New Student Edition 2006 - The Michigan Daily - 3E
VARSITY FOOTBALL
2006
If media prognosticators know what they're talking about, 2006's
Michigan vs. Ohio State game should be for all of the marbles, just as it
seems every year.
The defending Big Ten champion Buckeyes
are atop nearly every national poll, and was
unanimously selected as the favorite in the pre-
season Big Ten polls.
Trailing behind the favored Bucks in most pro-
jections, including the Big Ten's official media pre-
season poll, is Michigan. Even after its worst season
in more than two decades last season (7-5), it should
come as no surprise that Michigan is expected to do
well. After all, they have been picked in the top two
of the conference every season since 1997 - when
the Wolverines won the national title.
So why all the confidence in a team coming off
one of the biggest underachieving years of any sport
FILE PHOTO in recent memory? Here's a look at what the Maize
and Blue will have to offer on both sides of the ball
in 2006.
would have been Rose Bowl bound. But late defen-
sive mishaps in nearly all of the games Michigan lost
could be pointed to as reasons for the team's mediocre
season. Michigan coach Lloyd Carr promoted former
secondary coach Ron English to defensive coordina-
tor, hoping to spark a newfound intensity and desire
to play for 60 minutes in this year's team.
The 2006 Wolverine defense should be anchored
by a very formidable front seven. LaMarr Woodley
and Alan Branch are atop many preseason award
lists, and should combine with other big and ath-
letic guys up front to try and make up for a dismal
defnsive performance last season. Carr admitted he
is very happy with the depth of the entire team, but
especially is pleased with the number of capable
linemen and defenders his team possesses.
The secondary should be anchoredby Leon Hall, who
Carr has said "could be one of the best ever he's coached
at Michigan." A trio of young corners will battle for the
other spot, which will
combine with four
possible safeties to
fill out Michigan's
3 < secondary.
-ScoftBell
Dressed in tie-dyed maize and blue, a Michigan football fan mans the grill at a pre-game tailgate.
How to survive your first
ever football Saturday
So you've spent five days
sitting through seemingly
endless hours
of class, gone to bed at
3:00 a.m. every morn-
ing - hey, it's the start
of the year, people still'
have some academic'
ambition - and after a
Friday night of "social
gatherings" you can
finally collapse on your
bed and spend all Sat-
urday sleeping,right?S
Well, not so much.
You go to Michigan
now, and though you
might have heard some stories,
you won't truly understand what a
Football Saturday is until you've
experienced one.
You'll soon learn that sometimes
sacrifices have to be made. In the
case of joining 20,000 of your fel-
low classmates and over 90,000
others to be part of the nation's
largest crowd every Saturday, sleep
becomes one of those sacrifices.
During Michigan football sea-
son, sleep is reserved for:
a) The two hour period immedi-
ately following the game, but only
if to refuel for a Saturday night of
celebration.
b) Sunday afternoons, but only
if your NFL team of choice is done
playing.
c) Lecture the following week,
but only if ... well, nevermind, the
following week's lecture is always
the best choice.
But now that you've come to the
understanding that any Saturday
sleep before December will be a
rarity, there's still one major thing
that has to be addressed: What
exactly do you do on a Football
Saturday?
Here is a timeline of a typical
Football Saturday here in Ann
Arbor:
(Note: If the game takes place at
3:30, adjust timeline accordingly.
Also, if we are playing Ball State,
forget everything and just try and
make it to the game by halftime.)
8:00-9:00 a.m.
Wake up. You're now faced
with your first dilemma of the day:
Should you snooze or shower? I
can't tell you what is more impor-
tant to you, 45 more minutes of
sleep, or the assurance that people
won't be tapping you on the shoul-
der and telling you
that you smell while
you're at the game.
Just choose what feels
right for you.
9:00-10:00 a.m.
Eat. If it's a big
game, kegs'n'eggs
should already be
planned. But if it's a
SCOTT non-conference game,
BELL you should still make
sure that you at least
have a little food in
your system pre-tailgating.
10:00-10:30 a.m.
Girls: Try and learn something
about the team Michigan is play-
ing later in the day. You don't have
to memorize the shoe size of the
backup center, but take it from me,
you'll get more credit from guys if
you can say "Troy Smith is a thug"
than if you say "That guy's jersey
totally clashes with his pants."
Guys: Just keep drinking.
10:30-11:30 a.m.
Herein lies big decision number
two. Before you choose what to do,
you need to decide what kind of a
fan you are. There are three types
of fans, and not surprisingly, three
ideal tailgating locations for this
time period.
a) The Nostalgic Fan: This is
the fan that acts like every game
at Michigan Stadium could be his
or her last. You bring your camera,
take 50 pictures each game and post
them on Facebook directly after the
game is over. Your next destination
is straight to the stadium so you can
watch the entire pregame show by
the band.
b) The Social Fan: This is the
most common fan at Michigan. You
aren't a diehard fan, but you know
the difference between a touchdown
and a slam dunk. The next part of
your journey will bea tailgate party.
Whether it's meeting up with your
parents at the golf course, hitting up
a low key house party or heading
to a frat house, you'll tipa few back
before the game, but won't get bel-
ligerently drunk.
c) The Blackout Fan: That's
because belligerence is reserved for
the final fan category, the blackout
fan. You bought football tickets
because everyone else does, but
it ended up being apoor invest-
ment. You get excited for Football
Saturdays, but just because it's an
excuse to drink in the morning.
Your destination is also a frat house
or a house party, but that's where
your morning will end. Odds are
you will wake up from a passed-out
haze at about 4:00 p.m. when thou-
sands of students are returning from
the game.
11:30-12:00 p.m.
Enter the stadium. Though some
of the fans will already be there (see
group a) and some may not even
make it (group c), this is when most
of the students will walk into the
Big House.
And while we're talking about
being inside the stadium, I havea
few tips for those of you who are yet
to entered the hallowed grounds of
Michigan Stadium:
First, you know those numbers
on your tickets? Yeah, ignore them.
About five percent of students sit in
their assigned seats, and that's just
because they have really awesome
seats that they don't want to give up.
Second, do The Claw after we
force a fourth down. It looks cool,
sounds cool and it was started by
the Daily.
And finally, if you do the wave
without us having an invincible
lead, you're a moron; don't do it.
Anyone who starts the wave early
should be ejected right along with
people who sit down. Sitting down
is for halftime and for going to the
bathroom, that's it.
So there you have it, there's a
quick overview of what to expect
for your first Football Saturday, and
tips to help you enjoy the experience
to its full potential. But that's just
half the battle. The men out on the
field wearing the winged helmets
need to do their part, too.
But when they do, all the
hangovers, missed sleep and pro-
crastinated homework becomes
an afterthought when the perfect
Football Saturday is capped off
with a W.
- Bell can be reached
at scotteb@umich.edu.
OFFENSE
The Wolverines return their offensive nucleus,
losing just one star from an offense that showed
signs of explosion last season. The biggest obsta-
cle the Michigan offense will face this season is
something it couldn't overcome last year - the
injury bug.
No. 1 wide receiver Steve Breaston battled nag-
ging injuries almost all season last year, and when
he was finally healthy, he showed the flashes of
greatness that made him a fan favorite early in
his career. With young receivers like Mario
Manningham, Adrian Arrington and LaTer-
ryal Savoy looking to break out, third-year
starter Chad Henne should have plenty of
options to throw to.
The biggest dent to Michigan's offensive
attack last season came when all-everything run-
ning back Mike Hart couldn't follow his impres-
sive freshman season with an equally impressive
sophomore because of nagging injuries of his own.
A healthy Hart is hoping to combine with running
backs Kevin Grady, Carlos Brown and Jerome Jack-
son to recreate what was once one of the most potent
ground games in the nation.
Senior guard Jake Long is the final key to the
offense that was hampered by injuries last season.
The All-Big Ten second team selection two sea-
sons ago spent most of his junior year on the side-
line after knee injuries. A relatively inexperienced
offensive line will need to look to Long for guid-
ance if Michigan hopes to have a typical top-class
offensive line.
DEFENSE
If defense was just necessary in the game's first
45 minutes, last season's Wolverine squad probably
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