4

8A - Wednesday, October 31, 2007

The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com

Bold predictions
motivate Ringer

By KEVIN WRIGHT
Daily Sports Editor
Michigan State running back Javon Ringer sat just a
table-length away from his new coach Mark Dantonio
at Big Ten Media Day in August, and even in the noisy
room, it wouldn't have been hard for Dantonio to hear
Ringer's plea.
Repeatedly, Ringer would tell reporters he never had
the chance in his two seasons as a Spartan to showcase
the kind of back he could be - the dominant version.
Under former coach John L. Smith, Ringer never got
the number of carries as some of the other top backs in
the Big Ten like Michigan's Mike Hart and Wisconsin's
P.J. Hill, and he got tired of being left out of the conver-
sation of elite running backs in the conference.
"After a while, it's kind of frustrating," Ringer said.
"You hear all these other running backs getting talked
about how great they are and how they can carry the
workload, and I feel like I'm just as good - ifnot better
- than a lot of them. It's just that I haven't been able
to show it."
Ringer, never one to shy away fromsharing his opin-
ion or his confidence, got just 86 carries last season to
the tune of 497 yards. His season was also shortened
when he tore his MCL. The tear sidelined him for four
games, including a loss to the Wolverines in the Big
House.
The junior from Dayton, Ohio, watched last year's
game from his home in East Lansing. This season, he
understands how important Saturday's matchup is in
cementing his position as an elite Big Ten back and
Michigan State's spot as an elite program.

"Number one, we don't want to lose at home," Ring-
er said in August. "Two, it's Michigan. That's a big
game for us. Honestly, in my own opinion, I'm not sure
if they take that game as being a real competition, see-
ing as how they've beaten us the last couple of years."
So far this season, Ringer has been drawing the
attention he longed for back in August. Under Danto-
nio's more traditional offense, Ringer has eclipsed the
1,000-yard mark on 173 carries - and Michigan coach
Lloyd Carr has noticed.
"He's a legitimate guy," Carr said. "He's had a great
career, he's having a great year and he's established
himself without a question as one of the best backs in
the country."
With 1,084 yards in nine games, Ringer has become
the first Michigan State running back to gain more
than 1,000 rushing yards in a season since T.J. Duck-
ett collected 1,420 yards on the ground in 2001 - the
last time the Spartans beat Michigan.
Ringer, who placed himself in the three-player top-
tier of Big Ten running backs, enjoys the personal rec-
ognition. But he's gunning for Michigan State to prove
more.
Dantonio used Michigan as a measuring stick when
he first arrived in East Lansing, and Ringer has bought
into the idea of building a tradition li e the Spartans'
in-state rivals.
"People respect Michigan alot more than they do us,
seeing as the things that Michigan has accomplished
throughout the years," said Ringer, a high school
teammate of Michigan nickel back Brandon Harrison.
"If we could get up to thatcategory and be compared to
Michigan, that's a big step."

h F
Former Michigan State running back T.J. Duckett was the last Spartan back to reach.1,000 yards in a season in 2001.

Back in August, Ringer believed the Spartans could
be a bowl team this year, even though their recent
track record spoke contrary to that opinion.
But since a 4-0 start, Michigan State has faltered,
losing four of its last five contests. Ringer knows beat-
ing Michigan for the first time since he stepped on
campus is the spark his team needs.
"The more we can compete with Michigan, I feel
like the more respect we can earn, considering Michi-
gan has been a powerhouse team for years," Ringer
said.
But as much as Ringer would like to talk about his

abilities, his offensive line holds the key to his success.
He even went as far as to use Hart and Hill as examples
of what good offensive lines could accomplish.
"As good of a running back Mike Hart's been, as
good of a running back as P.J. Hill came in his fresh-
man year doing, all that came from the offensive line,"
Ringer said. "You have to give at least 80 percent of it
to the offensive line."
This Saturday, Ringer has his chance to put his play
on the field behind his words. At least he won't have to
plead with Dantonio for that opportunity.
He'll just have to deal with the Michigan defense.


4

More depth scores with 'M'

By MICHAEL EISENSTEIN
Daily Sports Writer
The Michigan hockey team is
scoring fewer goals this year.
It's missing five of the Wolver-
ines' top-seven scorers from last
season.
Half of the team's forwards
have been on campus for just a few
months.
Yet the offense is more danger-
ous this year - and it's because No.
3 Michigan has more depth.
Last season, more than 75 per-
cent of the Wolverines'.goals came
from the first two offensive lines
and the first defensive line. Now,
scores are spread out. The first and
third line have seven goals, while
the second has six.
With nearly everyone play-
JENNIFER KRON/Daily ing, depth has been crucial with
first goal as a Wolverine this weekend. a four-line offensive rotation. It's

tiring for an opponent's defense
to face lines that can consistently
find the back of the net. The rota-
tion creates mismatches because
teams don't know where the goals
are going to come from - there's
equal likelihood the tallies come
from any line.
"They can't just key on one line
or two lines," senior Chad Kolarik
said. "I think we're really deep
this year. I think that's one of our
greatest strengths, how deep our
forwards are. I think if we get
plugging along, all four lines, we'll
be a tough team to stop."
And the collision of the new
depth and new faces this year
isn't a coincidence. The freshmen
are the main reason for the roster
depth.
Besides the obvious - theymake
up half the team - the first-years
are stepping up and contributing.

Against Boston University this
past weekend, the freshmen tallied
seven of the 10 goals, with all six
forwards scoring.
Max Pacioretty and Aaron
Palushaj, the highest draft picks
in the class, notched their first
career scores against the Terriers.
Both came off between-the-circle
wrist shots followed by a mobbing
on the boards (Pacioretty) and fist
pumps while laying flat on the ice
(Palushaj).
"They're holding their own,"
Michigan coach Red Berenson
said. "It's not just the scoring, it's
getting scored against. Are you
causing more trouble than you're
adding? And so on. I think they've
really more than held their own."
Freshman Matt Rust is tied for
the team season-goal lead. (four)
with captain Kevin Porter. Louie
Caporusso is tied for second in

points. And both first-year centers
are winning more faceoffs than
their first- and fourth-line coun-
terparts.
With the sheer size of the class,
it was easier for the new skaters to
bond and translate that chemistry
onto the ice.
"They're like a big family
already," Berenson said. "All 12 of
them. Half of them didn't know
each other before. So they've got
their own little family within a
family."
And while their "little family"
is growing closer, the bigger fam-
ily is benefiting. Michigan may be
lacking the superstars it had last
year, but the Wolverines are now a
deeper and stronger team.
"We have maybe four lines that
have a chance of scoring'and so
that's good," Berenson said. "We're
not aone-line team."

I

Freshman Max Pacioretty scored hi!

Scrimmage next step for Blue

Selsky digging for
another milestone

49

By DAN FELDMAN
Daily Sports Writer
The John Beilein era of
intercollegiate basketball
at Michigan began quietly.
Although the Wolver-
ines' first official game isn't
until tomorrow, an exhibi-
tion against Ferris State,
they had a closed scrim-
mage Saturday with 'Kent
State in Kent, Ohio.
Beilein brings closed
preseason scrimmages to
Michigan from West Vir-
ginia, where he also used
the tactic. It's the current
Wolverines' first experi-
ence with closed scrim-
mages - former Michigan
coach Tommy Amaker
didn't hold them.
The two teams played
two 25-minute halves,
which included stoppages
where media timeouts
would be in a regular game.
They then went through
four-to-five game sce-
narios, such as playing a
one-point game with 10

seconds remaining. A 10-
minute session for end-of-
the-bench players closed
the day.
Nearly everyone played
for Michigan, including
sophomore Ekpe Udoh,
who sat out of Thursday's
practice with a leg injury.
Beilein said at the time the
move was precautionary so
Udoh could play in Satur-
day's scrimmage.
Results of the scrim-
mage weren't released.
The chance to play
another team seems to be
something the Wolver-
ines, who are learning new
schemes to mixed results,
really needed.
Freshman guard Kelvin
Grady and Beilein both
singled out sophomore
DeShawn Sims as the play-
er who has been best pick-
ing up the new system of
3-pointers, backdoor pass-
es and zone defense.
Sims has even shown up
Beileinwithhis knowledge.
He and Beilein disagreed

about a read in practice
last week. Beilein said he
checked the film, saw-Sims
was right and now owes.
the forward five push-ups.
Grady also admitted
he's one of the players who
hasn't picked things up as
quickly.
Although there's no
playbook, Grady said every
drill in practice is part of
the offense, so by working
hard in practice, he should
catch up with the pack.
Beilein, who has been
coaching for more than 30
years, said that it has been
challenging to teach 14
players his system rather
than just the two to three
freshman he normally has
to educate.
"What's frustrating is
32 years of a guy catching
the ball with one hand and
it going out of bounds, and
you yell at him," Beilein
said. "And you're not really
yelling at him, you're yell-
ing at 32 years of watching
somebody do that."

By H. JOSE BOSCH "I think it's mind-blowing,"
Daily Sports Writer Draves said. "That just doesn't
make any sense. It's just ridicu-
On some game nights during lous. It's trademark Stesha."
her sophomore year, now-senior On any given weekend in
Stesha Selsky was unconscious. Cliff Keen Arena, Selsky is eas-
Exertional migraines caused ily recognizable, not just for
many instances where Selsky her naturally red hair, but also
couldn't recall an entire match, for her acrobatic moves on the
even immediately after she court.
played. Selsky said the act of digging
"I don't remember a whole doesn't require much thinking.
lot from thatyear," she said. With a fast reaction time, you
Despite having little to no "don't really technically need to
recollection, Selsky set the be conscious while you're doing
school's single-season digs it."
record at 590. -But even if she doesn't need
"She was on the court every to think' about digging an
day, and she was doing. her attack, she consciously tries to
job amazingly," senior Sarah keep her teammates alert and
Draves said. "That's the first energized during matches.
time I've ever heard that she Last year, after a missed
couldn't remember matches. serve by junior Beth Karpiak,
That's just the kind of player Selsky used a more unconven-
that she is." tional method to energize her
Selsky currently has 1,977 teammate.
digs and is on pace to become "I went up to her and I said,
just the 25th NCAA Division 'You know what, it doesn't mat-
I player ever to collect 2,000 ter because you look so great in
career digs. She'd also be just your spandex right now, no one
the third Big Ten player ever to even noticed that you missed
reach that mark. your serve,"' Selsky said.
That's impressive consider- The comment had its intend-
ing this season is the first and ed effect. In the words of Selsky,
only where she has been healthy Karpiak "just died" of laughter.
and the team's full-time libero. Joking aside, in four years,
In 2004, she started at libero Selsky has established herself
just for the final third of the as a once-in-a-career player
season, following then-captain according to Michigan coach
Sarah Allen's season-ending Mark Rosen.
injury. "Stesha is a reallyunique kid,
Selsky battled an injury her and I like that about her," Rosen
sophomore year that contribut- said. "She kind of thinks a little
ed to her lowest total of games different than everybody, and
played in a season (75). she kind of looks at things out-
Last season, the Manhat- side the box. I think in a lot of
tan Beach, Calif., native played ways, the libero position has
the entire year as a setter, but been a really good fit for her to
she still finished second on the interact in the way she inter-
team in digs. 4 acts."

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