10A -The Michigan Daily - Thursday, September 28, 2006 Senior T.J. Hensick (above), senior Matt Hunwick and sophomore Jack Johnson were voted to the CCHA Preseason All-Conference First Team. Mic higan tops mediae pol but not coaches' After 4-0 wee , ATBT returnsq Kudos to Michigan State for choking down the stretch against Notre Dame. Thanks to you, Across the Big Ten went 4-0 with its picks! This week's picks may be a little bit tougher, but that won't keep ATBT (see, this time we got the acronym right) from playing. Just like the Michigan football team, we don't have a bye week and we don't want one. So sit back and relax. This can't be much Wisconsin quarterback John Stocco worse than the lecture you're sit- against a much easier opponent, Indi ting in now, right? At the very least ken ground for his own grave you can pretend to read this article after last weekend's game against while you check out that cute guy Notre Dame. Blowing a 16-point or girl sitting across from you in lead at home? Those who don't the hallway. Anyway, on to the learn from history are doomed to picks: repeat it, John. After blowing a 31- 17 lead last season but holding on Wisconsin (0-1 Big Ten, 3-1) for the win, you should've known at Indiana (0-1, 2-1) - Noon, better than to try it the second ESPN2 time around. At least the Spartans Had a rough weekend? Look- square off against Big Ten doormat ing to rebound with a big game? Illinois, a team they dispatched 61- Then you must be Wisconsin, and 14 last season. Quarterback Drew nothing is better than having a Stanton went 20-for-26 for 259 bye week ... er ... a game against yards and five touchdowns in that Indiana following game. Expect it to a tough loss. The £drklu au happen again. only bright spot for the Hoosiers is Aciuss the Big Ten Michigan State the return of their with H. Jose Bosch 56, Illinois 17 energetic head coach Terry Hoeppner. Whom- Purdue (1-0, 4-0) at No. 12 ever the head coach decides to put Notre Dame (3-1) - 2:30 p.m., behind center, there won't be much NBC run support. Indiana averages just The coaches agreed before the 73.5 yards per game on the ground season began that the top three - making it the only Big Ten team teams in the Big Ten were Ohio to average below 100. Don't expect State, Iowa and Michigan. But this game to be exciting. Consider Joe Tiller and the Boilermakers it your appetizer for a three-course have quietly started off 4-0 and meal of a football Saturday. would love to use this weekend as 4 By Ian Robinson Daily Sports Writer DETROIT - Apparently, the CCHA looks different from the bench than from the press box. For the first time in recent memory, the CCHA coaches and media picked different teams as preseason favorites. Michigan received the media's nod, and Michigan State got the coaches' in the polls unveiled yesterday at CCHA Media Day at Joe Louis Arena. The Wolverines beat out the Spartans by one point in the media poll (845-844), despite receiving 12 fewer first-place votes. In the coaches' poll, the Spartans led by. a much wider margin (117-108). Following last year's third-place conference finish and first-round loss to North Dakota in the NCAA Tournament, Michigan coach Red Berenson pointed to his hockey program's prestige as a main rea- son for the preseason hype. "It shows respect for the Michi- gan program' Berenson said. Although Michigan and Michi- gan State topped the preseason rankings, the coaches agreed that there is no clear-cut favorite to win the conference - or any single game for that matter. "Every game is a war" Michi- gan State coach Rick Comley said. The coaches also pointed to the fact that there's always a surprise team in the conference. Last year, Ferris State and Lake Superior State were pickedto finish 10th and 11th, respectively, before the sea- son. When the final whistle blew, the two schools tied for sixth. "Every year, someone emerges (that you don't expect)," Ferris State coach Bob Daniels said. "You never know who." It takesjust a glance atlast year's preseason polls to realize that pre- season rankings don't mean much. The coaches and media picked Ohio State to win the conference. At the end of the season, the Buck- eyes were 10th. Last year's regular-season cham- pion Miami (Ohio) was picked to finish third in both polls. The CCHA also announced its preseason All-Conference team yesterday. As would be expected from ateam picked to finish in the top two of the league, Wolverines occupy a few spots on the squad. Senior defensman Matt Hun- wick and senior forward T.J. Hen- sick were named to the CCHA Preseason All-Conference First Team yesterday, along with sopho- more defensman Jack Johnson. Both Hensick and Hunwick were named to the CCHA All-Confer- ence second team after last season, with Johnson on the CCHA All- Rookie team. Joining the Michigan trio on the preseason first team are Michi- gan State goalie Jeff Lerg, Miami (Ohio) forward Nathan Davis and Nebraska-Omaha forward Scott Parse, the defending CCHA Player of The Year and lone consensus pick to the first team. Michigan junior Kevin Porter was named to the second team, and sophomore Andrew Cogliano received honorable mention. Team practices officially begin around the conference on Saturday. 7) returns to action Saturday ana. winner. Could it happen again? Not likely. The Boilermakers' run- ning game isn't strong enough to complement the pass and keep the defense on its toes. Get back on the Notre Dame hype train. No. 12 Notre Dame 31, Purdue 28 No. 1 Ohio State (1-0, 4-0) at No. 13 Iowa (1-0, 4-0) - 8:00 p.m., ABC This is Ohio State's third tough game in four weeks, and it's safe to say the defense isn't inexperienced anymore. The Buckeyes haven't given up more than seven points in three straight games, but this will be the first time Jim Tressel's team squares off against a team with an experienced quarterback. Last season, Drew Tate had a terrible game while his counterpart, Troy Smith, threw and ran all over the Hawkeye defense. This year things have changed, most importantly the venue. Ohio State must travel to Kinnick Stadium. But history is on the Buckeyes' side. Iowa has never beaten a No. 1 team, and in the only other night game played at Kinnick, the Hawkeyes fell to No. 1 Miami 24-7. But hey, there's a first time for everything. Iowa 17, Ohio State 14 4 e Wisconsin 25, Indiana 10 Illinois (0-1, 1-3) at Michigan State (3-1) - Noon John L. Smith may have bro- a springboard for a successful Big Ten campaign. Unfortunately, only one of those wins was convincing - and that was against Indiana State. The last time Tiller visited South Bend, he walked away a Freshmen break the mold By Andy Reid For the Daily Michigan women's cross coun- try coach Mike McGuire usually likes to redshirt his freshmen as a strategy to develop their skills. But this season he felt giving freshmen Jenny Morgan and Eileen Creutz a redshirt wasn't an option. With a team ranked third nationally, he saw a perfect opportunity to get these talented athletes experience in high-level competition as true freshmen. Thus far, Morgan and Creutz haven't disappointed. Each has competed in three events this sea- son: " The Sundodger Invitational, where Morgan finished 14th and Creutz finished 30th. " The Indiana Open, where Morgan took 10th and Creutz took 13th. " The Wolverine Open, where each ran unattached, with Morgan nabbing third and Creutz finishing just behind in fourth place. In high school, both Creutz and Morgan turned heads. As a cross-country runner at Saline High School in Saline, Creutz won the state championship two years ina row (2004 and 2005) and placed second in the 2003 race. Creutz won her region and confer- ence all four years she ran. Morgan shined on the track at Clarkston HighSchoolin Clarkston, winning four state championships in the 1600-meter run and three state championships in the 3200- meter run. "We have a strong team this year;" McGuire said. "Eileen and Jenny had a great opportunity to make an immediate impact on the team without having too much pres- sure on them to carry the team. This is a good time for them to merge into the team and find their spot." Both Creutz and Morgan said that they enjoyed coming into a program where they aren't the top runners right off the bat. "We came in here knowing that this was one of the best teams in the nation;' Creutz said. "I think having such great talent around me has been a big help in my improve- ment as a runner. I don't think I See FRESHMEN, page 11A At McKinsey & Company, we're at the center of the most challenging issues that businesses face. We hire people with diverse backgrounds and expose them to a variety of clients and business issues unparalleled elsewhere. So, no matter what you've studied, if you are driven by intellectual curiosity, energized by teamwork, or a leader looking to develop lifelong skills, then we'd like to meet you! Attention Graduating Seniors & 1-year Masters: Come learn more about McKinsey when we visit campus this fall Bates for 2006 The University of Michigan Department of Recreational Sports REC Intramural Sports Program REC SPORTS www.recsports.umich.edu SPORTS INTRAMURALS 734-763-3562 INTtA RALS Presentation: Thursday, September 28 Michigan Union-Pendelton Room 6:00 p.m. All majors welcome Entries due: Tues, 10/03 4:30 PM M Building Entry Fee: $35 per team $5 per individual Manager's Meeting: MANDATORY Tues, 10/03 6:00 PM at IMSB Entries also Meet Date: taken online Thurs, 10/05 UM Indoor Track Track & Field { f" i r I -1 r Entries due: Thur, 9/28 4:30 PM IM Building Entry Fee: $25 per team Entries also taken online u Event Date: Sat, 9/30 Mitchell Field/Gallup Park Resume Submission Deadline: www.mckinsey.com/usschools An equal opportunity employer Thursday, October 12 Apply online at www.mckinsey.com/usschools Cross Country The entry deadline for the Pre-Season Football Tournament is Wednesday, October 1811 at 4:30 PM. Officials are needed! Upcoming Clinic Dates: Football - October 18th, 19th, 23rd, and 24th 7:00 PM Broomball - October 181h 7:00 PM All Clinics are held at the Intramural Sports Building. Contact Nicole Green @ 764-0515 for more information I A