The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Tuesday, December 11, 2007 - 9 Legacies on the line in Orlando By KEVIN WRIGHT Daily Sports Editor Back in the first week of August, three Michigan seniors enumer- ated their goals for the upcoming season: Bring home a National Cham- pionship. Hoist a Bigx Ten Champion- ship Trophy. Beat Ohio State. Oh, and win CARR their bowl game. So far, the seniors are 0-3 - the same as their career bowl record. And now, the Capital One Bowl on Jan. 1 is unranked Michigan's last chance to salvage any of those preseason goals. The only obstacle? A 9-3 Florida team quarter- backed by the lone sophomore in NCAA history to take home the Heisman Trophy - man-child Tim Tebow. The trio of running back Mike Hart, quarterback Chad Henne and left tackle Jake Long all spurned the NFL for one last chance to cement their legacy. On the individual side, there's no question they did just that. Hart and Henne will leave Michigan as the career leaders in several statis- tical categories in their respective positions. Meanwhile, Michigan coach Lloyd Carr always made it a point to praise Long, an Outland Trophy finalist and first-team All-Ameri- can. Carr said the trainers told him Henne (shoulder) and Hart (ankle) will both be ready to go for the bowl game. Speaking of Carr, this com- ing New Year's Day will also be his last roaming the Wolverines' sideline. The face of the Michigan football program for the past 13 years announced his retirement Nov. 19. "I admire Lloyd Carr," Florida coach Urban Meyer said in a tele- conference. "I've had the chance to meet him, and I have a great respect for him." But the reputations of the three decorated seniors and outgoing coach have been marred by late- season failures the past four sea- sons. 0-4 against Ohio State. 0-3 in bowl games. The Wolverines still have a chance to alter the latter, even though some feel the three seniors have already done enough to etch their names in Wolverine lore. "I don't think that will be how they look at it," said running backs coach Fred Jackson regarding the winless record against Ohio State and in bowl games. "They'll look at each year being a year based on how well we did, and just go to a bowl game and win a bowl game and send them out that way." After all the heat Carr and his seniors have endured this season with the 0-2 start and the 0-2 fin- ish, an upset win might be just the way to end the unpredictable sea- son. Michigan (6-2 Big Ten, 8-4 overall) will arrive in Orlando the third-largest underdog in the bowl season (Florida is a tO-point favor- ite). Beside the clear mismatch Tebow and the Gator spread offense bring to the field, the Wol- verines,who are alreadyunranked, stand the chance of finishing out- side the Associated Press Top 25 for just the second time in the last 19 years. But these seniors don't need to be reminded. They were members - of that other team. They lost to Nebraska in the 2005 Alamo Bowl. And this coming Jan. 1 will be their chance to make good on one last goal. M' can't run from Heisman winner By DANIEL BROMWICH and JACK HERMAN Daily Sports Editors You all know the storylines. Michigan coach Lloyd Carr's last game. The supposed heat between Carr and opposing coach Urban Meyer from last season's National Championship Game hoopla. And finally Gator quarterback Tim Tebow, the newest member of the Heisman club. With all the chips seemingly stacked against the Wolverines, can they break a five-game losing streak in bowl games? Well, probably not on paper. Michigan rushing offense vs. Floridarushingdefense Mike Hart. Two words that Wolverine fans and players rejoice to see. The star running back should return to full health from a high ankle sprain after six weeks of healing time. Florida's rush defense is 11th in the country, allowing fewer than 100 yards per game on the ground and no more than 48 yards to any runner in their last four games. Hart is by far the best runner the Gators will face during the final stretch, though, and might be the best back Florida has seen all sea- son. But the Michigan offensive line has struggled to open holes for Hart late in the year, meaning it might be difficult for the big Wol- verine linemen to block the Gators' fast linebackers. Edge: Push Michigan passing offense vs. Florida passing defense Quarterback Chad Henne should sufficiently recover from the sepa- rated throwing shoulder that lim- ited him in the final games of the regular season, and his return makes the Wolverines much more explosive through the air. Receivers Mario Manning- ham, Adrian Arrington and Greg Mathews shouldn't struggle to get open against a subpar Gator sec- ondary that allowed 249 yards per game through the air and 16 pass- ing touchdowns on the year. The secondary looks like theone weak part of a Gator team that has given up 20 or more points in all but two games this season. Edge: Michigan Florida rushing offense vs. Michiganrushing defense. You could scour the country, and we're not sure you'd find a worse match-up for Michigan in this cat- egory than the Gators. Tebow, this year's Heisman Trophy winner, leads the team with 838 yards on the ground and 22 rushing touch- downs. Given how much the Wol- verines struggled to contain even Wisconsin's Tyler Donovan, they don't appear to have much of a chance here. If the Gators want to give sonme- one else a shot to run on Michigan, they have numerous options. Wide receiver Percy Harvin is one of the most dangerous players in the coun- try, and he's racked up 599 yards on the ground this season, averaging almost nine yards per carry. Tail- back Kestahn Moore isn't too far behind Harvin, either, tallying 571 rushing yards and finding the end zone six times. Edge: Florida Michigan passing defense vs. Florida passing offense You might want to just look at Michigan rushing defense vs. Flor- ida rushing offense, because either way, the Wolverines face the same problem: Tim Tebow. When Tebow isn't slashing through his line on the run, he's beating defenses through the air. In fact, he ranks as the nation's second most effective passer, completing 68 percent of his passes for over 3,100 yards and 29 touchdowns. Sure, Michigan had some suc- cess stopping spread offenses dur- ing the Big Ten season, but, as it learned late in the year, it's the run- ning quarterback that's the prob- lem. Wisconsin quarterback Tyler Donovan, for instance, scrambled from pressure often, and his threat to run often left men open down- field. Donovan's good, but he's no Tebow. Edge:Florida Special teams At its best, Michigan features a decent special teams unit. At its worst - which it plays at far more often - it's a useless one. Kicker K.C. Lopata has done an admirable job since earning his spot midseason, and he's a perfect 8-for-8 from inside 40 yards. But as his 48-yard miss against Ohio State proved, Carr needs to consider going for it on fourth down from any deeper than the 25, even if the weather is a little nicer than it was against the Buckeyes. Punter Zoltan Mesko returned to form against Ohio State, boom- ing a number of punts, including a career-long 68 yarder. But his great punts don't help as much when his teammates provide poor coverage, which is more often than not. And then there's the return team, which we can't really think of something nice to say about. Mich- igan's kick return unit is among the worst ten in the nation, and its punt return unit isn't that much better. Florida, on the other hand, fea- tures one of the nation's best return men in running back Brandon James, best punt coverage and a punt return team that has blocked four punts. Edge: Florida Intangibles Had Michigan known it would be destined for the Capital One Bowl at the start of the season, it would have considered it a disap- pointment. By the end of the year, Michigan needed luckto even make it there. Even if the Wolverines would rather not be in Orlando, it is Carr's finalgame, so they'll likely be keyed up to win it for him. And after fail- ing to accomplish some of its other goals, you'd figure the senior class would like to at least win one bowl game before it graduates. Orlando is less than a two-hour drive from the Florida campus, though, making this more or less a home game for the Gators. Edge: Push Florida 34, Michigan 21 FOR COVERAGE OVER BREAK, GO TO MICHIGANDAILY.COM. We'll post online covers, staff picks, live game blogs and Capital One Bowl coverage. Michigan offense awakens in victory over Irojans By CHRIS MESZAROS Daily Sports Writer It may have taken nine games, but for Michigan junior Carly Ben- son, better late than SOUTHERN CAL 61 never. MICHIGAN 82 The junior broke out of her early-season slump, when she averaged just more than five points a game, to score 13 points and pick up four rebounds in her team's biggest win of the year. But it was the awakening of the Michigan women's basketball team's offense that paced the Wol- verines in a dominant 82-61 victory over Southern Cal at Crisler Arena last night. Bensonwas amajorbenefactorof a fluid Michigan (6-3) offense. The Wolverines had many open looks in the first half and much of the sec- ond. Michigan knocked down 71 percent of its 3-pointers in the first half and 52 percent for the game. "It felt really good to play good because I was in a slump there for a while," Benson said. "But when you can't make a shot, you just have to play good defense and try to pick your teammates up." It was Benson's play that sus- tained the Wolverines' lead. She made two wide-open treys in a slow-paced second half. Benson's points allowed the Wolverines to maintain their lead while the Tro- jans attempted a comeback and allowed Michigan to extend its lead to 30 before bringing in the bench. The Wolverinesopened the game on a tear, scoring the first 11 points. After a strong performance against Kentucky, senior Krista Clement continued her solid play, knock- ing down a couple early threes in a nine-point first-half effort. "We executed our offense real- ly well," junior Jessica Minnfield said. "We cut to the basket and set screens for each other, and that got our offense moving." Minnfield benefited from solid possessions, shooting 3-of-3 from downtown and scoring 16 points. Center Krista Phillips also got into the 3-point groove, knocking down a three from the top of the arc. The Wolverines were also domi- nantinthe post. Sophomore Sireece Bass came in off the bench, split- ting the Trojan defense to make an acrobatic layup for her first points of the season. But perhaps most impressive was the Wolverines' defense, which shut down a team that averages more than 70 points per game. Phil- lips dominated the post, forcing the Trojans to look outside for scoring. Trailing 16-2, Southern Cal (4- 4) ran off eight points in less than a minute, but the Wolverines stood their ground and dominated the rest of the half. After taking a 20-point lead into halftime, Michigan coach Kevin Borseth was concerned his team would be complacent in the second half and allow the Trojans (ranked just outside the top 25) back into the game. "I'm never comfortable in a game," Borseth said. "You got a lead, and you always wonder some- times at what point is it going to start dissipating." Since losing at No. 16 Notre Dame last Saturday, Michigan has won against two quality teams. Borseth is not buying his team's performance of late; he knows things can fall apartjjust as quickly. But if the offense continues to play as well as they did last night, the year could get much better. I MEXICAN GRILL Chicken Burrito & Regular Drink $5.00 queso, pesto, guac extra Valid thru Dec 23, 2007 2252 S. Main (near Busch's) 3279 Washtenaw (near Whole Foods) a 2003 Qdoba Restaurant Corp. Must present coupon with order. One coupon per customer Not good with any other offer Valid only atlisted locations. Offer expires 12/23/07. Traveling Abroad Next Only mover approved by M Housing Pick upand delivery included! Boxes and tape, free delivery Store with John's Pack & Ship 665-2664 crt-crS....S Sww moeumc0 2' 0o 4W ggf