I
2C - January 3, 2008
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
GAME STATISTICS
0
Tear Stats
First Downs
Rush/Yds
Passing Yards
Offensive Plays
Total Offense
Return Yards
Conp/Att/Int
Punts/Avg
Furbles/Lost
Penalties/Yards
Tire of Poss
MICH
28
47/151
373
86
524
118
25/39/2
2/44.5
4/2
8/65
32:18
OF
18
32/230
169
66
399
93
18/34/0
3/118
1/0
9/49
27:42
4
65 65.0 65
7 7.0 7
4 4.0- 4
4 4.0 4
0
20 0
29 0
29 0
cale 4 2 6
'nglem o t a 4 2 6
Jamison 3 . ' 3
updose 2 1 3
Warren 2 1 3
Trent 2 0 2
stewa- De v e
Eeh 2 0 2
Bradon 2 0G2
tamthey ame0ou
a lopaou te|E
Bans 1 0 t
Arrinton 7 0 1
Rogers l d
BroTi 1 e1b
"It's not an upset,
because this is what's
suinosed to had enl
Michigan is supposed
to come in and beat
the SEC because we
are the Big Ten."
- Defensive end
Brandon Graham
"They were a hungry
team, they came out
ready to go, ready to
fight, and they heard
a lot about the SECo
and wanted to get a
piece of it. And they
did, unfortunately."
- Florida quarterback
Tim Tebow
"I'm glad we played
this game against a
great Florida team,
they had the Heisman
winner, they had all
the hype, we're the
underdogs, we love
being the underdogs,
we came down here in
front of a Florida crowd
and we took over the
stadium and won
the game. It's a great
ending to my career"
- senior captain
Mike Hart
"The Heisman Trophy
winner, I respect
everything he does and
I re ally like him as a
person, but when you
step out onto that field,
you're not carrying
that Heisman Trophy
around with you.
You're another player
like everyone else."
- senior safety
Jamar Adams
If freshman quarterback Ryan Mallett sticks around Ann Arbor, he could be a key component as Michigan implements coach Rich Rodriguez's spread offense. Highly touted quarterback recruit Ter-
relle Pryor, who has listed Michigan as one of his top few choices, could also thrive in the spread-option system.
I
I
A spread surprise
ORLANDO, Fla -
Heading into the Capi-
tal One Bowl, I was
pretty excited.
No, I
wasn't
exactly
thrilled
about 4
Michigan's
chances
- or lack
thereof
- against SCOTT
the defend- BELL
ing National
Champion
Florida Gators.
Instead, I was looking for-
ward to getting a glimpse into
what Michigan football might
look like in the future - by
watching Florida's offense.
Though most of the attention
was on Michigan coach Lloyd
Carr and the hoopla surround-
ing his retirement, it was hard
to ignore the buzzword that
had swept through Ann Arbor
since Dec. 17.
Spread.
Sure, the 10.5 point spread
was interesting to focus on.
Just ask the countless Wolver-
ine players who talked about
feeling disrespected by odd-
smakers who expected them
to get beat by a double-digit
margin.
But the spread most Michi-
gan fans were more interested
in was the one they expected
Florida to exclusively employ.
Much to the surprise of
well, pretty much everyone not
wearing maize and blue, Michi-
gan showed its variation of
the spread to combat a Florida
team that employs Urban Mey-
er's own version of the spread
option.
And even though Chad
Henne was never a threat to
flirt with the ground numbers
Tim Tebow or Dennis Dixon
could put up, his MVP perfor-
mance as the signal caller of
a spread attack showed just
how exciting future Michigan
offenses could be.
Rich Rodriguez, who essen-
tially invented the modern-day
version of the spread-option
offense 17 years ago, plans to
turn Michigan into a spread
team. That excited many Wol-
verine fans who had begged
for their team to get with the
changing face of college foot-
ball.
At the same time, it troubled
some football purists, who
thought a major change in foot-
ball ideology could result in a
Nebraska-like collapse from
national prominence.
Tuesday's victory didn't just
give outgoing coach Lloyd Carr
a proper sendoff. It calmed
many on-the-fence fans and
showed a spread attack can be
successful in Ann Arbor with-
out a full-scale retooling.
Considering the Gators won
the National Championship just
two years after Meyer came
and revamped their offense,
Michigan fans should be pretty
excited that a transition could
yield big results that quickly.
So whether it's Ryan Mallett
running a pass-reliant offense
or Terrelle Pryor doing his best
Pat White impression as a run-
first quarterback, next season
doesn't necessarily have to be
a rebuilding year for the Wol-
verines.
If Tuesday's game was any
indication, it could be just what
this team needs to take it to the
next level.
- Bell can be reached
at scotteb@umich.edu.
q
I
Pair of receivers display NFL potential.
By JACK HERMAN
Daily Sports Editor
ORLANDO, Fla. - Whether Adrian
Arrington and Mario Manningham will play
in the NFL next year remains undetermined
after Michigan's 41-35 win over Florida.
But if either does decide NOTEBOOK
to go pro, there definitely -
won't be any question to
whether he is pleased with how he played in
his final games.
Teaming with game MVP Chad Henne,
the duo led a Wolverine attack that recorded
more yards in a bowl game (524) than any
other Michigan team since the Point-a-Min-
ute squad in the 1902 Rose Bowl. Together,
Manningham and Arrington accounted for
more than half of those yards.
"We have a Mario Manningham and an
Adrian Arrington opposite each other, any-
thingcan happen," said wide receivers coach
Erik Campbell, who said he planned to talk to
both players about their decision concerning
the NFL.
Arrington said after the game he was still
50-50 on entering the NFL Draft. Manning-
ham would not comment on the question.
But whether it's for this year or next, both
added some footage to their highlight reels
Tuesday.
Late in the fourth quarter, Arrington (nine
catches, 153 yards) made perhaps the greatest
catchofhiscareer. Coveredtightly,Arrington
reached past Florida cornerback Markihe
Anderson, hauling in a 37-yard pass with
one hand outstretched over the defender. He
caught his second touchdown, the eventual
game-winner, two plays later while getting
into the end zone for an18-yard score.
Manningham moved further up Michi-
gan's all-time receiving lists with his touch-
down and 78 yards, but it was one of his seven
runs that might have been most impressive.
Motioning left before receiving a lateral from
Henne in stride, Manningham reversed field
all the wayback right late in the third quarter
for a 23-yard first down.
Although both might have played their
final games, it was the final game of some-
one else that mattered to both of them more.
Coach Lloyd Carr challenged both at various
points earlier this year. Above all, they said,
they wanted to win for him.
"Itmeant alot tome because me and coach
Carr, we got this little bond going on, and
it's like father-son," said Manningham, who
served a one-game suspension against East-
ern Michigan. "I respect him a lot. I'd do any-
thing for him, so we had to go out here and
send him out with a bang."
CAGING THE GATORS: The Michigan
offense received a lot of attention for open-
ing the playbook, ranging from its four-wide
receiver diamond formation to its unsuccess-
ful pass to tackle Jake Long.
But not to be outdone, the Wolverine
defense also added some new schemes.
Looking to contain Heisman Trophy win-
ner Tim Tebow, Michigan implemented a
number of new blitz packages on Tuesday.
With Florida opting for a number of empty-
backfield sets throughout the game, the extra
pressure helped limit the dual-threat quar-
terback to just 209 total yards.
"We felt like going into the game, 'Hey,
they hadn't really seen enough pressure,' "
linebackers coach Steve Szabo said. "They
want to empty, well, we're going to come
after them."
The extra pressure forced Tebow into a
number of poor throws, especially late in the
game. His final six passes fell incomplete.
Safety Jamar Adams (nine tackles, one
sack) was integral to the new scheme, help-
ing lead a Michigan defense that recorded
nine hurries.
"It felt great hitting a Heisman," defensive
lineman Tim Jamison said. "He was talking a
little trash ... we don'ttalk trashback. We just
talk with our pads. And we did it today."
ONE FINAL HONOR: A day before his team
sent him out with a final bowl win, Carr
learned he would also retire with another
award.
Honoring his on- and off-the-field contri-
butions to football, the Bobby Dodd Founda-
tion named him national coach of the year.
"When I got the call I was justspeechless,"
Carr told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
"Of all of the awards out there, you have to
know there is none more meaningful to a
coach. And this is one I really didn't expect
to receive."
4
4
a
4
Wide receiver Mario Manningham moved up Michigan's all-time receiving rankings in what
could be his final game as a Wolverine.
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