4B - The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday - October 24, 2005
Michigan 23, Iowa 20 (OT)
ackson answers the call,
carries Blue to victory
GAME STATISTICS
By Gabe Edelson
Daily Sports Writer
IOWA CITY - Mike Hart left early
with an injury. Max Martin lost control
of the football on his first carry and
never returned. Kevin Grady played
well, but didn't display the field vision
his coaches would've liked.
So with 11:10 left in Saturday's
game at Kinnick Stadium and the Wol-
verines trailing 14-10 on their own 12-
yard line, Michigan coach Lloyd Carr
gave the ball to fourth-string running
back Jerome Jackson. With the Hawk-
eyes in a Cover-2 defense, quarterback
Chad Henne handed off to the junior,
who proceeded to run into the center of
the line. But Jackson didn't go down as
expected. Instead, he popped out from
the heavy traffic and raced downfield
for a 19-yard gain.
Carr would ride his reserve run-
ner for the rest of the fourth quarter
and overtime. When all was said and
done, Jackson had carried the ball on
11 of the Wolverines' last 16 offensive
snaps. By the time the Saginaw native
plunged across the goal line to score
the game-winning, one-yard touch-
down in overtime, Jackson had accu-
mulated 44 yards on 11 attempts in
less than 15 minutes of work.
Ironically, Carr and running backs
coach Fred Jackson were nearly
stripped of Jerome Jackson's talents
after last season.
Jackson was relegated to backup
duty behind Chris Perry during his
freshman year, but he showed promise,
picking up 187 yards on a team-leading
6.4 yards per carry. In his sophomore
campaign, Jackson started twice but
gained just 90 yards on 32 carries in
four games. Hart's emergence was the
primary reason for his reduced role.
Facing the possibility of being bur-
ied on the bench f6r the remainder of
his college career, Jackson considered
transferring. But he was convinced
otherwise after speaking with Carr in
the offseason.
"Jerome came in at one point after
(last) year," Carr said. "I said, 'You
know, Jerome, there's a place here for
you because there's things that you
can do. The competition is going to
be great, but my own advice to you
is this: Where could you transfer to
get the degree that you would get at
Michigan? In the long run, that's why
you came here in the first place.' He
said, 'Well, I don't want to leave.'
And he stayed."
Jackson grew up fantasizing about
playing at Michigan. Despite the dis-
appointment with his position on the
depth chart, Jackson found it difficult
to acknowledge the possibility of play-
ing elsewhere.
"I always wanted to come here,"
Jackson said. "For me to lose my
goal, to lose my dream by transferring
somewhere else, that was impossible.
So I just stayed. ... (Carr) gave me the
confidence. And as you can see, (the
coaches) believed in me today and put
me in there, so I have to thank them."
Rush linebacker LaMarr Wood-
ley, a teammate of Jackson's at Sagi-
naw High School, never doubted that
Jackson would take advantage of his
chance when the time came.
"It didn't shock me at all," Woodley
said of his longtime friend's inspiring
play. "We've been playing together
since seventh grade. Stuff happens.
When the opportunity comes, you
have to learn to take advantage of
it. And that's what he did. When the
opportunity came today, he probably
wasn't expecting it. But it came, and
he ran with it."
Jackson found himself on the field
Saturday due largely to Fred Jackson's
persistence. The latter Jackson has
consistently lobbied Carr to play the
junior, and his pleas didn't fall on deaf
ears against Iowa.
"Fred has always had a lot of confi-
dence in Jerome Jackson, and I think
his confidence really paid off," Carr
said. "Fred kept saying, 'Let's go with
Jerome.' And I'm glad that he kept
saying, 'Put him in.' Because that was
the difference, I think. Nobody in that
(locker room) is ever going to forget
what Jerome Jackson did today."
When Jackson found himself in the
huddle with Michigan one yard away
from victory in the extra session, the
play call dictated a run. Jackson and
his teammates never doubted that the
Wolverines would come away with a
touchdown.
"I just looked up to the skies, I just
asked God to give me some strength,"
Jackson said. "I knew my linemen
were going to do their jobs. I knew they
were going to give me a great push.
They said in the huddle, 'We're going
to get you in here, Jackson.' I believed
in them. They believed in me."
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
M
PASSING
Player
Henne 14
Bass
Totals 35.
IOWA
23
38/139
288
77
427
44
27/39/1
6/28.2
2/0
11/94
30:15
MICH
19
41/122
220
63
342
30
15/22/1
6/34.7
1/1
3/29
29:45
I C H I G A N
4-:
1
5-:
C-A Yds
-21 207
1-1 13
-22 220
RUSHING
Player
Grady
Jackson
Hart
Martin
Bass
Henne
Totals
RECEIVING
Player
Avant
Breaston
Ecker
Manningham
Tabb
Hart
Grady
Totals
Att
18
11
5
2
4
41
No.
7
2
2
15
1
1
1
Yds
62
44
17
3
2
-6
122
Yds
105
62
18
15
13
9
-2
220
No.
6
6
Avg
3.4
4.0
3.4
3.0
1.0
-1.5
3.0
Avg
15.0
31.0
9.0
15.0
13.0
9.0
-2.0
14.7
Yds
208
208
TD
2
0
2
Lg
9
19
6
3
2
3
19
Lg
23
52
13
15
13
9
0
52
it
1
O
TD
0
1
*1
TD
1
1
0
0
2
PUNTING
Playert
Ryan
Totals
KICKOFF RETURNS
Player No.
Breaston 2
Totals 2
PUNT RETURNS
Player No.
Breaston
Totals 0
Avg Lg
34.7 41
34.7 41
Yds Avg Lg
30 15.0 15
30 15.0 16
TD
0
TO
0
0
TREVOR CAMPBELL/Daily
Running back Jerome Jackson breaks a 19-yard run in Saturday's game. Jackson gained
44 yards in the fourth quarter and overtime and scored the game winning touchdown.
Long returns from injury to strengthen' M' line
DEFENSE
Player
Mason
Burgess
Thompson, J.
Harrison
Harris
Adams
Hall
Trent
Watson
Woods
Massey, P.
Branch
Crable
Stewart
Van Alstyne
Campbell
Paul
Englemon
Oluigbo
Thompson, B.
Jamison
Totals
Yds
0
0
Solo
9
6
7
5
4
5
6
6
3
4
2
2
2
1
0
0
0
66
Avg Lg
0 0
0 0
Asst
3
5
1
3
4
2
0
0
3
0
1
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
27
Tot
12
11
8
8
8
7
6
6
6
4
4
3
2
1
1
1
1a
They said, "We're going behind you, Jake."
- Jake Long, on the last play of the game
By Ian Herbert
Daily Sports Writer
IOWA CITY - Until Saturday, redshirt sopho-
more right tackle Jake Long hadn't played a snap
all season. Instead, he had been relegated to the
sideline on crutches, nursing what he described as
a severe leg injury.
But on the last play of Michigan's dramatic
overtime win at Iowa, it was Long who Michi-
gan coach Lloyd Carr trusted to get penetration
on Iowa's defensive front, On third-and-goal from
inside the one-yard line, quarterback Chad Henne
handed the ball off to Jerome Jackson, who went
between Long and right guard
Matt Lentz for the game-win-
ning score.
Though they trusted him for
the last, most important play of $4
the game, the Michigan coach-
ing staff didn't give Long the
start. After all, he just started
practicing last week. Before then, he had only been
able to work out on a specialized exercise bike that
helped him develop his upper body and his one
healthy leg.
"I came in three times a day and worked hard,"
Long said. "Then I started practicing this week.
I'm a hard worker, and I knew it would pay off."
Redshirt junior Rueben Riley, who has started
most of this year's games in place of Long, started
against the Hawkeyes. Long didn't come in until the
third series of the game. On that series, Michigan
ran three straight runs and picked up the first down.
"I didn't understand why he went in when he went
in," Henne said jokingly about Long not starting the
game. "I thought Rueben was fine, but he has two
broken hands. What can you do with that?"
After the first down, the Wolverines decided
to throw the ball. Lining up across from Long,
Iowa defensive lineman Mike Follett didn't have a
chance. Long took a step back and casually pushed
Follett upfield and away from Henne, who eventu-
ally tucked the ball and ran for three yards. When
asked for an honest evaluation of his performance,
Long said he was pleased.
"I think I did pretty well," Long said. "I messed up
a few times, but nothing really major. It felt great."
He split snaps with Riley, but, when he was in
the game, Long looked as if he was back to his old
is tough - that helps our offense tremendously,"
left tackle Adam Stenavich said.
BREAKING WOOD: With star defensive end LaMarr
Woodley nursing an arm injury, Michigan had to
look to other players - both younger and older
- to fill in on the defensive line.
Fifth-year senior Pierre Woods, who was also
Michigan's special teams captain, got the start
in place of Woodley but was inconsistent for the
first quarter. Woods, a pass-rushing specialist,
looked like just that - he pressured Iowa quarter-
back Drew Tate and got into the backfield but had
trouble helping the Wolverines contain sophomore
running back Albert Young.
Coming out in the second half, Woods and
the Wolverines focused on stopping the running
game.
"We knew we had to do it," Woods said. "If they
were going to keep running, they were going to
control the time of the game.... They were con-
trolling the game in the first half, and we just had
to stop the run."
But it wasn't just Woods chipping in. A number
of other guys were able to step up and get some
playing time in one of the most important games
of the year. Sophomore Tim Jamison also filled in
for Woodley, giving Woods a breather on running
downs. And Jamison forced the ball loose on a hit
he laid on Tate in the second quarter.
Eleven different Wolverines played on the
defensive line during Saturday's game. At one
point during the game, Woods, freshman Terrance
Taylor and sophomores Will Johnson and Alan
Branch were all on the line together - not one of
them started the season opener against Northern
Illinois.
"It's great for them to step up," junior cornerback
Leon Hall said. "It's great for the whole defense.
Because when you see them, you know they just
want to play hard. So for me, it's great to see them
go out there and play and step it up."
NOTES: Michigan was penalized three times for
29 yards and Iowa was flagged 11 times for 94 yards.
Even with all of Saturday's penalties, Iowa is still
the Big Ten's least penalized team. The Hawkeyes
have been whistled 31 times for 256 yards in eight
games. ... The win was Carr's 100th at Michigan.
He is the third winningest coach in school history,
behind Bo Schembechler (194 wins) and Fielding
Yost (165). ... Entering Saturday's game, Iowa
had won 22 straight home games. ... Iowa players
urged fans to "black-out" the stadium to help give
the Hawkeyes a 12th-man advantage.
0I
BIG TEN STANDINGS
Team
Big Ten Overall
Penn State
Wisconsin
Northwestern
Ohio State
Iowa
Michigan
Minnesota
Indiana
Michigan State
Purdue
Illinois
Y 4 "V Y V NS
4
4
3
3
3
3
2
1
1
0
0
1
1
1
1
2
2
2
3
3
4
4
;-.- ;
7
7
5
5
5
5
5
4
4
2
2
f6 1
1
2
2
3
3
2
3
3
5
5
A
THIS WEEKEND'S RESULTS
Michigan 23, IOWA 20
Northwestern 49 , MICHIGAN STATE 14
Ohio State 41, INDIANA 10
WISCoNSIN 31, Purdue 20
Penn State 63, ILLINOIS 10
'M' SCHEDULE
TOMMASO GOMEZ/Daily
Offensive tackle Jake Long (77) made his season debut against Iowa on Saturday. Long was impressive in
his return to action, and Michigan's game-winning one-yard touchdown run followed his blocking.
form. On the first series of the second half, he hit called a "freak injury" back in August, the trainers
defensive end Bryan Mattison, stood him straight thought it would take Long until at least Nov. 12 to
up and toppled him right onto his back. The Wol- make it back into the game.
verines gained five rushing yards on that play. But his quick return isn't the first time Long
"With Jake in there, it was exciting to see him has impressed his coaches and teammates - it's
play and get after it," Henne said. "He was kind something he's been doing since coming to Michi-
of pumping up our offense, and it was just great to gan three years ago.
have him back." "He's a rock on the right side and definitely, to
At the time when Long suffered what Carr get him back - a reliable guy who plays hard and
Date
Sept. 3
Sept. 10
Sept. 17
Sept. 24
Oct. 1
Oct. 8
Oct. 15
Oct. 22
Oct. 29
Nov. 12
Nov. 29
QOponent Time/Result
Northern Illinois W, 33-17
Notre Dame L, 10-17
Eastern Michigan W, 55-0
at Wisconsin L, 20-23
at Michigan State W, 34-31
Minnesota L, 20-23
Penn State W, 27-25
at Iowa W, 23-20
at Northwestern 7 p.m.
Indiana TBA
Ohio State noon
44
WEEKEND'S BEST
RAIDERS OF THE LOST BCS: In the
highly anticipated matchup between
Texas and Texas Tech, the Red Raiders
had a chance to continue rising in the
BCS rankings. But Texas Tech fell behind
early and never recovered from a game-
changing punt block. Facing a fourth-
and-five on the Texas 35-yard line, the
Raiders decided to punt, but an errant
snap allowed the Longhorns to block the
punt. Texas dominated the game behind
another solid outing by Vince Young, who
threw for 239 yards and two scores. The
Longhorns' defense held the vaunted
Red Raiders' offense well below its sea-
son average of 54 points per game.
HOW THE AP TOP 25 FARED
Associated Press Poll for the week of Oct. 23
Games updated through Oct. 22
NEW AP
TOP 25
(first-place votes in parentheses)
Team:
1. Southern Cal
2. Texas
3. Virginia Tech
4. Georgia
5. Alabama
6. Miami
7. Louisiana State
8. UCLA
9. Notre Dame
10. Texas Tech
11. Florida State
12. Penn State
Last week:
beat Washington 51-24
beat Texas Tech 52-17
beat Maryland 28-9
beat Arkansas 23-20
beat Tennessee 6-3
Georgia Tech (postponed)
beat Auburn 20-17
beat Oregon State 51-28
beat BYU 49-23
lost to Texas 52-17
beat Duke 55-24
beat Illinois 63-10
This week:
Washington State
at Oklahoma State
Boston College
Florida
Utah State
Tennessee
North Texas
at Stanford
DNP
at Baylor
Maryland
Purdue
TEAM
1. Southern Cal (55)
2. Texas (10)
3. Virginia Tech
4. Georgia
5. Alabama
6. Miami
7. Louisiana State
8. UCLA
9. Notre Dame
10. Florida State
11. Penn State
12. Ohio State
13. Boston College
14. Oregon
15. Wisconsin
1 6 Florida
REC
7-0
7-0
7-0
7-0
7-0
5-1
5-1
7-0
5-2
6-1
7-1
5-2
6-1
7-1
7-1
5-2
PTS
1,615
1,569
1,496
1,413
1,328
1,268
1,219
1,170
1,067
1,055
980
860
846
750
698
617
PVS
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
11
12
14
13
15
19
18
0