caught five
passes for 87 yards.
"Our plan was to kick the ball high,"
Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said. "I think
we had him bottled up there. That return
looked to me like it was designed to go the
other way. We had him, and some way he
got away."
Michigan punted again on its next
possession, this time pinning the Buck-
eyes back at their own three-yard line.
But Ohio State put together a 10-play,
97-yard drive to give it an overwhelming
20-point lead.
"Ginn's punt return changed the com-
plexion of the game," Carr said. "Now
we're throwing almost every down, and
that, of course, is exactly where a defense
wants to have an offense."
Following the punt return, Michigan
ran 38 plays, passing 31 times and running
the ball just seven times.
INJURY NOTEs: Linebacker Roy Man-
ning, who started nine games this sea-
son, sat out Saturday's game with a thigh
bruise. The injury had kept him out of
practice all week.
Backup safety Willis Barringer, who
suffered a leg injury last week against
Northwestern, also didn't play against the
Buckeyes.
Backup defensive lineman Jeremy
Van Alstyne, who was expected to sit out
the entire season with a knee injury but
missed just five games, left Ohio Stadium
with his left foot in a soft cast.
"We'll have to see," Van Alstyne said.
"We're going to get some X-rays done. I
don't think it's anything major."
Team
Michigan
Iowa
Wisconsin
Northwestern
Purdue
Ohio State
Michigan State
Minnesota
Penn State
Illinois
Indiana
BIG TEN STANDINGS
7
7
6
5
4
4
4
3
2
1
1
1
1
2
3
4
4
4
5
6
7
7
9
9
9
6
7
7
5
6
4
3
3
2
2
2
5
4
4
6
5
7
8
8
Big Ten Overall
THIS WEEKEND'S RESULTS:
OHIO STATE 37, Michigan 21
NORTHWESTERN 28, Illinois 21
PENN STATE 37, Michigan State 13
IOwA 30, Wisconsin 7
PURDUE 63, Indiana 24
NEXT SATURDAY'S GAME:
Northwestern at Hawaii, 11 P.M.
SATURDAY, DEC. 4
Michigan State at Hawaii, 11:05 P.M.
....... ...
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TONY DING/Daily
After rushing for more than 150 yards in five consecutive games, Mike Hart was held to just 61 yards by Ohio State.
WEEKEND'S BEST
HOW THE AP TOP 25 FARED
Associated Press Poll for the week of Nov. 16-22)
Games updated through Nov. 22
NEW AP TOP 25
(first-place votes in parentheses)
Cal running back JJ. Arrington
WIN ONE FOR THE ZOOKER: In
Florida's final regular-season game,
lame-duck head coach Ron Zook
led the Gators over in-state rival
Florida State 20-13. The Gators'
win was their first in Tallahassee
since 1986. Zook's team also put a
damper on a special night for Bobby
Bowden. A statue of the Seminoles'
head coach was built, and the field
was renamed in his honor.
FIESTA-TIME IN UTAH: Utah's
regular season is over. and now it
didn't exactly help his campaign by
throwing two interceptions, he has
plenty of reason to celebrate.
BEARS SMELL ROSES: California
blew out bitter rival Stanford 41-
6. Cal running back J.J. Arrington
ran for 169 yards to lead his team
over the Cardinal. With the victory,
the Bears' quest to be Michigan's
opponent in the Rose Bowl remains
alive. Standing in the way of Cal's
probable Rose Bowl berth is a
hurricane-delayed game at Southern
Team:
1. Southern Cal.
2. Auburn
2. Oklahoma
4. California
5. Utah
6. Texas
7. Michigan
8. Louisville
9. Wisconsin
10. Florida State
11. Georgia
This week:
Idle
beat Alabama 21-13
beat Baylor 35-0
beat Stanford 41-6
beat BYU 52-21
Idle
lost to Ohio State 37-21
beat Houston 65-27
lost to Iowa 30-7
lost to Florida 20-13
Idle
Next week:
Notre Dame
SEC Title Game (12/4)
Big XII Title Game (12/4)
at Southern Miss (12/4)
TBA
Texas A&M (Fri.)
TBA
Cincinnati
TBA
TBA
Georgia Tech
\i iiT-h 110 1A1
TEAM
1. Southern Cal. (48)
2. Oklahoma (9)
3. Auburn (8)
4. California
5. Utah
6. Texas
7. Louisville
8. Georgia
9. Miami
10. Boise State
11. Virginia Tech
12. Iowa
13. Michigan
14. LSU
15. Tennessee
REC
10-0
11-0
11-0
9-1
11-0
9-1
8-1
8-2
8-2
10-0
8-2
9-2
9.2
8-2
8-2
PTS
1,603
1,541
1,536
1,413
1,340
1,323
1,166
1,093
1,030
920
884
878
863
839
786
PVS
1
2
2
4
5
6
11
12
13
15
17
7
14
15
UP NEXT:
ROSE BOWL
0
Despite the loss to Ohio State, the Wol-
verines will be making their second-
consecutive trip to Pasadena for The
Granddaddy of Them All. This will be the
second time in Michigan history that it
will go to the. Rose Bowl after a loss to
the Buckeyes. The Wolverines' opponent
will be unknown until Dec. 5 at the lat-
est. If Southern Cal. does not go to the
national title game, then the Trojans will
probably meet Michigan on Jan. 1. The
i
I